In the grim darkness of early access there is only war.
On January 26th, those eagerly awaiting news from the upcoming Warhammer 40,000 Eternal Crusade were satiated with a brand spanking new in-engine cinematic trailer for the early access 3rd person online shooter.
Within this was a fairly standard scenario for anyone familiar with the game or with the Warhammer 40k universe, as a squad of Space Marines push up against an entrenched unit of Chaos Warriors. It perpetuated the overall feeling alongside the playstyle which they are evidently striving for in the finished product, weighty squad based combat with sparing heavy support and a variety of differing classes, and thereby mobilities. Indeed as has been shown off in gameplay prior to this, the prevalence of jetpacks and tanks strive to set the game apart from a more generic affair. Indeed the developers seem to have opted for a ambience and control scheme more akin to that of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine released back in 2011. This is in no way a negative thing, as fans of the Warhammer universe praised that game highly for its accuracy to the canon, highlighting the weight and feel of the bulky Space Marines, the gratification of the Bolter and the general fulfilling nature of the game world. Indeed similar comparisons have been made of Eternal Crusade.
Up to this point I have of course been ignoring the stinger of the trailer, it’s intriguing purpose. Stated on both the Early Access page on Steam, and on the official website, the game will have 2 modes, that of the online PVP between player selected factions of Orks, Eldar, Chaos and of course Space Marines, boasting up to 30 players a side. The second being a PVE mode, wherein a small squad of 5 will face hordes of Tyranids, teased at the climax of this trailer through quite the intimidating tide of Hormagaunts. Again one may draw comparisons to the Dawn of War 2 DLC Retribution, and it’s “Last Stand” game mode, in which it was a team of 3 players facing tides of increasingly strong AI. However, due to the differences in structure of these two games, it is bound to be a refreshing experience regardless.
Of course the trailer has it’s issues, issues which can be put down almost entirely to it’s early access status, being questionable animations and voice acting which could perhaps require more finesse, but these are small nitpicks, and unlikely to be present, or even relevant to the final product to be released. Needless to say that with a new IP based in such a deep web of lore and canon, people will come out of the woodwork to criticize anything from incorrect armour markings through the use of “Sir” in communication between Marines rather than “Brother”, which is arguable to be
Warhammer 40,000 Eternal Crusade is currently in Early Access on Steam, claiming to be in an Alpha state, but has no official release date as of yet. With the support of Bandai Namco however, it is definitely something to keep an eye on if you are a fan of the universe, genre, or even the concept.
