If you could change one little thing about HOI4, what would it be?

[Jays298]

Poland is pink on the map. Granted it doesn't exist for very long. Same with Belgium and their yellow (IIRC).

Basically darker or bolder color schemes, less washed out colors.

That's what I noticed watching the promo vids for NSB. The basic graphics and color scheme hasn't changed much in 5 years.

The map is kinda ugly (no offense to whoever made it... It is just dated).

 

[pthooie]

Message settings!

This. I haven't played the game in years specifically because it's unplayable to me without message settings.

Also, I would like focus trees to be removed and replaced with a proper diplomacy system. But I completely understand that this is not a small change and will not happen in HOI4 (and for me personally, it's not nearly as important as message settings).

 

[AlextheSwift]

Countries should keep their original color regardless of the form of govnermnet.

Canada has a nice dark red, unless you try to go independent, then you have a white, and are likely to fight Japan, who is also white, good luck.

Turkey has a nice color, but if you want go Ottoman again you change colors like a rainbow.

Yugoslavia's communist puppets path makes all the puppet nations around her blue, why? Why not keep their original color?

The only 2 cases where I like the color change are:
- Germany, from nazi black to a non-nazi dark grey.
- Russia, red because SOVIET UNION, but without SOVIET UNION, dark green or light green is more appropriate for Russia.

The rest of color changes mid-gameplay, bleah. Unnecessary and confusing.

 

[Mr.Bajskorv]

Small things.

• To be able to do multiple paradrop orders like you can naval invasions.
• Better UI concerning ship/airplane variants.
• To be able to que National Focuses and Research.
• Visual reprensentation of wrecked states.
• A notifications of generals being able to learn traits.
• Some more support variants as the Recon, i could ses some use for low tech horse based variant of logistics support company or such.
• Fleets organised in fleet templates from the start.
• Division animations of some division stats. Entenched divisions should be animated as entrenched. Naval invasions should have naval invasion animations. Divisions in mud conditions should be in mud conditions. Forts should have som visusal reprensentation to. For the sake of of immersion and micro.

 

[Duke_Dave]

Armies being downsized after the wars are over, factories being turned back into civilian use, trains, trucks convoys being used for civilian purposes. Right now world war 3 sees 100 belgian divisions fighting alongside the other allies against the Soviets.

 

[GrandVezir]

A dynamic naming system for divisions: ~2w becomes "battalion," up to ~10w "brigade," some point beyond 30w becomes "corps."

Would make it easier to tell at a glance which expeditionary/puppet divisions are more useful.

 

[maciek1918k]

I’d like to get improvements and more options to the battleplanner. I think the battleplanner itself is a very good idea but this tool should be a lot more expanded. According to me making complicated, comprehensive plans for entire campaigns which don’t need a lot of micro to be executed should be the most satisfying part of the game. I have some propositions to make battleplanner better in my opinion:

1) option to group divisions belonging to one army into corps to make it easier to give them different orders (sometimes it’s very annoying to assign every single division separately and there is no clear information which division is currently assigned to given order);

2) option to choose which type of division should attack first (generally or in given terrain type) when you give entire army one offensive order. Now i have to micro to be sure that my tank divisions lead the attack and infantry stay in reserve etc.;

3) option to choose which type of division should stay back and defend only when you give entire army one offensive order. Now I have to make two parallel frontlines when I want to order my infantry to stay in defense behind attacking tanks or other offensive division types, which makes terrible mess when entire front moves forward;

4) option to designate conditions under wich divisions will try to withdraw from battle;

5) option to order divisions to attack only from two or more sides unless the enemy is much weaker.

I’d also like to see more legible navy rules of engagement or even possibility to precisely define own ROE for single taks forces (e.g. possibility to order specialized destroyers task force to attack only enemy submarines). More coordination between taks forces which are going to start or join the battle would be great too.​

 

[MrMcQue]

Poland is pink on the map.

Well, it has to be a different shade of red than the Soviet Union so the player can quickly differentiate between the two. Also it is now more in line with the (also finally brought to the game with NSB) historical shade of red (vermilion) on the Polish flag between 1927 and 1980.

 

[Lord_Boreas]

Teleporting planes. Bombers bombing in say the Rhineland would have to pass through the Benelux for example not just suddenly appear there.

 

[Medu Salem]

Small things...

• WASD camera movement.
• Some more customizable notifications for certain situations.
  • When Fuel, army command or any of the XP is full... to avoid the "omg how many weeks have I not noticed that my stock is full?" moments.
  • When you can schedule a new upgrade for the intelligence agency. Often tend to forget about that.
  • When you can start a prepared intelligence mission. If you ever forget to click on commence when ready it never reminds you again, until you remember yourself.
• That you can't decide yourself when you actually want to activate and use up a 100% bonus in research. If you want to avoid using it you always have to time and work around it if you don't want to waste it yet. (especially as Germany after Four Year Plan & Autarky with the Industry/Extraction boni.)

There is probably tons of other small things I can't think of now and only remember when the situation happens again.

