Back when Company of Heroes was released many were amazed at the progress Relic pushed forward on the RTS scene. This lightning struck a second time with the release of Dawn of War II, which, again, pushed the genre forward a good bit. Some time has passed, the dust has settled, and Relic has released a second stand-alone expansion to Company of Heroes entitled Tales of Valor, asking players to enlist in World War II yet again. Is there enough content to justify a second tour, or should gamers fake a back injury and get sent home early?

The singleplayer sees a slight expansion that can be completed in an afternoon by anyone who already knows the game's engine fairly well. Three campaigns separated into three parts each round out the game's nine additional missions. Each mission focuses on the tale of a small group of units, boiling away additional RTS elements and leaving a core experience similar to Dawn of War II's. While some missions involve creating units or capturing bases, they are usually secondary to commanding a squad down streets and through alleys, creating more intimate fights. They're different than Company of Heroes normal missions, enough so that purists (see: the stand-alone expansion's audience) might feel a bit isolated, but they're generally pretty fun.