Hearts of Iron IV - The Empire of Japan
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Hearts of Iron IV is a grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Interactive, based around the Second World War. In the game the player can take control of any nation around the world which existed during a set time period, with the choice between the years 1936 and 1939. You can then play through the game, re-enacting historical events of the time period, or changing the course of history. |
Above: One of the promotional images used for the game. |
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In Hearts of Iron IV, one of the major powers at the beginning of the game is the Empire of Japan. Japan was one of the key nations during the second world war, having begun a full scale invasion of China in 1937 and later being responsible for the United States entry to the conflict in 1941. In the game it starts with one of the largest militaries of the time, with a large army, even larger navy and reasonably sized air forces, all of which we will go into detail about later. Its industry is not the largest, but it is certainly a force to be reckoned with. In the resource department, there is an ample amount of metals, but lacks sufficient rubber and oil. This will be one of the decisive factors in driving the expansion of the Japanese player, as it did historically. | ![]() |
Above: Artwork added to the game along with the DLC Waking The Tiger, the DLC which focused on Asia, adding national focus trees to the Chinese nations, as well as expanding the Japanese focus tree. |