While I was halfway through the first mission of Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2, I couldn’t help but smile as I and my two teammates unloaded rounds from our boltguns. It felt great to return to this dark, war-torn future world.

It's been over ten years since the first game, but Space Marine 2 seems to effortlessly breathe new life into this squad-based shooting game series. The environments are vibrant and stunning, the feel of running and shooting is excellent, and fighting alongside your comrades is exhilarating, whether they're human players or AI teammates. Although Space Marine 2 doesn't offer much innovation in gameplay and doesn't break the mold of this genre, the roughly 12-hour campaign still kept me entertained.

First, I want to clarify that the original Space Marine was clearly inspired by Gears of War, and this sequel is no different. It’s a squad-based shooter where the protagonists are a group of heavily armored, gruff-voiced brutes wielding guns and chainswords to fend off alien creatures. But these similarities don’t bother me, especially when you can argue that Gears of War borrowed from Warhammer 40K first.

It's been years since a game has scratched this itch for me, and Space Marine 2 builds its own identity using Warhammer 40K's rich lore. This shines through in the content-packed campaign mode (playable solo or co-op) and two additional modes that encourage players to continue after the main campaign (in these modes, you can upgrade weapons and customize armor between rounds).

In the campaign, players once again take on the role of the original protagonist, Demetrius Titus. The story takes place a hundred years after the first game, but the game does a good job of explaining the necessary background, whether you've played the previous game or not. Despite the century-long gap, our stoic protagonist remains largely unchanged.

He's still the raspy-voiced, battle-hardened veteran, and thanks to genetic enhancements, he hasn't aged a bit. Over the past hundred years, he's been serving in the "Deathwatch," undertaking the most dangerous missions. After a tense battle in the prologue and successfully deploying a virus bomb, his bravery and loyalty are rewarded as he is reinstated as an Ultramarine in blue armor.

The quality of the story is excellent, and the pacing is tight. The plot takes your squad to a variety of interesting locations across multiple planets. Along the way, there are some unexpected twists and turns, as well as some intriguing internal conflicts within the squad, adding to the enjoyment of the campaign. That said, the overall tone is quite serious. I get that it’s wartime, and every mission is a matter of life and death, but a bit of humor would’ve made the experience even better (even if they threw in some gallows humor like many other 40K games do).

While on missions, you'll have two teammates with you, controlled by AI by default, though you can invite friends to replace them. The AI teammates are reliable enough, able to hold off enemies and revive you if you fall. But as with most squad-based games, playing with friends is always more fun. If you want to play co-op, you can coordinate your squad at the battle barge base.

This time, the enemies are no longer the Orks from the original game but humanity's latest interstellar foes — the Tyranids. These alien creatures come in a variety of forms, from the hulking Tyranid Carnifex to smaller bug-like creatures that resemble Xenomorphs or Velociraptors. The variety is quite extensive.

Some can fly, others swarm across the ground in hordes, and they’ll even scale cliffs in a Jenga-like fashion to attack you and the other members of the Imperial Guard. As the campaign progresses, you’ll encounter even more enemy types, providing a rich diversity. Blasting them apart with Imperial and alien weapons kept me from feeling fatigued for most of the game.

The feel of the guns and melee weapons is fantastic, which is a good thing since you'll spend most of your time with them in Space Marine 2. You can adjust your loadout between missions, swapping out your primary and secondary weapons as well as melee gear for the next mission. You'll also find numerous weapon crates in levels, offering flamethrowers, plasma rifles, sniper rifles, power swords, and more. You'll come across a variety of explosives too, from sticky bombs to AOE shock grenades.

Every encounter has the perfect weapon for it, though you often won't know what you're up against when selecting your loadout. Thankfully, there are plenty of autosave points, so if you fall, you can make a better choice next time.

Regardless of the weapon, when you hit enemies, the blood splatter is immensely satisfying. Large enemies glow red when they're near death, signaling that you can finish them off with a brutal execution move. Executions also recharge your shields, making them very practical. Additionally, you can use medkits you pick up to heal or activate Titus' "Righteous Fury" skill to heal by dealing melee damage. I love this design of recovering health by hurting enemies.

In fact, simply moving around in Space Marine 2 is satisfying. You play as a hulking, heavily armored soldier, and each step feels weighty. Yet, Titus is more agile than in the previous game, so he doesn’t feel overly cumbersome. That weighty feel is just right.

