I wasn’t sure what to expect from Space Marine 2 after more than a decade of waiting. The original game, while flawed, captured the raw essence of Warhammer 40,000’s unrelenting universe, and as a fan of the franchise, I couldn’t help but hope that this sequel would bring that same visceral intensity back to life. What I found was a game that, while not without its own issues, managed to deliver on the core promise of letting you embody an Ultramarine in the full glory of Warhammer 40,000’s grimdark future.
Set roughly 200 years after the first game, Space Marine 2 brings back Demetrian Titus, a character haunted by his past and marked by time. After a century of penance in the Deathwatch, Titus is forced back into the ranks of the Ultramarines to combat a new threat: the Tyranid invasion of the planet Kadaku. This setup may seem like standard fare for Warhammer, but it’s filled with an underlying tension. Titus’ return to the Ultramarines is not met with open arms. His past, marked by disgrace and suspicion, casts a shadow over his reinstatement, with his new squadmates harboring a wary eye on him throughout the campaign.
What strikes me immediately about Space Marine 2 is how it manages to capture the oppressive atmosphere of the Warhammer universe in a way that feels authentic and immersive. The towering gothic spires, the suffocating presence of alien jungles, and the sheer scale of the Tyranid hordes all contribute to a world that feels alive with chaos and war. Warhammer’s visual language is one of extremes—extreme violence, extreme architecture, and extreme stakes—and this game brings that vision to life with stunning attention to detail. It’s a world that constantly reminds you of your place in the universe: a small cog in the machine of endless war.
The action kicks off early, thrusting players into the thick of combat, and this is where Space Marine 2 shines brightest. The combat system has been refined since the original game, offering a more fluid mix of ranged and melee attacks.
It feels good to play as an Ultramarine, cutting through Tyranid hordes with a Chainsword or blasting enemies with a Boltgun. The weapons are brutal and satisfying, and Saber Interactive’s use of swarm technology, perfected in World War Z, brings a tangible weight to the battles.
Watching the Tyranids pour over walls and scurry toward you in massive numbers never gets old, and it creates a real sense of being overwhelmed by an alien force that is relentless and unstoppable.
There’s an undeniable thrill to being in the center of that chaos, armed with the tools of the Imperium’s finest. Chainswords tear through flesh, boltguns send enemies flying with each shot, and the combat system encourages you to stay in the thick of things. This isn’t a game where you hang back and pick enemies off from a distance; Space Marine 2 forces you to be aggressive, to charge into the fray, and to take the fight to the enemy. It’s a fast-paced, high-octane experience that captures the ferocity of Warhammer 40K in a way that few other games have.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of combat is how Space Marine 2 incorporates the execution system, allowing you to perform finishing moves on weakened enemies. These executions not only add a gruesome layer to the combat, but they’re also essential for survival, as they restore your armor in the heat of battle. At first, these finishers are thrilling—brutal, cinematic animations that make you feel like a true warrior of the Imperium. But over time, the repetition starts to show.
The same animations play out again and again, and what was once an exciting mechanic starts to feel like a necessary chore. It’s a small crack in what is otherwise a solid combat system, but one that becomes more noticeable as the game progresses.
There’s also a degree of strategy involved in how you approach each encounter. The Tyranids are not a monolithic threat; they come in a variety of forms, from smaller, fast-moving Hormagaunts to massive, lumbering Carnifexes that require a more tactical approach. You can’t just charge headlong into every battle; sometimes you need to pick your targets, prioritize threats, and use the environment to your advantage. The game introduces parry and dodge mechanics to add depth to the melee combat, and pulling off a perfectly timed parry or dodge is immensely satisfying. It opens up your enemy for a counterattack, and there’s something undeniably rewarding about the rhythm of a well-timed parry followed by a devastating gun strike.
However, while the combat system is enjoyable, it’s not without its flaws. The parry system, in particular, can feel inconsistent. Some attacks are clearly telegraphed, giving you ample time to react, while others come out of nowhere, leaving you scrambling to avoid damage. This inconsistency becomes more apparent during boss fights, where the screen is often filled with enemies and effects, making it difficult to keep track of what’s happening. These moments can feel chaotic in a way that’s more frustrating than thrilling, and it’s here that the game’s combat starts to show its limitations.
