Hearts of Iron IV vs The Escapists 2
Hearts of Iron IV is an open-world sandbox game from Paradox Development Studio (2016) while The Escapists 2 is an open-world puzzle game from Team17 (2017).
Quick answer: Hearts of Iron IV rates higher, 8.4 to 7.8 on the GamingPickz Score, and The Escapists 2 is the cheaper at $19.99.
What each one is
Hearts of Iron IV is filed under Open-World and Sandbox. In contrast, The Escapists 2 under Open-World and Puzzle.
Victory is at your fingertips! Your ability to lead your nation is your supreme weapon, the strategy game Hearts of Iron IV lets you take command of any nation in World War II; the most engaging conflict in world history.
Craft, Steal, Brawl and Escape! It’s time to bust out of the toughest prisons in the world as you return to the life of an inmate in The Escapists 2, now with multiplayer! Have you got what it takes to escape?
Story, characters and reception
Reception
Reception Hearts of Iron IV was a commercial success. It sold more than 200,000 units within two weeks of its launch, which made it the fastest-selling historically themed Paradox title by that time, ahead of Crusader Kings II and Europa Universalis IV . The game's sales surpassed 500,000 units in February 2017, and 1 million units in May 2018. (Wikipedia)
Reception
Reception The game received generally positive reviews from critics according to review aggregator website Metacritic . The Russian magazine Igromania praised the game's humor, characters, variety of maps, and the option to play multiplayer, while somewhat criticizing the interface, specifically the dialog boxes . ^ "The Escapists 2 for PC Reviews" . (Wikipedia)
At a glance
| Hearts of Iron IV | The Escapists 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 8.4/10 | 7.8/10 |
| Steam rating | Very Positive (90%, 375,658) | Very Positive (91%, 33,775) |
| Critic aggregate | 83/100 | 75/100 |
| Price | $49.99 | $19.99 |
| Install size | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| Steam Deck | playable | playable |
| Released | 2016 | 2017 |
| Developer | Paradox Development Studio | Team17 |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Hearts of Iron IV vs The Escapists 2, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Hearts of Iron IVOpen-world sandbox gameThe Escapists 2Open-world puzzle gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Hearts of Iron IVStrategy, World War II, Grand StrategyThe Escapists 2Strategy, Pixel Graphics, Online Co-OpThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Hearts of Iron IV ✓Score 8.4 · 90% on Steam · 83 criticThe Escapists 2Score 7.8 · 91% on Steam · 75 criticThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Hearts of Iron IV375,658 reviews · 24 add-ons · 2 GBThe Escapists 233,775 reviews · 5 add-ons · 4 GBReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Hearts of Iron IV$49.99The Escapists 2 ✓$19.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Hearts of Iron IVPlayableThe Escapists 2PlayableValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Across the rounds a number can settle, it is level at 1 each. Which one is "better" is the part no figure decides, so we leave it to what you want from the two.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueHearts of Iron IV and The Escapists 2 on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The higher-rated of the two: Hearts of Iron IV (GamingPickz Score 8.4)
- The cheaper right now: The Escapists 2 ($19.99)
- Lighter on storage: Hearts of Iron IV (2 GB)
- The safer bet by weight of reviews: Hearts of Iron IV (375,658 reviews)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
StrategyMultiplayerSimulationSingleplayerSandboxCo-opOpen WorldAction
Where they differ
World War IIGrand StrategyWarHistoricalMilitaryAlternate History
Pixel GraphicsOnline Co-Op2DCraftingLocal Co-OpIndie
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Hearts of Iron IV is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. The Escapists 2 is demanding, for players who want a challenge.
System requirements, side by side
| Hearts of Iron IV | The Escapists 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum GPU | Nvidia® GeForce™ GTX 470 (1.28GB) | Intel 4400 |
| Minimum CPU | Intel® Core™ i5 750 | Intel Core Duo E6600 @ 2.4GHz |
| Minimum RAM | 4 GB | 2 GB |
| Install size | 2 GB | 4 GB |
Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Hearts of Iron IV · The Escapists 2.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 0 accessibility features for Hearts of Iron IV and 1 for The Escapists 2. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Hearts of Iron IV and The Escapists 2 in scope?
Hearts of Iron IV has drawn 375,658 Steam reviews, ships 24 add-ons and installs in 2 GB. The Escapists 2 has drawn 33,775 Steam reviews, ships 5 add-ons and installs in 4 GB.
Is Hearts of Iron IV or The Escapists 2 better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Hearts of Iron IV rates higher (8.4 to 7.8). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Hearts of Iron IV or The Escapists 2?
The Escapists 2 is cheaper right now at $19.99, against $49.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Should I get Hearts of Iron IV or The Escapists 2?
Hearts of Iron IV rates higher, 8.4 to 7.8 on the GamingPickz Score, and The Escapists 2 is the cheaper at $19.99. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
How we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.