1936 - 1939 is where Hearts of Iron IV is most like a grand strategy game, before it transforms into a wargame. I’m picking the 1936 start because beginning the game in ‘39 means there’s almost no time to prepare before the war kicks off, which also means fewer ahistorical communist shenanigans.

Not just a World War II simulator, it’s a What If scenario generator, answering the big questions like: how can Germany win the war? Can Argentina take over South America? And, of course, what if the UK was communist? Let’s find out.īefore we get started – I know! Ugh! More preamble – let’s talk about the setup. To give direction to my aimless pondering I fired up Paradox’s grand strategy-wargame hybrid, Hearts of Iron IV. Would I finally have the confidence to pull off a bushy, Stalinesque moustache? Would those red trousers which I bought on a day I lost all sense, but never wore, suddenly look good on me? What if the UK was communist, I wondered as I munched on a gruesome burger from McDonalds while browsing for a new pair of Converses on my oversized smartphone.

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