The repetition of the combat is another issue that becomes more pronounced as you progress through the campaign. While the first few hours of Space Marine 2 are a thrilling rollercoaster of high-stakes action, the lack of variety in the enemies and the constant reliance on the same combat mechanics can lead to fatigue. You’ll find yourself fighting the same types of enemies over and over again, and while the game does introduce new enemy types as you progress, the overall experience can start to feel repetitive. It’s not enough to ruin the game, but it does take some of the shine off the otherwise polished combat.
One thing that Space Marine 2 absolutely nails is the atmosphere and world-building.
The Warhammer 40K universe is one of the most richly detailed and immersive settings in all of science fiction, and this game brings that world to life in stunning detail. From the towering gothic architecture of the Imperium’s cities to the dense, alien jungles of Kadaku, every environment feels meticulously crafted. The game’s visual design is a triumph, capturing the grandeur and horror of the Warhammer universe in a way that few other games have managed. You can feel the weight of the Imperium’s history in every crumbling building, in every piece of technology, in every battlefield littered with the bodies of the fallen.
There’s a real sense of being part of something much larger than yourself, of being one small cog in the vast, unending war machine of the Imperium. The game constantly reminds you of this, with battles raging in the background, ships descending from the skies, and armies clashing in the distance.
It’s a world that feels alive, even as it’s being torn apart by war.
The story, while not groundbreaking, serves its purpose well enough. Titus is a compelling protagonist, and his journey from disgraced Blackshield to Ultramarine hero is engaging, if somewhat predictable. The game does a good job of building tension between Titus and his fellow Ultramarines, particularly his new squadmates, who remain suspicious of his past. This tension adds an interesting dynamic to the story, and while it doesn’t delve too deeply into character development, it provides enough to keep you invested in the narrative. The introduction of the Chaos Space Marines, particularly the Thousand Sons, adds a nice twist to the story, though their presence feels underdeveloped compared to the Tyranid threat.
The campaign is fairly linear, with most levels consisting of moving from one objective to the next while battling waves of enemies. There are occasional side paths to explore, but for the most part, the game keeps you on a straightforward track. While this linearity might feel restrictive to some players, it works in the context of the game.
Space Marine 2 is not trying to be an open-world experience; it’s a focused, action-packed campaign that delivers on the promise of intense combat and grimdark storytelling. And when the game is firing on all cylinders, it’s an exhilarating ride.
In addition to the single-player campaign, Space Marine 2 includes Operations mode, a co-op multiplayer experience that allows players to team up and tackle missions together. These missions run parallel to the main story, with Titus issuing orders to a secondary squad of Ultramarines as they complete vital objectives. The co-op experience is fun, especially when played with friends, but it suffers from the same issues as the main campaign: repetition. The missions, while engaging at first, start to feel repetitive after a few runs, and the lack of variety in objectives can make the experience feel a bit shallow.
The game’s PvP mode, Eternal War, offers a competitive multiplayer experience that pits Space Marines against Chaos Marines in team-based battles. While the concept is interesting, the execution feels underdeveloped. The maps are uninspired, and the gameplay lacks the depth and variety needed to keep players engaged for long. It’s a nice addition to the overall package, but it’s unlikely to be the main draw for most players.
At its core, Space Marine 2 is a game that understands what it wants to be: a brutal, visceral, and over-the-top action experience set in one of the most iconic universes in science fiction. It delivers on that promise, even if it stumbles along the way. The combat is intense, the world-building is top-notch, and the story, while simple, provides enough motivation to keep you invested in the action.
It’s not a perfect game by any means, but for fans of Warhammer 40,000, it’s a must-play.
The wait for Space Marine 2 has been long, but the game succeeds in delivering a brutal, exhilarating experience that captures the essence of Warhammer 40,000. It may not break new ground, but it doesn’t need to. Sometimes, all you want is to don your power armor, grab your Chainsword, and wade into the fray, carving a path through the enemies of the Imperium. And in that regard, Space Marine 2 delivers in spades.
