Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 Proves That Sometimes Bigger Really Is Better

The number of third-person shooters that have come out since Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine released in 2011 is straight-up obscene. From several Gears of War sequels and Fortnite to The Division and Helldivers 2, it’s a very crowded genre, and while Space Marine was quite an enjoyable game back in the Xbox 360/PS3 era and has developed a cult following, the announcement of sequel a full decade later came as a big surprise.

When Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 was announced by developer Saber Interactive and publisher Focus Entertainment in 2021, the sequel immediately begged the question: 13 years and two console generations after the release of the original game, what new ideas could the sequel bring to the franchise and the genre as a whole to justify its existence?

Turns out, the answer is somewhat complicated. Before I get into the nitty gritty of it, a clarification: One of the best things about Space Marine 2 is its Operations Mode, which allows you to play parallel missions to the main campaign not as protagonist Titus, but as a fully customizable Marine alongside two co-op partners. This mode is fantastic and insanely fun, but it’s not what I’m going to focus on here.

Instead, I’m compelled to highlight the main campaign, or more specifically, something it does extraordinarily well that countless other games have attempted but not pulled off as successfully: depict grand-scale warfare. As I played through the campaign, I frequently felt overcome by the sensation that I was one combatant amid a sea of thousands. I’ve played games before that have done a good job of selling this illusion, but this is the first time I felt sold on it in a way that actually impacted the way I was playing the game. In other words, Space Marine 2 is a shining example of how presentation can elevate gameplay, and how pushing graphical tech is about more than just cosmetics.

In a meat-and-potatoes sense, Space Marine 2 is a freaking dream to play. Titus, who becomes a Primaris Marine early on in the campaign, moves around as you would expect an armored-up, hulking supersoldier to move. He’s not exactly tank-like, but he’s not as nimble as the Tyranids he’s mowing through either. He feels solid and strong, his every ground-shaking step complemented perfectly by the rumble on the PS5‘s DualSense controller. Melee combat is visceral and crunchy, with attacks, combos, and parries all feeling responsive. Ranged combat feels punchy and tactile as well, and all of the weapons, from the chainsword, to the frag grenades, to the plasma guns, have a satisfying kick to them. After finishing the campaign, I can confidently say I don’t see the gameplay getting old anytime soon. I’m having a blast.

That being said, if you’re a fan of third-person shooters, this game is going to feel super familiar to you. This isn’t a bad thing, but to make my next point, I have to acknowledge that the gameplay here, while great, isn’t particularly novel or groundbreaking. But what does feel new is the aforementioned sense of scale while playing through the campaign. Utilizing the Swarm Engine first implemented by Saber for World War Z, Space Marine 2 conjures incalculably massive hordes of enemies to populate the game’s vast environments. When I first saw a tidal wave of thousands of Tyranids closing in on my three-man team’s location from seemingly miles away, it was at once exhilarating and mortifying. I was physically bracing myself for the battle that was to come–it was a genuine thrill.

And when the horde did finally descend on my squad, it was unbelievably intense. The screen was so filled with enemies it was hard to find my bearings. I was hacking, slashing, shooting, rolling, parrying, and dropping a never-ending flurry of f-bombs. My armor would deplete, then I’d refill it by executing one of the bigger Tyranids, and then I’d get absolutely mauled and downed by a group of minions I’d forgotten were behind me. Then one of my brothers would revive me and I’d re-enter the fray, swinging my power sword at anything that moved. I was never sure I was going to win, my heart rate was elevated, and it was pure chaos.

I love the sense of tension the game constantly builds toward, and so much of it comes from that moment where you see those thousands of enemies coming at you in the distance, not in a pre-rendered cutscenes but in-game, while I had control of my character, and this made a world of difference. It added so much to the moment that I could see, hear, and, most importantly, feel exactly what I was up against, in real time, and it made the suspense all the more palpable.

The deeper point is this: This battle and so many others in the game could not have existed prior to this generation of games. Machines simply weren’t powerful enough to populate the screen with this many characters, and this technical feat shouldn’t be dismissed as merely ornamental or “cool-looking.” While you can’t ultimately interact with every enemy you see in that horde rushing your way, seeing them all onscreen at once contributes to the feeling that you’re participating in a battle that is astronomically larger than a trio of super soldiers, with battles happening off-screen, beyond the frame. This sense of enormity really elevates core mechanics that are actually quite traditional.

Space Marines 2 proves that, when done the right way, bigger really is better and more is more. And part of what I mean by “the right way” is that Saber doesn’t forget to pay attention to the details. While the battles are huge, they never feel silly or arcade-y because the campaign in particular never loses sight of the human element, which is the bond between Titus and his Brothers Chairon and Gadriel and the Ultramarines as a whole. Whenever the squad comes upon a fallen Marine, they pay their respects. While walking around a friendly base, you’ll often see Lieutenants giving rousing speeches to troops getting ready to risk their lives in the name of the Emperor. It’s smaller, narrative-driven moments like these that ground the campaign and make the big battles feel bigger and more consequential.

Now, for as strong as the game is in these real-time, in-game moments, save for a handful of certifiably epic pre-rendered cutscenes, the game engine cutscenes are actually surprisingly subpar. The game’s facial animations fall glaringly below standard (specifically the dialogue-driven scenes using the in-game models, of which there are many), but more importantly, the cutscenes are noticeably less visually compelling than what we experience in-game. Titus, Chairon, and Gadriel do go through some compelling interpersonal developments particularly later in the game when their bond is built up, shattered, and then built back up again. But a lot of this storytelling is hampered by the fact the character models themselves, which look particularly generic especially when viewed up close during cutscenes.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 gets way, way more right than it gets wrong, though. It’s a terrifically fun shooter with big-budget visuals that prove an innovative and ambitious presentation can be just as crucial to a game’s success as clever gameplay mechanics. It’s games like this (and Helldivers 2!) that help keep a decades-old genre feeling vital and fresh.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is out now for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC.