Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is finally here after almost a year’s delay. Among the seemingly hundreds of Warhammer games released in over the past few years, Space Marine 2 is a standout. The high production quality and cult classic status of the original have fan expectations high, and we’ll take a look at whether Saber Interactive delivered.
War is serious business
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 puts you back in the boots of Demetrian Titus. He’s spent the last century in the Deathwatch as a Blackshield, a Space Marine with no legion. However, Titus is allowed to rejoin the Ultramarines after successfully slowing a Tyranid invasion on the planet Kadaku (and nearly being killed in the process). To save his life, he undergoes the Rubicon Primaris procedure, transforming him into a Primaris Marine and making him taller, faster, and stronger.
The story is serviceable and centers around the mysterious Project Aurora, which the Imperium believes might help them finally win the war against Chaos. The game leans heavily into the severe and grim tone of the Warhammer 40k universe, which may feel a bit one-note after a while compared to other W40K productions. A touch of dark humor or more varied character interactions could have added some much-needed depth.
Titus himself hasn’t changed much. He’s still the stoic, gravelly-voiced hero from the first game, and while his character is well-acted (by new actor Clive Standen), there isn’t much development over the course of the story. The supporting cast does their job, but they don’t leave much of an impression, which is a shame considering the amount of fan-favorite characters in the W40K universe.
Shoot, slice, repeat
The core of Space Marine 2’s appeal lies in its combat. If you’ve experienced the original game, you’ll find that not much has changed in terms of gameplay mechanics—and that’s both a strength and a weakness. Like its predecessor, Space Marine 2 is all about mowing down waves of enemies with an arsenal of heavy-duty weapons and then finishing them off with brutal melee attacks. The combat is fast-paced, visceral, and undeniably fun. Whether you’re blasting Tyranids to pieces with a Boltgun or slicing through them with your Chainsword, the action is relentless and satisfying.
Movement is a bit weightier this time around. Space Marine 2 nails the feeling of being an unstoppable force on the battlefield. Moving through the environments, you feel every step as Titus’s heavy armor clanks and thuds, giving you a real sense of presence. The weapons, too, have a satisfying heft to them. Boltguns blast with a thunderous roar and Chainswords rev as they rip through foes. Every impact sends enemies flying in a shower of blood and gore, with the executions you can perform on weakened enemies being the highlight of the spectacle.
However, while the combat is undoubtedly fun, it lacks depth. The weapons, though varied in appearance and sound, offer little mechanical variety. It’s mostly a matter of one gun firing faster, having a larger magazine than another, or this blade being quicker to strike but weaker than another. After a few hours, you’ll likely find a couple of weapons that suit your playstyle and stick with them for the rest of the game.
The melee combat, while visceral and satisfying, can become repetitive over time. While there are parries and dodges that break up the hack-and-slash gameplay, there are few new mechanics introduced past the initial hour or so to keep things fresh. The core experience remains essentially the same from start to finish, with little in the way of evolution or surprises.
A beautiful, twisted fantasy
One area where Space Marine 2 truly excels is in its visual presentation. The game is a significant step up from its predecessor, with more detailed environments, better character models, and a more vibrant color palette. Gone are the drab, gray-brown tones that characterized the first game; in their place are lush alien worlds, towering gothic cities, and war-torn battlefields that feel alive with detail and atmosphere.
The game’s art direction is top-notch, capturing the grimdark essence of the Warhammer 40k universe while injecting more color and variety into the environments. You’ll tromp through alien jungles filled with strange flora, fight your way through crumbling urban landscapes dotted with gothic architecture, and battle across desolate wastelands under ominous skies. The sense of scale in these environments is impressive, with massive structures looming in the background and battles raging on multiple fronts. The game does an excellent job of making you feel like a small part of a much larger war, with human soldiers and massive war machines fighting alongside you against the Tyranid threat.
The visual improvements extend to the character models as well. Titus and his squadmates are decked out in intricately detailed armor, complete with battle scars, emblems, and other adornments that give them a sense of history and personality. The enemies, too, are well-designed, with the Tyranids looking suitably grotesque and menacing. The game’s use of lighting and particle effects adds to the atmosphere, making each battle feel intense and chaotic.
Despite the visual improvements, some areas still feel a bit too linear and constrained. You’re often funneled down narrow paths with little room for exploration, making the game feel more limited than it should. While the environments are beautifully crafted, the lack of open spaces or alternate routes breaks the illusion and makes the levels feel more like set pieces than living, breathing worlds.
We are legion
Outside of the 12-hour campaign, which can be enjoyed solo or co-op after the initial mission, there are two multiplayer modes.
Eternal War is a PvP mode, which was so sparsely populated during the review period that I had issues finding a game. I’m guessing that, like me, most of those with early copies were focused on completing the campaign.
Operations serves as the post-game content for Space Marine 2. In this mode, you can participate in six additional PvE missions separate from the main camapign. The hook here is that you can pick from six classes of Space Marines, each with unique loadouts and abilities. You can also customize your armor with cosmetics and upgrade your weapons. Completing a mission grants you some currency, which can then be used to purchase more upgrades and cosmetics.
While Operations mode is fun, the missions take place in environments repurposed from the campaign, and don’t offer anything in the way of variety. Once you’ve played through them once, you’ve seen all they have to offer. It’d have been great if there were some RNG here where maybe you fight different eneimies or there were different paths to take through each level, but that’s not the case.
Final Verdict
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a solid but unremarkable sequel. It delivers on the promise of brutal, satisfying combat and offers some great visual moments, but it doesn’t push the envelope in any significant way. The game stays true to the formula that made the original a cult hit, but it doesn’t do much to evolve or innovate on that foundation. The story is decent, the characters are competently written, and the visual presentation is impressive. However, there’s a sense that the game is playing it safe, sticking to what worked before rather than taking risks.
SCORE: 7/10
As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 7 equates to “Good.” Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a successful piece of entertainment that is worth checking out, but it may not appeal to everyone.
Disclosure: The publisher provided a digital PC copy for our Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 review.