Fun game | Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War ...

Very Good. | Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War

pc & video games:


	• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War Windows, Pocket PC 2002 \| THQ, 2004 average customer review:based on 59 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Universe of Battle

It's hard to imagine more obvious RTS material than Warhammer 40,000, but fans had to wait over a decade after the genre came of age for a developer with the guts, gold and Games Workshop support to pull it off. Relic Entertainment has marketed Dawn of War as an industry-defining game that focuses on 'visceral frontline combat', a phrase that appears six times on the game's FAQ page. Unlike traditional RTS, which allegedly revolves round attacking the enemy's supply lines (his 'peons', in case you're not sure which competition Relic's referring to), DOW keeps play at the sharp end through an economy based on controlling 'strategic points' and combat squads that can be reinforced where they stand (by teleportation).

DOW certainly delivers unprecdented unit animation, and atmospherics normally reserved for FPS heavies like Medal of Honor - the screen shakes, combatants yell out randomly, explosions send bodies and terrain flying, etc. Most impresive for an RTS are the hundreds of combat animations, including unit-specific kill sequences that are the most shameless pandering to bloodlust I've ever seen in a computer game (then again, it is Warhammer). By Relic's own admission the camera zoom has no gameplay function, being designed entirely to let you enjoy the carnage up close or from any angle of the compass. Add a gothic soundtrack, and it really does feel like you're in the 40K universe. A universe of battle.

Unfortunately this aesthetic glory has, to some extent, come at the cost of that crucial element of playeability which marks outstanding RTS games. No one cares that Warcraft looks cartoony because the gameplay is so involved. In DOW one often gets the feeling of having nothing to do besides upgrading and placing units in the right spots, as if Relic was afraid of distracting you from that visceral frontline combat. The squad system doesn't leave much room for micromanagement, and renders the numerous upgrades meaningless for gameplay purposes. Even given the constraints of its chosen model however the gameplay suffers from several avoidable defects, such as excessive cooldown times for those abilities that you do control. DOW does at least overcome the RTS Achilles' heel of players being able to solve any problem through sheer numbers; for example, infantry simply can't take on vehicles in this game, at least without specific upgrades. A brief summary of the gameplay's key features follows -

Requisition is the primary resource type, acquired by capturing strategic points with combat units. In good RTS tradition, there's a second resource type to make your life difficult - power is produced at, you guessed it, power generators which are constructed like other buildings.

Strategic Points give you requisition once claimed, and can be fortified with listening posts. Critical locations are worth more, can't be fortified and have special roles in certain game types (e.g. 'sudden death'). Relics are worth the most and give you access to uber-units.

Terrain affects infantry and walker vehicles. 'Heavy cover' for instance slows progress but speeds morale recovery and reduces damage from ranged attacks.

Leader units can be attached to squads, boosting damage and morale. Not to be confused with squad leaders, which are permanent additions to the squad (e.g. Space Marine sergeant) and lend it speciail capabilities.

Uber-units are only available once you've reached the top of the tech-tree and control a relic (numbers vary between maps).

Morale means combat effectiveness. Only applies to infantry squads (level varies between units), who lose it from things like artillery bombardment, daemonic attack etc. Once morale hits zero, the squad effectively ceases to do damage, though it remains under your control - i.e. it doesn't break and run. You have to tell them to do so, for which purpose zero-morale units get a nifty speed bonus. Infantry recover morale faster in 'heavy cover' terrain, while morale can be restored or boosted by various abilities of squad leaders or leader units.

Another area in which DOW stands out against the recent RTS trend is the difference between the game's races, which show a gameplay diversity not seen since Starcraft. Unfortunately the single player campaign involves only one race, a defect rectified in the expansion due to be released this month. The plot (based on the title Black Library publication) is boilerplate 40K fare, with heroic Space Marines battling evil to stop the resurrection of an ancient daemon and save the universe. The AI is tolerable but as always no substitute for a human, so given the lack of a roleplaying element or gameplay flexibility, what you get from the single player experience is essentially an interactive movie.

