As Company of Heroes celebrates its 20th anniversary, several developers from Relic Entertainment have looked back on the creation of the original title and the series' evolution since then. The team noted that the film Saving Private Ryan and the miniseries Band of Brothers had a clear influence on the game, as they sought to bring the era's advancing character presentation and physics effects into a World War II real-time strategy game.
The earliest prototype of Company of Heroes was built using the Impossible Creatures engine. Lead programmer Ian Thomson recalled that the character and physics technologies showcased in Half-Life 2 deeply impressed the team, leading Relic to attempt preserving the tension of World War II battles from a top-down perspective while giving soldiers more specific battlefield reactions.
Relic referred to this design philosophy as "humanizing the battlefield." The game reinforced the presence of soldiers through voice lines, animations, and a morale system; infantry would actively seek cover and could become pinned down or retreat under heavy suppressive fire. Compared to the more functional units in StarCraft, Company of Heroes aimed to have players view each soldier as an individual character on the battlefield.
Prior to this, Relic had already adjusted traditional real-time strategy resource gathering and base-building mechanics with Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. Company of Heroes further centered its design around cover, advancement, and territory control, encouraging players to adopt tactics closer to actual battlefield maneuvers. Lead programmer Remy Saville stated that the team rarely rejected new ideas, which is why systems like cover, destructible environments, and squad tactics were all included in the game.
After the original Company of Heroes was released, PC Gamer gave it a score of 96. The game subsequently launched two expansions, Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts in 2007 and Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor in 2009. Discussions about a sequel began shortly after the initial release, but Company of Heroes 2 did not officially arrive until 2013.
Company of Heroes 2 shifted the main stage to the Eastern Front and incorporated harsh winter conditions into its gameplay: infantry exposed to low temperatures for extended periods would suffer frostbite, and frozen lakes and rivers could be blown open with grenades, causing tanks to plunge into the water. These changes gave the sequel a design direction distinct from its predecessor, but they were not embraced by all players, sparking significant controversy, particularly within the competitive multiplayer community.