Like many others, my exposure to the long-running and legendary Warhammer series has been primarily through its videogame adaptations that have graced PC and consoles over the years. In fact, the original Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine was my first experience with the franchise back when I played it on the PlayStation 3 in 2011.

With the imminent release of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 more than a decade later, the sequel has a lot to prove in terms of modernizing its tried-and-tested approach to a third-person shooter.

Thankfully, from my 4-5 hours with the preview build of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, I can safely say that fans of the original, or even fans of just over-the-top action shooters, are in for a treat. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 elevates things up to 11, bringing with it what appears to be a solid story campaign on top of a fun multiplayer mission mode, reminiscent of Warhammer 40,000: Darktide’s mission-based structure.

For the uninitiated, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 once again places players back into the mud and blood-caked boots of Captain Titus of the Ultramarines unit, this time tasked against fighting a splinter scourge of Tyranids. In the preview demo I was given access to, I got to play the opening mission of the campaign alongside two others, as Space Marine 2 allows for full co-op action.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 features six distinct classes to pick from during missions. Campaign levels instead assign the party leader to play as Titus, who in-game is classified as an Assault unit, which, as far as gameplay mechanics are concerned, gives the player access to a heavy Thunder Hammer melee weapon, a booster pack which allows for a devasting ground pound special attack, along with a decent amount of verticality thanks to being able to jump around and get to higher elevation quickly.

The other five classes become available when playing the mission mode present in Space Marine 2, which unlocks after completing the first campaign level This ends with a fun boss encounter against the Chaos Sorcerer — a Psyker-adjacent powered-up magic caster that highlights Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2’s potential for enemy variety.

“Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 elevates things up to 11.”

Progressing through the campaign unlocks access to the main area of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, which allows the player to customize their own Ultramarine unit, choosing from the six available classes, gradually unlocking new modifiers and cosmetics, along with character-specific skills that help distinguish each character class.

If you’ve played Warhammer 40,000: Darktide before, the approach to missions and the multiplayer lobby in Space Marine 2 will feel very familiar to returning players. Outside of the Assault class, Space Marine 2 features the Tactical, Vanguard, Bulwark, Sniper and Heavy classes to pick from. Starting with the Tactical unit, players can expect a similar feeling range of melee prowess to the Assault class, replacing the hammer with a chainsword alongside the Auspex Scan ability, which highlights enemies hidden in the environment and temporarily makes them susceptible to bonus damage.

“…at least during this small, early look at Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, I can safely say that the variety in abilities and weapon loadouts feel good and work excellently together.

Conversely, the Vanguard is a bulkier unit equipped with a combat knife that dishes out chip damage when combined with the Grapnel Launcher ability, which can launch the player towards a target, quickly closing the gap, allowing to get in those extra hits hasten the proc for finishing moves.

The heaviest two units present in the game, however, would be the Bulwark and the aptly named Heavy Unit. The Bulward features a large shield capable of mowing through hordes of enemies, along with the Chapter Banner unique ability that casts an AoE buff, restoring all player shields. In contrast, the Heavy unit, instead, features a powerful shotgun-like Heavy Bolter weapon along with the Iron Halo ability, a bubble shield that protects against ranged attacks.

Finally, the Sniper unit features, as the name may suggest, a solid range-focused Bolt Sniper Rifle, the combat knife and the ability to go invisible for you and your squad before attacking, making it viable to single-out and stagger larger enemies before mopping up the minions.

Although not as drastically different in how the classes feel, when compared to something like Darktide, at least during this small, early look at Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, I can safely say that the variety in abilities and weapon loadouts feel good and work excellently together. They create a sense of synergy between you and your squad mates, particularly during boss encounters, which can really test your mettle.

“The core gameplay loop in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 will feel familiar to third-person shooter fans…”

The core gameplay loop in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 will feel familiar to third-person shooter fans and, of course, to those who played the first entry into the series. Thankfully, outside of a gigantic leap in graphic fidelity, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 fixes one of the most significant issues of the first game: taking damage during prolonged animations, such as when performing an execution move.

Speaking of execution moves, this was one of the most satisfying elements for me during my time with Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, to the point where I found myself trying to cherry-pick kills from my friends in the hopes of getting that sweet, sweet execution to proc. In fact, I hope the addition of team-based executions is something that may be in the game once it finally sees release in September.