One of the biggest flaws of the original Space Marine was its drab brown/gray color palette (a trend that was oddly popular at the time, though misguided). Thankfully, this sequel doesn't follow suit, offering much more vibrant and lively environments.

In some levels, you’ll trek across alien planets dominated by green and purple hues, filled with lush extraterrestrial plants. Others are set in towering cityscapes with Gothic buildings adorned with colorful stained glass windows. Wherever your squad is deployed, the art design is consistently impressive, and the stunning visuals alone justify leaving behind the previous generation of consoles.

Most areas are battlefields, and whether close up or in the distance, you'll see human soldiers clashing with enemy forces. Sometimes you'll follow a tank through the ruins of a city, providing backup to Astra Militarum soldiers. Other times, you’ll see swarms of Tyranids flying through the air like a flock of starlings while ground troops desperately fire at them.

Compared to many military-themed games, Space Marine 2 does a better job of making players feel like they’re truly part of a war and just one cog in the machine. I’m not usually one to take screenshots in games, but the stunning landscapes here compelled me to use photo mode in nearly every mission.

The campaign mode offers a lot of content, but that’s not all Space Marine 2 has to offer. In addition to Titus' story, you can also play two interconnected non-linear modes: “Operations Mode” and “Endless War Mode.”

Endless War is a PvP mode, but unfortunately, due to the limited number of players before release, I haven’t been able to give it a thorough try. I’ll update my thoughts on it after release. However, I spent a lot of time playing the PvE Operations Mode. This mode consists of side missions mentioned in the main story—while Titus is advancing the main plot, other squads are performing these combat missions, and in Operations Mode, you are one of those squads.

In both Operations Mode and Endless War Mode, there are 6 classes to choose from, each with different equipment and special abilities. The Tactical Marine can use “Auspex Scan” to mark and weaken enemies; the Sniper Marine can use a camo cloak to become invisible; the Heavy Gunner can raise a banner to restore nearby allies’ shields; the Vanguard can use a grappling hook to close in on enemies; the Assault Marine carries the jump pack that Titus occasionally uses in the main story; the Special Ops Marine can activate a bubble-like shield. All these abilities are quite useful and fun to use.

Playing these two modes also earns you various currencies, which can be used to upgrade weapons and customize armor, and after trying it out, I found the customization system quite enjoyable. You can unlock a large number of fun emblems and weapon charms, as well as armor color schemes representing different chapters. Almost all of the color schemes are incredibly cool, and you can also decorate your battle brothers with heavy metal-style accessories like chains and skulls.

The levels in Operations Mode aren’t much different from those in the campaign, sometimes even using the same environments, which is a bit disappointing. There are currently 6 maps in Operations Mode, and while they are fun to play the first time (especially with friends), I didn’t feel motivated to replay them, even for farming currency. I’m still looking forward to experiencing PvP in Endless War Mode and seeing the new modes that developer Saber Interactive promised in their update roadmap. But at least at launch, the PvE mode in Space Marine 2 serves more as a fun, short-lived distraction rather than something that entices me to keep playing.

SummaryWarhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 is an excellent third-person shooter with an engaging story, tons of satisfying weapons, and a rich variety of enemies. It once again borrows many design concepts from the Gears of War series, but only takes the best ideas, and Space Marine 2 successfully makes them its own, creating a distinctive identity. Although the PvE Operations Mode doesn’t draw me in for repeat playthroughs, the Space Marine customization system is deep, and if the planned post-launch modes can continue to support it, there’s a lot of potential to unlock. Plus, it’s hard not to feel satisfied while slaying aliens on such beautiful planets.

Pros

• Excellent shooting mechanics and battlefield atmosphere

• High-quality, engaging story

• Rich customization system for equipment

Cons

• Basic gameplay lacks innovation

• Limited number and variety of maps

Review ScoreWarhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 is an excellent third-person shooter with an engaging story, tons of satisfying weapons, and a rich variety of enemies. It once again borrows many design concepts from the Gears of War series, but only takes the best ideas, and Space Marine 2 successfully makes them its own, creating a distinctive identity. Although the PvE Operations Mode doesn’t draw me in for repeat playthroughs, the Space Marine customization system is deep, and if the planned post-launch modes can continue to support it, there’s a lot of potential to unlock.