 

[LordWahu]

I'd love to see more intelligence missions

Assassinating generals, actively capturing and turning enemy agents, sabotaging orders, etc.

 

[him_15]

Move historical generals available.

 

[wyskass]

There are many subjective improvements and suggestions, I'd make, but just want to state one major annoyance, that should be repeated over and over until it's changed.

STOP THE MODAL POPUPS
Specifically, war participant notifications, at war declaration.
Create a news scroll area, for information that just needs to be seen, without having to stop game play.

I dread declaring war, and the inevitable stream of constant popups for the next few minutes. This is the exact time where you want fewest distractions. As hostilities start you are monitoring progress and being distracted and taken out of it. I don't care that Guyana is joining the war with their one division. In general software UI, a Modal dialog box where you need to click Ok, is only required where it will affect your next action. None of this information requires stopping the game basically. We already know that the countries from the enemy faction will be joining.
On that note.. for events that matter, like when there's in invasion on my land far off area of focus.. there is not a peep. I can lose multiple provinces without knowing, yet they force me to acknowledge already expected information.
So, just needed to rant.

Other that this which while won't stop me from playing the game is super annoying.
I know in NSB, they will be giving an option to lessen these messages, so hopefully it will be smoothly playable finally.

 

[pthooie]

There are many subjective improvements and suggestions, I'd make, but just want to state one major annoyance, that should be repeated over and over until it's changed.

STOP THE MODAL POPUPS
Specifically, war participant notifications, at war declaration.
Create a news scroll area, for information that just needs to be seen, without having to stop game play.

I dread declaring war, and the inevitable stream of constant popups for the next few minutes. This is the exact time where you want fewest distractions. As hostilities start you are monitoring progress and being distracted and taken out of it. I don't care that Guyana is joining the war with their one division. In general software UI, a Modal dialog box where you need to click Ok, is only required where it will affect your next action. None of this information requires stopping the game basically. We already know that the countries from the enemy faction will be joining.
On that note.. for events that matter, like when there's in invasion on my land far off area of focus.. there is not a peep. I can lose multiple provinces without knowing, yet they force me to acknowledge already expected information.
So, just needed to rant.

Other that this which while won't stop me from playing the game is super annoying.
I know in NSB, they will be giving an option to lessen these messages, so hopefully it will be smoothly playable finally.

This is exactly the problem that would be solved by message settings. Personally, I want a lot more popups, and I want most of them to automatically pause the game. You want fewer popups and to move some of the existing ones to a message feed. If the game had message settings, we would both be happy because we would be able to customize which messages are displayed and how.

 

[wyskass]

This is exactly the problem that would be solved by message settings. Personally, I want a lot more popups, and I want most of them to automatically pause the game. You want fewer popups and to move some of the existing ones to a message feed. If the game had message settings, we would both be happy because we would be able to customize which messages are displayed and how.

Yes, sure that would be a good solution. Making it configurable. For instance, I want to be notified of actual naval invasion with a modal popup.

 

[abcdea]

Air combat needs to be completely redone. Losses should be much more realistic, and bomber whack-a-mole needs to be fixed.

At least the option of more realistic manpower, so that for instance the Japanese conquering me as China when I have inflicted 4-5 million casualties is no longer possible.

I'd love to see at least most of the majors have 'National Philosophies' or something, so that for instance the US tank destroyer doctrine, or Japanese naval aircraft having huge range at the expense of other factors, would be represented.

It would be interesting to see how equipment such as tanks or aircraft having historical stats would affect play. It would certainly make certain countries much more difficult.

 

[DrrD]

Not sure this is little, but tactics are kind of a black box unless you have the time to watch many battles.

A report like we get with navy would help. Give a summary of what tactics were used, how many times, how often they were countered, and average bonuses/maluses, for the last month and year. For attack and defense and for own army and opponents. (opponent report could probably be simplified.)


This way you have more data to use for adjustments. IRL it was common to observe an opponent's tactics and adapt. In game now you would have to jump from battle to battle and really study what tactics are chosen and this would be very time consuming and difficult.

 

[LordWahu]

Not sure this is little, but tactics are kind of a black box unless you have the time to watch many battles.

A report like we get with navy would help. Give a summary of what tactics were used, how many times, how often they were countered, and average bonuses/maluses, for the last month and year. For attack and defense and for own army and opponents. (opponent report could probably be simplified.)


This way you have more data to use for adjustments. IRL it was common to observe an opponent's tactics and adapt. In game now you would have to jump from battle to battle and really study what tactics are chosen and this would be very time consuming and difficult.

I very much like this idea
There's already a battle summary box in the theatre menu, it would be nice to have that expanded upon

 

[Lamartine]

Let us see the AI priorities / demands they will make in their turn at the peace conference, if we are in the same faction or we have a strong enough spy network in that ai nation. Fold it into a general rework of peace conferences.

 

[AngryEmpire]

I would like to be able to embargo nations as part of some kind of expanded diplomacy DLC, or at least have historical embargoes present in the game through decisions.