Developer Diary | Congo

Why Congo though? I know there was some surprise at their inclusion in this expansion, but there is a good reason for it. Namely, they contributed a lot more to the Second World War than you likely realize, plus they were of course intrinsically linked together with Belgium. It was their gold and diamonds which kept the Belgian Government in Exile solvent, meaning that they did not need any donations or loans from the other Allied nations. Congolese soldiers fought in the Force Publique together with other Allied troops against the Italians in Ethiopia. Congolese rubber production was expanded following the fall of South East Asia to Japan, and other raw materials were heavily developed for the war effort, particularly copper and cobalt.

Plus, of course Congo’s Uranium was vital to the Manhattan Project, as Congo had at the time the largest known Uranium deposit in the world.

Now, I am well aware of the elephant in the room. Belgium’s relationship with Congo has not always been benign, and there was a period where horrible atrocities occurred, particularly under King Leopold II (King Leopold III’s grandfather). While the situation in Congo during the Second World War had significantly improved from those dark days, things were by no means perfect. I would remind you however, that this is a war game, focusing on the war and as such we are most interested in Congo’s contribution to the conflict at large.

Now, with that said, let’s get stuck in!

Behold! The Congo Focus Tree in all its glory!

And now for some reason, I’m going to show you a part of the Belgian Focus Tree.

The fog has been lifted, and you can finally see some of those focuses look a little… different.

Colonial Branch

You might notice that they share a rather large part in common, well this is the joint Colonial Branch that both countries share. There are parts which only one country can do (denoted by the singular flags) and there are parts which either country can do (denoted by both flags, side by side). As one country completes a focus in this section, it will also be completed for the other, with both nations getting something from it.

Belgium must complete Monetary Reconstruction from their Industrial branch, and then Congo Investments and ideally Societe Generale de Belgique to gain access. Congo meanwhile, must do Belgian Congo and then Heart of Africa.

So how does all this work? Well let’s give you some examples.

The bunting flags beneath the focus show who can do what

Everyone gets something, regardless of who completes it

Both countries have modifiers that these will generally improve. For Belgium it’s Colonial Returns. For Congo its the Model Colony.

Societe Generale de Belgique: Completed by Belgium. Improves Congo’s Model Colony with better construction while also improving Belgium’s Colonial Returns with some Political Power Gain.

The Heart of Africa: Completed by Congo. Improves Model Colony with Research Speed for Congo, and gives +75 Political Power to Belgium.

Bakwanga Mine: Completed by either Belgium or Congo.