Overall, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is shaping up to be a solid entry into the rich world of the Warhammer franchise and a worthy sequel to the 2011 original. It is worth keeping on your radar for both fans of the source material and TPS fanatics.

Henry Cavill and fellow Warhammer enthusiasts will be eating well with the abundance of new Warhammer projects on the horizon, including Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks has graced my Steam library with a fresh take on the vehicular combat genre that seldom gets enough love.

Based on the 2018 boardgame, Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks, like other videogame adaptations of the storied franchise, successfully transforms the tabletop experience into a fun and familiar-feeling online experience that feels like a mashup of games, including the beloved Twisted Metal series and even cult classics such as Cel Damage, presented in an unmistakably Warhammer coat of paint, complete with the wear and tear of a well-loved set of miniatures.

Now, if you’re unfamiliar with the Warhammer franchise, or if you’re like me and mostly know it through its videogame releases, fear not, as Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks holds up entirely on its 4 wheels thanks to a solid gameplay loop and distinct and easy-to-control vehicles.

In its current iteration, Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks features two game modes, Deff Rally and Kill Konvoy, spread across six maps, including Krump Canyon, Rok Rush, Mob Mountain and Burna Valley. Frozen Dakka and the Ded’ard Desert make up the remaining final maps, exclusive to the Kill Konvoy game type.

“Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks holds up entirely on its 4 wheels thanks to a solid gameplay loop and distinct and easy-to-control vehicles.”

Starting with the latter, Kill Konvoy tasks players in protecting their Stompa, a behemoth of a tank-like payload given to both teams. The object of the game requires either side to find a bomb that spawns somewhere on the map, pick it up and then crash into the opponent’s Stompa, kamikaze style. In other words, Kill Konvoy feels like what would happen if Rocket League was set in a Mad Max-inspired post-apocalyptic setting.

Conversely, Deff Rally emphasizes racing more, with players scrambling towards various control points. When successfully taken, these points prompt the next leg of the race, slowly racking up points towards the end of the round. Naturally, this sets up some fun moments of tension between both sides as they collide and clash for control on the rather expansive and open-ended maps.

In terms of vehicle variety, Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks currently features four racers to choose from: the Boomdakka Snazzwagon, the Kustom Boosta Blasta, the Looted Wagon, and finally, the Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy.

“Overall, the vehicle variety in Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks is solid, particularly for a free-to-play title.”

Starting with the Boomdakka Snazzwagon, which can be considered your best all-arounder type of vehicle, this two-seater comes complete with a chaingun turret, making it perfect for DPS and fast manoeuvrability during races. Next up is the Kustom Boosta Blasta, similar to the former in terms of manoeuvrability; what sets this car apart is its arsenal, which features a live orc that can be thrown in an arc as a powerful mini-nuke, plus a powerful primary shot, making it feel like a shotgun on wheels.

The Looted Wagon is your big, hulky, tank class of vehicle. While significantly slower than the other cars, the Looted Wagon makes a great last line of defence when trying to claim control or protect your Stompa in a game of Kill Konvoy. Finally, to round things out, the Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy, the only real support-styled vehicle, can heal teammates in an AoE when nearby, making it worthwhile to have around when in the heat of battle or securing points on the map.

Overall, the vehicle variety in Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks is solid, particularly for a free-to-play title. Every racer feels fun to control, with weapons that pack a punch and are satisfying to use against the opposing team. If you’re familiar with the source material, you’ll definitely appreciate the attention to detail Caged Element has put into adapting the board game for the screen.

Additionally, like most free-to-play affairs, Speed Freeks features a healthy amount of premium cosmetics that can be purchased with real money to deck your racers of choice further. It should also be noted that completing races will grant you EXP, which can, in turn, be used to level up and earn some free goodies, making it a fair and fun balance for all.

If there was one point of concern or criticism I have towards Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks, it would be its map variety. Although the game features a good number of various sandboxes to play in, most, if not all, maps feel fairly similar as far as mechanics and stage hazards go, something I hope evolves as the game matures.

Ultimately, Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks is coming together nicely, making it a worthwhile vehicular combat experience worth checking out for fans of not only the source material but also for those who miss the niche and woefully underappreciated genre of car-based carnage.