In my teenage years, I discovered the tabletop juggernaut ‘Warhammer’. This discovery was also during my love affair of ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ which continues to this day. The discovery of the Warhammer world opened not only new ways to represent Dungeons and Dragons around the gaming table with my friends but also a whole new type of game and a new franchise with deep lore and discovery. Spending hundreds of dollars on models and books, followed by hours of painting, sculpting, and devising backstories for my troops.

My imagination would run wild with fantasies of what it would be like for the troops on the battlefield. As technology improved many Warhammer video games would be released tapping into that imagination, exciting the teenager within, sometimes delivering and other times disappointing. When seeing developer Saber Interactive’s and publisher Focus Entertainment’s ‘Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2’, it immediately became one of my most anticipated games. Never had I seen the gameplay of the Warhammer franchise capture what my imagination had envisioned as a teenager. With the release of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, I can report if it has lived up to my hype, and I finally had the chance to try out our dedicated benchmarking system, generously provided by ASUS.

We’ve had a few upgrades since we last trialed a game on it, with an ASUS ROG Strix Z790-A Gaming WIFI II Motherboard along with previously supplied ASUS TUF Gaming 1000W Gold White edition PSU, and the ASUS ROG Strix LC III 360 ARGB AIO Liquid cooler, but we had also received an ASUS TUFF Gaming AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT to review, and I was fortunate enough to use our benchmarking system while this was installed.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 takes place 100 years after Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine, where again you fill the boots of Demetrian Titus. Demetrian Titus was part of the defence of planet Kadaku when the Tyranids began their invasion. Successfully deploying countermeasures to slow the invasion Demetrian Titus was inevitably killed.

However, death can’t keep Demetrian Titus down. Resurrected, he looks upon Kadaku and Avarax fending off the Tyranid hordes. Assigned to a new team, Demetrian Titus leads Gadriel and Chairon into the fray to repel the never-ending stream of teeth and claws of the Tyranids.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a third-person action co-op shooter. In the Campaign Mode you will control Demetrian Titus, and the A.I. will control Gadriel and Chairon. As you progress, the Campaign Mode missions will arise where you will be given command of additional Space Marines. These extra troops are sent out on side quests that assist Demetrian Titus with his main objective in Campaign Mode. These side quests can be found in Operations Mode which I will tell you more about later.

A very competent tutorial will begin your journey teaching you the basics of movement, attacking, targeting, and most importantly how to parry and execute the enemy. Timing the parry, or executing a stunned enemy is incredibly fulfilling as you destroy them in a burst of red liquid. The execution feature has an additional effect, so it is not only a visual treat, but it also has a mechanical purpose. Executions replenish lost armour keeping you in the fight longer, and since the Tyrandis massively outnumber you, keeping your armour topped up is very important.

When you are not battling the relentless Tyranid horde you will be aboard the Battle Barge in high orbit above the planets. The Battle Barge operates as a hub allowing you to review missions, customise your loadout, and cosmetically change your appearance. It is also here on the Battle Barge you will be able to play other modes like Operations Mode and Eternal War Mode.

Operations Mode as mentioned earlier are side missions to the Campaign Mode, but here you will control a Space Marine of your own making. With co-op partners, you will complete tasks and earn experience to improve your Space Marine and used weapons. However, the experience you earn goes specifically to the class you are playing in the mission and there are six classes to choose from.

The six classes are Tactical, Assault, Vanguard, Bulwark, Sniper, and Heavy, and each one has its suite of skills, abilities, and cosmetics to unlock. Once unlocked though you will need to spend currency you earn from completing the Operations Mode mission to equip the skill or ability. Cooperation is not mandatory as you can go alone against the Tyranids as the A.I. will control the other Space Marines in the team, but playing with others is much more fun.

The depth of cosmetic customisation available is astounding. The customisation is so deep it had me regressing to my teenage years of painting and sculpting my troops. Yes, reader you read correctly; customisation is not dissimilar to tabletop miniatures. Being able to hand pick specific parts for your Space Marine, and mix and match the parts gives a level of ownership to your Space Marine I’ve never experienced before.

I could go on and on about this but by the time you finish reading, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 3 will probably be a thing. One last thing I will say before moving on is that if Ultramarines aren’t your thing, that’s ok, you can purchase different factions like Blood Angels and Space Wolves, for example.

Eternal War Mode is six versus six, a player versus player mode, with three different play styles. The styles are not uncommon from other player versus player you’d know, having the classic deathmatch, seize ground, and capture and control. Unfortunately, Eternal War Mode is not yet available and with no information on when it will be, I can only assume this is a decision to either finalise a smooth integration into the game or a ploy to keep the player base locked in a little longer as to not wrought the system by unlocking everything at lightning speed.

Graphically, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is fantastic. The realistic rendering of this space science fiction setting within the 40,000 universe is spot on. My reverted teenage brain oohs and ahhs at everything.

From the environments of spectacular grandeur, the character models in gameplay and cutscenes, the bursting of Tyranids into giblets, the weapon fire and explosions, to the finest details on weapons, armour, and objects. I was so permanently in awe and constantly requesting my partner to bring me a fresh towel to mop up all the drool.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 also delivers as hard in the audio as in the graphics. That reverted teenage brain of mine is as fulfilled with the audio as it is with the graphics. The trembling growl of the Chain Sword rises to a squeal as it tears through enemies, the different firearms having distinctive explosions of sound as you pull the trigger, the gruff battle-hardened voices of the Space Marines, the chittering and roars of the Tyranids, and the ambient sounds matching the environment bring the universe of 40,000 to life like never before.

As vivid as my imagination is, the level at which Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has been delivered is phenomenal both visually and audibly. This I believe is held more in esteem by the Swarm-Technology implemented in this game. Playing Warhammer on a tabletop is one thing but standing on the battlefield watching the Tyranids carve their way through allies and the environment is at the next level. Never have I been so immersed in Warhammer than I was thanks to Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2.

So, has Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 lived up to my hype? Yes, it has. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a must-buy for those interested in the franchise, but connoisseurs of the shooting genre also. With the ability to team up and eradicate Tyranids, it is impossible not to roleplay as the Space Marine. With player versus player hopefully coming soon, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 will become a complete package making it a 10/10 game.

Written by: Ashley Barnett-Cosgrove