PLATFORM: PC, PS5, XBOX SERIES (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
It’s taken thirteen years, but the follow-up to 2011’s cult classic Space Marine game is now upon us. Overshadowed at the time by the release of Gears of War 3, the original Space Marine‘s unique blend of ranged gunplay and close-quarters melee combat earned plaudits from the press and Warhammer fans alike, but didn’t quite manage to find a place in the hearts of the masses. Will Space Marine 2 manage to accomplish what its predecessor missed out on?
Split across three modes, Space Marine 2 features a story-based campaign as well as two multiplayer modes. In the campaign, supersoldier Demetrian Titus is accompanied by two battle brothers who are controlled by the computer in solo play or, if you prefer, human players can join online. During the course of the 10-hour story, your main enemies will be the skittering Tyranids and, later, the Forces of Chaos, and you’re armed with the same combination of guns and melee weapons that were found in the original game. Titus can perform a handful of melee combos to take down the swarms of creatures, while parrying enemy attacks leaves foes stunned and open to a quick gunshot and follow-up execution (a bit like Doom 2016‘s glory kills, but less gruesome). It all works well, and taking down swarms of enemies is great fun once you’ve got the hang of it, but Titus’s attacks feel a bit light – considering the size of him, you might expect the impact of his weapons to be a bit more crunchy and squelchy than they currently are. There’s not a huge amount of variety to the enemies you’ll face, nor is there too much difference between the (undeniably attractive) environments, and unfortunately each mission follows a very similar “go to the waypoint and defend it against a few waves of enemies” structure, so a feeling of repetition setting in very quickly.
“Operations” mode tells the story of other squads who were involved (but not playable) in the main campaign (which must be completed to unlock four of the six Operations missions). The objectives stay roughly the same – reaching checkpoints and defending them against swarms of tyranids, flanked by two human or computer-controlled squadmates – but now you’re able to choose from six different classes, each with a slightly different playstyle and range of abilities, and you’ll earn experience points based on your performance. As you level up, you’re able to equip perks for both your own character and also your entire squad, as well as unlocking plenty of customisation options to change your appearance. The weapons you use will also gain experience, becoming stronger as your mastery increases. Far more engaging than the main campaign, the rewards in this mode provide some extra motivation and reward that the campaign is lacking, although with only six missions available at launch, the mileage you might get from Operations will vary between players.
Last up, the team-based PvP mode, Endless War, pits two teams of six against each other across three game types – Seize Ground, Capture & Control, and Annihilation. Seize and Capture are fairly similar – one tasks both teams with claiming four areas of a small map, while the other brings everyone together in an attempt to take over a single larger area. Annihilation is the Deathmatch mode, with both teams trying to score as many kills as possible. If you’re a huge Warhammer fan who loves multiplayer games then there’s certainly a lot of fun to be had with Endless War but, similar to Operations, there isn’t a huge amount of content at this point in time. The addition of new missions, weapons and enemies has been announced for an unspecified time post-launch and will be free of charge, but which modes these might appear in is currently unknown. For now, Space Marine 2 will delight Warhammer fans with its lavish interpretation of the source material, but doesn’t quite contain the content and variety to make it a must-play for those unfamiliar with the 40K franchise.
