When Relic Entertainment released Company of Heroes 2 in 2013, it marked a shift in the series. While the original Company of Heroes was a staple of college dorms and basement LAN parties, the sequel embraced the era of "always-online" gaming. The game launched on Steam and utilized Steam’s VAC (Valve Anti-Cheat) systems. This meant that to play any mode—even a skirmish against AI bots on a private local network—every player had to log into Relic’s servers via the internet.
has rolled out a quiet but significant update to Company of Heroes 2 , a title that continues to hold a loyal following nearly a decade after its initial release. While many had assumed development had ceased entirely, a new patch (v4.2.0.30452) focuses on a specific, highly-requested feature: Local Area Network (LAN) support. company of heroes 2 lan updated