Game: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine
Developer: Relic Entertainment
Grade: C
When a game developer fades into their game with: "In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war," there are two appropriate responses: either return that game immediately for a full refund, or sit back and turn off the lights, as this will be one of the best cinematic representations of plastic miniatures that the world has ever seen.
Thankfully, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is much closer to the latter.
This frenetic shooter places players in the middle of a sizable Ork invasion, and while the fate of the planet's population could ride on the Ultramarines' shoulders, HQ would rather not take that risk. Instead, they'd rather forgo humanity and save the one piece of artillery that will certainly end this impromptu conflict, an Imperator-class Titan.
Space Marine finds the subtle balance of hack-and-slash, chain-sword fisticuffs and long-range scoped combat that meld together to create the feeling of a walking tank. Unfortunately, the player will move like said tank too. Overall, the game's most basic controls and physics play out much like EPIC's critically acclaimed trilogy, Gears of War.
Where Space Marine trails off the gory path, however, is the addition of "Rage Mode." An aura of power engulfs the marine, letting loose his nearly inhuman killing power, leaving only a bloodied pool of Ork organs in his wake.
In terms on sheer firepower Warhammer 40k is no slouch, but in a world built around war, one would think that there'd be more to choose from than the standard Bolter weapons and relatively unexciting plasma guns. Although players are able to customize their load-outs at one of the many armory drop-pods littering the planet, there's never an unsatisfied want for the best weapon in the infinitesimal set.
While the path of war is best faced with friends, Space Marine supports no local or online co-op play, making the pathway through a thousand Ork corpses a lonely one. Admittedly, the game has some online multiplayer, but it does little to keep the player entertained once the campaign has come and gone. Even beginning to explore the online realm can be an issue, however, as the game is currently lacking an extensive fan-base.
Years ago, Relic Entertainment took the realm of die and tabletop warfare and created a masterpiece, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. Unlike its real time strategy brethren, Space Marine is just not there. Yet.
Honestly, at times the game feels more like a product demo than it does a full release. With the backing lore to fill up an entire library, you would think Relic would've had the opportunity to include more than the homely looking green-skins, but at least the team went for quality, opposed to quantity.
Relic does well to capture the heart of the Warhammer world, its strategy. Each level feels unique and distinct from any that came before it. From sewers to barren wastes, each area of conflict allows for a different approach.
For example, while the unwieldy power axe may be able to mow through a pack of the smaller foes on open terrain, when put up against the Ork elites, hand-to-hand combat usually ends in swift and utter Orkish retribution.
The game faces three unforgivable flaws that will ultimately place it in the realm renting, rather than that of buying. Beyond the linear campaign and slim online pickings, the game lacks shelf life. Compounding this issue is the game's absolutely savage difficulty and truly despicable exclusion of a cover-system. Finally, "Horde Mode," which essentially comprises 95 percent of the game's premise, won't be playable with friends for another 30 days.
For Warhammer fan boys this will hopefully serve as the first of many attempts at a foray into the shooter sphere, and mostly, the game accomplishes exactly what it set out to do. That being said, there is so much potential left unanswered. So many Orks will be left un-slain, due in part to the game's lackluster polish and shallow development.
Email:arts@ubspectrum.com
