Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine

Fighting, action, shooting – that's Warhammer 40k: Space Marine in a nutshell. Thanks to the great presentation and credible story along with the characters that Relic has created in collaboration with Games Workshop, this action title is captivating from the start.

Solid action for fans of Warhammer, but lacking in atmosphere and finesse. Graphic and textures are a little outdated but not a huge obstacle when it comes to the simple fun the game promises.

Space Marine is just endless war. Thanks to powerful weapons and excellent pacing, that war is pretty damn fun.

All in all, Space Marine captures the essence of the Warhammer universe: huge, classic factions and their infinite fight for control, the weapons and the power of the high tech future.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine may not bring much originality to the third-person shooter, but what it does it does in a fun way and better than many.

Space Marine comes as the fulfillment of a dream for fans of the universe created in the late '80s by Games Workshop. It's a third person shooter with combat elements, indubitably inspired by Gears of War but still capable of showing some personality. The single player campaign, which lasts eight to ten hours depending on the level of difficulty and number of attempts, is very well told, even with some exciting plot twists in the final stages. Definitely not a masterpiece, but as a solid and engaging action game that will win you over with its quality.

Space Marine is a solid production - worthy of highest Patriarchs' praise. It has some flaws - minor technical issues (mediocre graphics, errors, lags) that fortunatelly fade in the light of Emperor's grace, that the game preaches. And may it do so for a long time.

Space Marine combines gameplay elements to nail the feel of being a 7 foot armored tool of destruction. The game will simply leave you wanting more in both good and few bad ways.

The brutal and fast paced action you get from Warhammer 40, 000: Space Marine truly does its venerable game universe justice. The fun combat, spectacular environment and good multiplayer makes the game thoroughly enjoyable.

Space Marine is a thrilling, well paced action game that is only really let down by its shoddy matchmaking system and somewhat repetitive nature.

By looking to its own fiction for inspiration, Relic has crafted a fun, exciting shooter that effectively differentiates itself from other games in the genre.

Space Marine is a great first try for Relic in its attempts to move Warhammer 40,000 to a different genre. The combat system is very satisfactory and perfectly executed thanks to great work with animation and sounds effects and the artistic work recreating a Forge World is remarkable. It lacks a bit of audacity and ambition both in campaign and multiplayer, but it's a really promising first entry ina more action focused conception of this universe.

A tight, well-made package. Playing this game makes you feel like a badass and a finely-honed killing instrument. If you've ever waved around an electric saw, cackling with power, this is a game you need to play.

For Fans, Space Marine certainly is the action-blockbuster they were hoping for. Anybody else could find it a bit shallow and/or disappointing though.

Space Marine's intrepid mixture of action and Hack and Slash pays off in a great way.

A solid debut in action genre for Relic and a must-buy for any Warhammer 40k fan. [Nov. 2011, p.61]

Warhammer 40K: Space Marine takes solid third-person concepts and uses them to create an atmospheric piece of WH40K that boasts the same care and meticulous attention to detail that Relic has bestowed upon its RTS titles. The third-person shooter setup is more satisfying than RTSes because you get to step through the bodies of Ork foes on the ground rather than gazing down at your troops from above.

Space Marine is fun to play, but the limited campaign time of ten hours and the few PvP maps lower the value.

It may not be the best or most original action game, but it's a fine first outing for the franchise, and a rare gem for Warhammer fans.

If you like pure action, just add another 10 to 15 points because of the atmosphere. Everybody else should prepare for a extremely linear action game, but it's still a lot of fun.

It feels fun for a while, but it never gets exciting or particularly rewarding.

The campaign requires an interest in 40K, while the basic multiplayer modes are fun for all. [Dec 2011, p.67]

The game doesn't really have a whole lot of content to go along with its full retail price but the single player campaign is extremely fun and is worth playing.

When you consider the accomplished start of the game, it feels like a shame that Relic hasn't been able to carry this quality throughout.

By the end of my roughly eight-hour, straight-forward Space Marine adventure, I couldn't help but feel Relic Games missed out on a golden opportunity to take what is a good game – and a strong debut for the Space Marine franchise – and elevate it to great.

Space Marine is a Hollywood blockbuster as a game: entertaining but lacking in depth. It offers a satisfyingly brutal mix of ranged and melee combat, but you become accustomed to the entertaining shocks of the violence. The genre mix turns into an ordinary shooter as the game goes on, when increasingly difficult enemies turns melee into certain death. The game essentially forces you to play against its own space marine-nature, as it enters and stays inside the confines of a shooting gallery like so many other shooters. In comparison, multiplayer is a liberating experience. It smartly adapts the gameplay elements from singleplayer, and emerges more well-rounded.

Space Marine is a missed opportunity, a game too simple to be a challenge appropriate to hardcore gamers, and a world too deep to be understood by casual gamer. Funny, but boring.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is on the shallow side, but it still serves up plenty of "waaagh!"

Warhammer 40.000 is a glorious celebration of military minimalism. In this universe, they cut off your hands, burn your legs, drown your head in plasma and then ask questions. But the official slogan, "There Is Only War", is not an excuse to make a game without a good story, memorable characters and varied gameplay situations.

The only thing rising Space Marine from the grey pool of mediocrity is world of Warhammer 40.000 itself. Rich story background deserved more than a linear hack'n'slash game. [Oct 2011]

A boring, repetitive and generic action game that's just a shadow of what I believe it should have been. I can recommend it only to Warhammer 40,000 maniacs. [October, p.56]

Quotation forthcoming.