Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 preview: What if Doom or Gears of War had Boltguns and chainswords?

Sometimes, you simply want a recreation that’s huge and dumb and enjoyable. After a sluggish Gamescom that feels very missing within the triple-An area, I can’t let you know how a lot of a reduction it was to enterprise over to Focus Entertainment’s sales space and rip and tear my manner by way of the grimdark future. Some of essentially the most lush visuals of the present, paired with unapologetically bloody and over-the-top motion, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 reminds my why I like video games – particularly bombastic, indulgent, obnoxious ones.

Your behemoth participant character will simply wander round saying cool shit like “we will not sacrifice technique for expediency, brother” earlier than capturing one thing a lot it explodes in a bathe of alien blood and guts. He’ll stand there, about 4 heads taller than a hench marine subsequent to him, slamming magazines of ammo the scale of a human arm right into a carbine. He’ll mutter one thing in regards to the “heresy of the alien scum” after which the following linear part of the extent will start.

You rinse-repeat this for about half-hour; little story exposition, fight encounter, exploration, after which again to exposition. It’s quite simple, it doesn’t require an excessive amount of thought, and it completely guidelines. By paring again any sense of complexity, Space Marine 2 will get to enjoy what it does greatest – ooh-rah motion and a number of the nastiest, meatiest fight you’re going to seek out this facet of Doom Eternal. It performs like Gears of War, sans cowl: skinny the herd along with your uber-industrial gun, draw your chainsword, and tear aside the rest left standing in your manner.

There are excellent parries and common parries that can assist you deflect some assaults, so a modicum of tactical considering is required to determine the rhythm of holding the Tyranid hoard off you. Toss grenades into the massing aliens, carry out a rallying cry to energy up, end off a mantis-armed horror with a heavy melee, get some potshots in on the drones. Then do all that very same stuff once more, however in a special order. It’s not intelligent, nevertheless it’s huge, and I dare you to do any of this with out a huge dumb grin plastered throughout your huge dumb face.

And then, there are the set-pieces. Standing on the centre of a pair of closing doorways, hefting a Heavy Bolter as huge as you might be, and mowing down the swarm because it makes an attempt to push upon you with sheer drive of numbers… it’s a really particular feeling that may’t fairly be summed up on the web page. The closest I can get is just saying ‘phwoar’. Trampling over a carpet of the useless within the aftermath, respiratory within the mulch and stench of hire flesh, your brother-in-arms remarks “it appears like a slaughter”. It felt like one, too. Good.

Given {that a} Space Marine is estimated to weigh about 1,000KGs, it is sensible that the whole lot within the recreation feels crunchy, weighty, highly effective. Every single factor you do is simply cool as hell. Whipping out your pistol to pop flying spore creatures then jamming your sword as much as its hilt within the cranium of a giant xeno with claws and fangs and weapons flailing wildly? Sick. Throwing a grenade right into a cluster of swarming drones and watching their numerous bits splatter onto the swampy floor? Fuck yeah. Shouting “are you with me, brothers?” as you cost into the fray and rip heads from their our bodies as the fun of battle programs by way of your blood? There’s nothing prefer it.

Space Marine 2 is unapologetic in what it’s. It is aware of the fantasy; you’re a giant offended man with a giant nasty gun. Its unrelenting, impenitent pursuit of constructing that really feel as crunchy and moist and explosive and loud as attainable is to be admired. Better than the unique in each manner, and it in some way appears even higher in motion than it does in screenshots.

It’ll make you rush into the din and glory of battle gripping your controller as when you had been gripping a Boltgun and a chainsword, clutching it tight as you wipe the heresy of those alien bastards from each nook of the universe.

It has by no means felt higher to be a Space Marine, and it would simply be my Gamescom 2023 ‘Game of the Show’.