When you hear the phrase, Band of Brothers, what do you think? Do you think of the cherished military TV show or an army cry? Do you think of the quote from Shakespeare’s play Henry V – and the Saint Crispin’s Day speech? What about the bond that you have with your friends? While playing Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, the phrase Band of Brothers resonates deeply within the player. Either you fight and survive with your brothers or you die at the hands of your enemies and bring dishonor to The Emperor. How does Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 hold up? Find out in our review!

Developer: Saber Interactive
Publisher: Focus Entertainment
Platforms: PC (Steam, Epic), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S
Release Date: September 9th, 2024
Players: 1 – 3 
Price: Base: $59.99 USD 

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is the story of Demetrian Titus and his quest to help the Adeptus Mechanicus from the invading Tyranid forces. Summoned to reclaim and defend Kadaku in order to a secret project. While defending the planet, Titus’ two Deathwatch counterparts die in the line of duty. Waking up aboard the Battle Barge, Titus’ discussion with Chaplain Quintus pushes him to regain the favor of his fellow Space Marines and chapter. 

Accompanied by Sergeant Gadriel and Brother Chairon, Titus rejoins the Ultra Space Marines and continues his quest to fight off the Tyranid hordes. While holding off the Tyranids, Archmagos Nozick asks for help protecting and recovering Project Aurora. While trying to protect Project Aurora, the crew uncovers that the forces of chaos have manipulated the Archmagos. 

At this point, the story switches from the Tyranids being the main antagonists to the Chaos Space Marines and forces being the primary enemy. Tyranids still play a role in the Chaos fight, but it is fairly reduced.

As someone who has played very little of the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop it was interesting to see how Saber Interactive would incorporate the lore into Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 and tie in the events of the first game (2011) into the new game.

The game ties in the characters from the original game in fun and interesting ways while introducing new characters to the player. The way the story is told does not make new players feel like they have missed anything by not playing the original game and allows them to connect with the characters in multiple ways.

Although the combat is predominantly action-packed, the story is still able to create an emotional bond between the player and the characters. You form a bond with them in a way that many games fail to do so. You fear for their fate and want them to succeed. Even when stared in the face of betrayal. You still want to trust your brothers have your back and will do whatever they have to keep you alive. The ally bots will fight until their last breath to keep you alive.

The final sequence of events will keep your heart pumping and the fights will make you feel like you are a mean green (blue) killing machine. You will feel like a true Ultra Space Marine. Even the finale ties in previous aspects of the prior game while teasing a potential sequel. 

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a third-person shooter that feels like a blend of Gears of War and Darksouls. Although countering is not necessary, it is encouraged and can make it a lot easier to kill enemies while restoring shields and creating amazing execution moments; the game features a variety of executions, and doing so will protect the player from potential damage.

The game features four difficulties: Easy, Normal, Veteran, and Angel of Death. Veteran is a challenge and will leave many wanting to go to lower difficulties while Angel of Death feels like it is meant for masochists. Even on Normal difficulty, finding resources such as health, ammo, and revival kits feels like it is next to impossible to find; the game still feels manageable, but you are winning by the skin of your teeth. 

The world that Saber Interactive has created is massively impressive. Almost anything you see on the screen you can kill. The game throws hordes of monsters at you to a level we have rarely seen in any game let alone a shooter. It easily blows out Gears of War and Call of Duty Zombies horde size by a significant amount. 

Although the gameplay for Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 may be a lot of fun, there were a few bugs that tarnished the experience. Connecting to co-op sessions was a headache.

While playing there were multiple times when the game session would crash and we would have to restart and lose all the equipment gathered. Additionally, there would be times when members of our group were locked out of cutscenes and we had to use Discord to show the other two teammates. 

Despite completing the game with another player as the host when loaded back into our hub, it tries to say that we did not complete the story. When visiting the terminal, we can still access all the levels and planets while still seeing the data logs we discovered throughout the campaign. Despite completing the campaign, weapons were still locked when trying to outfit our characters for multiplayer.

When trying to search for multiplayer lobbies, we got stuck on matchmaking screens where the match would not start. The game would also not allow us to quit the matchmaking process. 

Update:

Since the most recent update, we were able to try the multiplayer game modes finally. The multiplayer game modes can be fun, but there is a lack of communication by teammates which makes objective-based matches feel like they are a bit of a struggle. 

As mentioned earlier, Saber Interactive has put a ton of detail and effort into Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. When looking at each character, enemy, and environment, you can see the level of dedication and craftsmanship that the developers put into making the game.

The world-building shows off these beautifully crafted buildings, and the attention to gory details when executing an enemy or even seeing the remains of an enemy on the ground. Even if you don’t like shooters, it would be worth checking out the game just for cinematics and looking at the world that they have created.

When it comes to Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Audio & SFX, the music keeps you in the heat of battle even when things have died down. The composition makes you feel on edge like something could come around the corner at any moment and you need to be prepared for a potential firefight.

This is one gamer where you do not need external music to get into the mood, but adding it makes it even more epic. Songs like I’m Still Standing, Staying Alive, Dragula, or other rock songs will pump you up even more. 

At the end of the day, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is everything you expect and want, and it gives you even more. It goes above players’ expectations and gives a larger-than-life experience. The graphics will make players fall in love with the Warhammer universe.

Playing the game may make you want to go back and play the original Space Marine, Warhammer Vermintide, or even the tabletop game. The controls take a bit to get used to but are a blend of Dark Souls and Gears of War in a way that feels smooth and natural. 

If you are on the fence about picking up Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, then you shouldn’t wait. Once you get into the game, the combat is smooth and will keep your heart-racing. Despite its bugs, the game is still a ton of fun and will suck you into the war you never knew you wanted to fight.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 was reviewed on PC using a copy provided by Focus Entertainment. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is now available on PC (Steam, Epic), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.