Company of Heroes 3: Dare & Destroy Review – New Battlegroups, Familiar Drama
A hands-on look at the Dare & Destroy Battlegroup DLC: four new playstyles, great moments and ongoing controversies over price and balance.
I jumped into Dare & Destroy with the mix of excitement and mild dread that nowadays accompanies any CoH3 update: the promise of new units and niche strategies, tempered by months of pricing and balance debates in the player base. As a long-time CoH player I was curious whether these four Battlegroups would meaningfully change multiplayer and skirmish options or just add another set of flashy trailers. What stood out immediately was design ambition — from Maginot-style turrets for Free France to the theatrical Sturmtiger for the Wehrmacht — but equally obvious were the tears in the community fabric: price complaints, balance gripes and cosmetic bugs. This review looks at how the DLC plays, what is genuinely fun, and where Relic still needs to clean house.
Holding the Line, Then Pushing Through
The Free French battlegroup plays like a defensive chess set that occasionally flips into a tank duel, which I appreciated because it forces different tempos instead of the usual rush-and-blow-up approach. You start by layering riflemen into bastions, placing tourelle defenses and relying on railway artillery to soften approaches while the Char B1 bumbles into the fray as a slow, stubborn punch. It rewards patience and timing: I found games where I stalled for two minutes then exploded into a counterattack to be the most satisfying, and losing because I mis-timed an artillery salvo felt properly punishing rather than cheap. The pacing means you can't treat this DLC as a one-note novelty—each match asked me to read the map and enemy tendencies. In short, it turns defensive play into a legitimately aggressive strategy when you get the timing right.
Break the Fort, Reap the Rewards
The Wehrmacht "Siege Breaker" set is all about testing and breaking lines with specialized siege tools, and yes, the Sturmtiger will make you grin even if it occasionally feels like a sledgehammer turned up to eleven. I liked the way flame halftracks and siege specialists create openings that feel earned rather than handed out, but I also ran into matches where a single heavy tank swing decided the outcome, which underlined the existing debates about balance. The battlegroup encourages methodical play — probe, bait, commit — and rewards players who can coordinate infantry and armor rather than spamming one unit type. It’s satisfying when it clicks, and maddening when the opponent already has the counters queued.
Raids, Desert Aces and the Art of Harassment
British Special Services are the raid-happy counterpoint to the slow Free French: commandos, snipers and raiding vehicles that punish holes in supply lines and force you to babysit resource points constantly. I loved games where hit-and-run play dismantled an unguarded econ; those felt cinematic and clever. On the other end, the Deutsches Afrikakorps leans into veteran infantry, ace Stuka squadrons and heavy-hitting Tiger Aces that create a fast, aggressive playstyle that can steamroll if unchecked. Together, the four battlegroups broaden the tactical palette in a way that makes skirmish parties and custom lobbies more varied than before.
Looks, Sound and How It Runs
Visually the new units and turrets fit CoH3’s modern, slightly-saturated aesthetic and the new vehicle models are crisp; I especially liked the Char B1’s silhouette and the Sturmtiger’s absurd profile. Sound design is a mixed bag for me: railway artillery and Sturmtiger booms land with satisfying thuds, but some SFX and vehicle audio still feel thin compared to classic CoH moments — a complaint some players echo in the forums. Performance on Windows was stable during my sessions, with only occasional hitches during large-scale fights, and accessibility options are typical of Relic’s recent patches. Cosmetic application bugs reported by players (some decals not appearing on certain vehicles) did crop up in the wild and are worth an eye before purchase.
Dare & Destroy is a solid content drop that expands Company of Heroes 3’s tactical options and delivers some truly fun units, but it arrives wrapped in community headaches: pricing debates, balance teething and cosmetic headaches. If you live for RT S variety, the four battlegroups are worth trying — ideally on sale — but competitive players should be prepared for a period of adjustments and hotfixes. I’d recommend it to fans who want more toys and new match flavors, and caution the wallet-conscious or balance purists.
Pros
- Four distinct battlegroups that meaningfully diversify skirmish and multiplayer tactics.
- Some genuinely fun units (Sturmtiger, Char B1, Tiger Ace) that create memorable moments.
- Relic continues to support CoH3 with regular updates and balance passes.
- Good variety between defensive, siege, raid and veteran playstyles.
Cons
- DLC pricing and perceived nickel-and-diming frustrate parts of the community.
- Balance feels shaky at times; a single heavy unit can decide matches.
- Cosmetic/application bugs and thin SFX in places annoy immersion.
Player Opinion
Player feedback is a mixed bag that matches my experience: many praise the new battlegroups and say the DLC adds fun, varied options to multiplayer and skirmish, especially calling out the British Special Services and the Sturmtiger as highlights. At the same time, complaints about the $25 price point for four battlegroups are common, with some users feeling priced out or tired of constant paid content in a live-service model. Balance concerns recur — complaints that German battlegroups feel overpowered or that certain buffs/nerfs are poorly timed appear frequently — and cosmetic bugs (some skins not applying correctly) pop up in reports and threads. A contingent of fans defends Relic, pointing to steady updates and meaningful content drops, while another faction says trailers overpromise or that the in-game reality doesn’t match cinematic promos. If you’re the sort who cares about variety and unit toys, you’ll find things to love; if you’re sensitive to price and parity, expect to grumble.