Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Soulstorm

It seems that as soon as Relic Entertainment gave the reigns to Iron Lore Entertainment a bit of the soul that breathes life into Dawn of War was extinguished.

Considering the official announcement for Dawn of War 2, Soulstorm can be considered the epilogue for this Warhammer 40.000 generation, and I can’t escape the feeling that the producers wanted to squeeze the last cents with minimum efforts, especially because it's only a half stand-alone expansion which only allows the two new races to be played online, the earlier version being required if you want to play all factions.

Fun, but not progress. [Apr 2008, p.64]

Dark Crusade had done everything already, but the two new races and better campaign are a decent addition when the price gets down to a decent level, that is.

The main issue here is just that everything feels so familiar. While the game still plays quite well and Warhammer 40K fans will surely appreciate all the unit designs for the Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar, too little has been done to enliven the experience.

Even though it's not as good as previous installments, and is generally more of the same, the fundamental gameplay underneath is still quite amazing, even today (the gameplay excuses its 2004-era visuals).

Soulstorm is certainly not a bad expansion pack, but time has certainly conspired against it. Being released almost four years after the base game much of the game is showing its legs, especially in the graphics department.

A robust addition to a titan of real-time strategy that plays well on PCs. But it's past time for Dawn of War 2 now. [May 2008, p.108]

Right now, the game feels dated. It still has the formula that made the game popular in the first place, but that formula is just starting to show its wrinkles.

But, good or bad, it's just more of the same. Not a recommended buy, unless you've lost your copies of the original Dawn of War and the other expansions, and still have a hankering to play.

Fans of the previous expansions will find it worthwhile for the new maps tha thave breathed new life into the multiplayer. Single-player fans will have plenty of content to distract themselves. It’s a standalone game, too, so folks that haven’t bought into the series to date will have plenty to enjoy.

Soulstorm caps off the long-running Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War series with recycled gameplay.

It shows flashes of its former brilliance through two new races that are full of personality and are a lot of fun to play with, but falls flat through a lackluster single-player campaign, mediocre (at best) new air units and two devastating bugs that will kill the multiplayer scene until Relic issues an eventual patch.

Soulstorm is not only a ridiculously long title but a ridiculously very solid package of content. It’s a killer bundle for RTS fans that aren’t too picky about graphics. The problem is that fans of the series, who have already purchased the earlier expansions, are really only getting two new factions and a handful of units.

Soulstorm is a stopgap game. It really feels like the last breath of the series. And that's a real shame.

I'm truly sorry to watch such a fine franchise brought to the brink of destruction by ruthless exploitation. Two races - all that's truly new here - are a weak excuse for selling a full priced game with tired graphics, boring single player campaign and imbalanced units. [May 2008]

Soulstorm doesn't offer an awful lot of new content, aside for the new maps for skirmishes and multiplayer. The multiplayer is still the highlight of this series and tactically decimating your opponent or friends is a source of endless enjoyment, but the single player in this expansion fails to inspire; there needed to be more involvement with the running of your territories (see the Total War series) for a map-based campaign to work and be really engaging.