Having almost completed the singleplayer mission I have to say that what impresses me the most is the visual aspect of the game. While it may not be the most cutting edge graphics (at least according to some reviews I've read), the folks at Relic have managed to catch the very specific atmosphere of the 41st millennium. As I guided Captain Titus through the missions and objectives, I really felt immersed in the setting and the story and I might as well have been reading a Dan Abnett novel.
The gameplay is hectic and rather varied. There's a good mix of ranged and melee combat, often both kinds in the same encounter and in this aspect Relic really managed to capture the feel of what it must mean to be among the Emperor's finest. Captain Titus really can take quite the beating and can inflict an insane amount of kick-ass.
As far as multiplayer's concerned, that's the weak spot for the game, in my opinion. Don't get me wrong. It's fun as hell but unless new features are added to multiplayer (new modes, more equipment, more perks, etc.), I fear the fun may not last all that long. The customizer's fun to tinker with but at the end of the day, you'll settle on an armor scheme relatively quickly or, in my case, just go with one of the armor sets, such as the Black Templar set.
I spent last weekend (Sept. 9-11) playing the multiplayer game with my brothers and some friends and it was a joy. That said, when the LAN party came to an end, I didn't feel an urge to rush home, set up my computer, and find some Chaos Marines to kill. Of course, that may have been the case with any game after a weekend of almost nonstop action.
All in all, a very enjoyable game.
The gameplay is hectic and rather varied. There's a good mix of ranged and melee combat, often both kinds in the same encounter and in this aspect Relic really managed to capture the feel of what it must mean to be among the Emperor's finest. Captain Titus really can take quite the beating and can inflict an insane amount of kick-ass.
As far as multiplayer's concerned, that's the weak spot for the game, in my opinion. Don't get me wrong. It's fun as hell but unless new features are added to multiplayer (new modes, more equipment, more perks, etc.), I fear the fun may not last all that long. The customizer's fun to tinker with but at the end of the day, you'll settle on an armor scheme relatively quickly or, in my case, just go with one of the armor sets, such as the Black Templar set.
I spent last weekend (Sept. 9-11) playing the multiplayer game with my brothers and some friends and it was a joy. That said, when the LAN party came to an end, I didn't feel an urge to rush home, set up my computer, and find some Chaos Marines to kill. Of course, that may have been the case with any game after a weekend of almost nonstop action.
All in all, a very enjoyable game.
Published in the late 80s, Games Workshops’ products began to dominate gaming stores, and it always seemed that when I stopped by my local gaming store, there would be one or two tables surrounded by players with a 40K battle running in full swing. No one can argue that the combination of a rich and detailed fantasy/science fiction setting, coupled with awesome miniatures was bound to make the game an almost instant hit among the wargaming community.
But the game play is visceral and fun once you get the controls down, and the seamless ability to switch from using a gun to a melee weapon is absolutely fantastic. For PC play, mouse 1 fires your selected gun, while mouse 2 swings your melee weapon, which negates the problem of having to switch weapons to deal with Orks in your face. And later when you get your chainsword and power axe, it’s almost more fun to wade into melee combat than fire a gun, although that enjoyment becomes short lived when a Nob or a Bomb Squig shows up! Chainsword + Bomb Squig = Dead Space Marine.
And of course, there are frag grenades, plasma guns, and lasers, all the fun high tech weapons one would expect in a futuristic Space Marine game.
