World War II is a popular setting for many first-person-shooters, simulation games, and turned-based strategy games. Why? Well, it was one of the most historic events in history and stretched across the globe, involving nearly every nation. The six years of conflict were rife with compelling stories of bravery, sacrifice, heartache, victories, and defeats that changed the world even decades after the war ended. The historical events that took place offer a plethora of characters, settings, and gameplay that make up a multitude of wargame series. Here are The 10 Best Games To Take Place During World War II, Ranked.
10 War Thunder
Want to play a military based MMO game but not spend a lot of cash? Well, the free-to-play cross-platform War Thunder is the best game for that! Starting from the Spanish Civil War to the Cold War and focusing mainly on World War II, players get to compete in realistic competitive battles from the air, sea, and land. There are over 1000 different war machines based on historical documents and several different battle modes. The game still gets regularly updated with new content and events, like the 2019 April Fool's event that let players play with UFOs!
9 Return To Castle Wolfenstein
It probably is not a surprise that a Wolfenstein game is on this list of the best games set in WWII. While definitely taking a more fantasy-like approach on WWII—it's mostly based on the occultic beliefs held by Heinrich Himmler—Return to Castle Wolfenstein is an oldie but goodie first-person-shooter with a solid story mode and a very enjoyable multiplayer that has three different ways to play. Not only was the multiplayer amazing and was the most popular part of the game, but it was influential to the multiplayer genre itself.
8 Steel Division: Normandy 44
WWII based games aren't just first-person-shooters, quite a few of them are simulation based battling games focusing on tactics and strategy. And Steel Division: Normandy 44 is one of the best games for both. This real-time game offers two game modes, player versus AI or player versus player in 10 on 10 multiplayer battles. It can be a little unforgiving when it comes to the AI, but it's one of the best games for any players looking for a challenge and has one of the most historically accurate depictions of the divisions that were present in WWII.
7 Hearts Of Iron IV
Like Steel Division: Normandy 44, Hearts of Iron IV is a tactic and strategy based PC game. Focusing on more than combat, and actually taking into consideration a nation's resources and industrial capabilities, players control nations from 1936 and guide them through the tumultuous times leading up to and into WWII. This immensely detailed sandbox game allows players to change the outcome of the war. Depending on the types of strategies players come up with using the game's Battle Planner determines whether the course of the war falls in their favor or not.
6 Men Of War: Assault Squad 2
Gamers who are really into WWII era based games are probably familiar with the Men of War series. Men of War Assault Squad 2 is the 8th game in the series and sequel to the first Men of War Assault Squad. It improves on a lot of content from the first game by adding new and revamped single-player skirmishes, upgraded graphics, new units, and an expanded multiplayer to name a few. Assault Squad 2 also allows players to have massive tank battles and stealthy sniper mission across pretty immersive maps.
5 Medal Of Honor: Airborne
Despite how poorly received Medal of Honor: Warfighter was, a lot of the other Medal of Honor games are pretty solid, and one of the best is Airborne. Airborne lets players experience WWII as one of the first paratroopers in the 82nd Airborne Division. The game's single player mode is great and stands out among the rest of the Medal of Honor series by having nonlinear gameplay. Players can literally jump into any part of the map from the very beginning of the game and complete the mission objectives in any order they please.
4 IL-2: Battle of Stalingrad
WWII wasn't just fought on land and on the sea, but in the air too. The IL-2 Sturmovik series is one of the best PC combat flight simulators based on WWII around. And, while Battle of Stalingrad isn't the newest game of the series, it's still the best with detailed models of aircraft used during the war and game mechanics that simulate things like red-outs and blackouts to really let a player immerse themselves in the game. Its gameplay is great for both seasoned players and newcomers to the series and has some very enjoyable single player and multiplayer components.
3 Red Orchestra 2: Heroes Of Stalingrad
Want a WWII themed first-person-shooter that will really make a player feel like they're on the front lines? Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad is one of the best games for that. This PC game sets itself apart from other WWII first-person-shooters by having some of the most realistic game mechanics. There isn't a traditional HUD that keeps track of bullets. Rather, players have to remember or check for themselves how many rounds they have. What's more, it actually matters what players decide to take cover behind, as not all objects offer full cover or safety from bullets.
2 Battlefield 1942
Battlefield 1942 is the first game in the iconic Battlefield series. Players dive into the role of one of five classes on infantry, engineer, scout, anti-tank, assault, and medic and either fight against the game's AI in single player mode or against other players in its multiplayer mode. At the time it first came out it was one of the first games in the first-person-shooter genre to focus more on cooperative gameplay. Its main game mode is "Conquest" where teamwork was essential to capturing control points and winning the round.
1 Call Of Duty 2
And the best WWII based game is Call of Duty 2. This first-person-shooter improved upon the already fantastic game that was Call of Duty. At the time it was first released, the graphics were amazing and really increased the intensity of immersion players felt. Call of Duty 2 introduced the game mechanic of regenerating health to the series, meaning players could regain their health when not taking fire. The soundtrack is great, so is the voice acting and the ability to make custom maps, models, and other mods makes this the definitive WWII-era game to play.