We played “Space Marine 2” and it was terribly enjoyable

After 13 long years of silence, Space Marine 2 finally steps off its ship with the mission of stopping the eradication of the universe by the “Tyranides”. This is the most stress-busting game of the year.

Armin Hadzikadunic/jvmag.ch

Welcome to a galaxy where everything is war and humanity’s only occupation is to try to survive while serving the imperium and its inexorable war machine. Welcome to a universe where there are no good guys or bad guys, but factions fighting for their own interests, be it war, faith, food or simply suffering.

It is in this universe that Space Marine 2 takes place, developed by Saber Interactive and published by Focus Entertainment, which we thank for the test key. It follows Space Marine, the first of the name, released in September 2011. You should also know that this game is a video game product derived from the board game of the Game Workshop firm Warhammer 40,000 of which I am a big fan and collector. It is also by its dimension one of the largest extended universes at the Sifi level ever created.

The context

There’s no denying it, this genre is primarily aimed at people who already know the universe and the Lore attached to the license. Although it is easily accessible to laymen via a plethora of YouTube channels dealing with the universe, it still remains obscure for someone who has never heard of Warhammer 40K, but I’ll do my best to make you want to play it.

Space Marine 2 puts you in command of a Space Marine during a Tyranid invasion, somewhere in one of the many sectors of the galaxy… Yes, but what is a Space Marine, you might ask? A Space Marine, to put it simply, is a physically enhanced hyper-soldier, clad in heavy, state-of-the-art armor. He becomes a superman, an angel of death, whose life is dedicated to war, with the sole aim of defending the Imperium (the human empire in the Warhammer 40K universe) against all its enemies.

The Space Marines are divided into different chapters. Here we will follow Titus, former captain of the second company of the Ultramarines. Following the events of the first opus (which I advise you to do first for a better understanding), he will find himself lieutenant within this same company.

And the Tyranids in all this? They are a Xenos (alien) race driven by a single mind, the hive mind that goes from planet to planet with the sole purpose of eating everything. There is no other purpose for this race than to feed. They leave behind dead worlds. Emptied of all substance. Our goal is therefore to stop them.

Artistic direction and sound ambiance

The whole universe is very well transcribed. We feel the behavior of the factions towards the Imperial Guard where simple humans are sent by the millions to die on the battlefields. Where today’s heroes are tomorrow’s corpses and where cowards are executed without further trial.

The production also highlights the iconic vehicles. The grandeur of a conflict on a planetary scale with its wide shots of the battlefields. Or the large and very complete bestiary of tyranids with their funny tactic which consists of walking on each other to pile up in order to climb a wall.

Space Marine 2 also relies on an excellent soundtrack with perfectly adapted music mixed with ambient sound. The picture presented perfectly matches the image we have of stories of this kind. The immersion is truly present, it’s a big bravo for me.

Not complicated but subtle sometimes

There is no need to fill books about this one. The principle is simple: you shoot from a distance and when it is in close combat, you hit. It is bloody, violent and brutal, do not look for an alternative, there is none.

As for Titus, as you can imagine, the feeling of heaviness but agility of the Space Marine is perfectly transcribed. I even want to say, we believe it!

In terms of melee combat, the sensations are good. There is a blocking and dodging system that gives advantages if they are perfectly executed. But they still sometimes remain a little messy. Especially when you are stuck in a mass of small creatures sometimes making the fight difficult to read, which may seem like a flaw, but which in itself, transcribes the reality of such a confrontation. Several weapons are available, from the combat knife to the famous chainsword to the thunder hammer, each with their advantages and disadvantages.

In terms of shooting, we also find several weapons. Many are variations of the bolter. Namely: the Space Marine’s main weapon. Overall, the feel is good and you can feel the power of the different weapons. However, and This is, in my opinion, the biggest criticism of the title: there is no cover system. A point that would have been a real plus for the experience. I often found myself confronted by enemies with barriers or low walls. Without this mechanic, it would be impossible to crouch to protect yourself.

In terms of content, Space Marine 2 offers an extensive single-player campaign as well as side missions. The latter take place in cooperation and are directly linked to the story.

The game also features a 6-on-6 PvP (player versus player) multiplayer mod. A rather nice approach, but it is not the title’s strong point. On the other hand, it gives a more RPG dimension with customization and evolution of its multiplayer character in terms of class. The cherry on the cake is that there are a large number of items to unlock. All served by a HUB within the battle barge.

Technically very solid

Obligatory passage on the graphics, without being a revolution, these are quite correct and perfectly highlight the Warhammer universe. Be careful, they are not without defects. We unfortunately find slobbery textures, blur on certain faces or even coarse pixels on certain elements.

However, I did not notice any bugs or blocking elements during the missions. On the other hand, in the hub, I encountered problems that sometimes forced me to close the game abruptly. Of course, patches should easily resolve these few issues.

Honest length

The campaign mission takes about an hour to complete on medium difficulty, and about the same amount of time for the co-op missions. Note that both missions consist of six missions, which means about a dozen hours of play to fully explore them.

A great way to let off steam

Space Marine 2 is therefore a very good choice. If you are thirsty for brutality, you are knocking on the right door. The one on which the word “fouloir” is written in bold. The content is rich and if you like the Warhammer universe, you will be in heaven as everything is well respected. It makes you wonder why there are not more big studios or publishers interested in this legendary fiction.

While waiting for the next DOOM scheduled for next year, here is something to calm your body after a long day of work. Note also that this Space Marine 2 shares a bit of DNA with a certain Gears of War, no plagiarism here, but simply happiness.

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