Quick summary of the game's races follows -

Space Marines - did you buy this game for anything else? Highly versatile (basic squad can be upgraded for any role) and tough as nails; starting race for newbies. Best long-range firepower. High morale that can be restored with the sergeant's rally ability.

Leader Units:
Force Commander - has special abilities against daemons (that's a *daemon* hammer he's carrying). Can call in orbital bombardment once you've built an orbital relay - doesn't do serious damage save to buildings, but it's good to clear the decks if you're in a tight spot.

Librarian - More than your average bookkeeper. Considerable psychic weapons, though not in the same league as the Far Seer's; then again, she doesn't have 1500 hit points when fully upgraded. The Space Marine leaders are so tough they don't need helmets (and yet can take 100 times more punishment than the helmet-wearing workie marines - the game's not THAT realistic).

Uber-unit: Landraider - why do the human ultimates always suck in RTS games?. On the plus side you can build three of them, if you're happy to forego any other vehicles. Doubles as a transport unit. Can be possessed by the Machine Spirit for brief armour bonus.

Terminators/Assault Terminators - infantry don't get much heavier than this. Good against all unit types. Won't get anywhere fast without transports or teleporters (upgrade).

Chaos - Space Marines gone wrong, plus daemons. Meaner in hand-to-hand, but more more expensive and less predictable (lower morale, daemonic units can dissolve or run amok, etc). Vulnerable to Imperial anti-Daemon and Faith-based abilities.

Uber-unit: Bloodthirster (melee only). One mean mother, and can fly to boot. Need to sacrifice one of your aspiring champions to summon him, but hey, what's another puny life in Warhammer 40000?

Leader Units -
Chaos Lord - The scythe ('manreaper') should tip you off on how to use this guy. Like Chaos troops in general, the emphasis is on damaging the enemy's health and morale rather than resilience.

Chaos Sorceror - Packs less punch than the Librarian, but ultimately has a wider range of spells. Needs upgrades to be really useful.

Orks - Big, bad, green. Vehicles are fast and good for short range bombardment but lack stopping power. Best race for close combat (power klaws). Can't aim straight and no armour to speak of, so you need lots of them, especially since morale rises with squad size. That's why they're cheap and quick to produce (orks have a unique unit cap system based on building waagh! banners). If your idea of strategy is to swamp the enemy with bloodthirsty slabs of meat, this is your army.

Leader Units:
Big-Mek - unusual array of support abilities, but also good for bone-breaking combat.

Warboss - like a small tank, but attacheable to squads. Can go one-on-one against pretty much anything. Both the Big-Mek and Warboss have powerful ranged weapons, giving these two an edge over other races' leader units.

Uber-unit: Squiggoth. Akin to those little critters they breed in the gretchin pits, only the size of a brontosaurus and decked out like Eben-Emael. Specials: Unbearable Roar (original, ain't it?) and Trample, which means scattering everything in a straight line like tenpins. Can transport infantry.

Eldar - Highly-specialised units with multiple abilities demand positional warfare (not the race for beginners). 'Fleet of foot' helps infantry to get around quickly, and you're gonna need it - Eldar squads can't take much punishment, even the close-combat ones. Need their bewildering array of upgrades if they're not to get their butts kicked off screen. Once they've climbed the tech tree, Eldar lay down the most short-range firepower of the game's races. Teleporting worker unit is very useful.

Leader Unit: Far Seer - just the one, but she makes up for it with a truly formidable array of pyshic abilities. Make sure you get eldritch storm, it blows away the opposition. The Seer Council is a combat squad of warlocks designed as escort for the Far Seer.

Uber-unit: Avatar (melee only). Choose Eldar just to watch this baby do a barbecue job on the opposition.

Ultimately DOW fails to trump the competition because it's an emotional desert; it lacks the little frills that humanise Blizzard games, like window animations and comedic unit responses. Instead we get spectacular but depressingly severe scenery, impersonal units and effects that are intially breathtaking but soon wear out their novelty value. All said and done however, DOW is a fine game and infinitely superior to the other dismal attempts to date (like Playstation's Firewarrior) to transmute the 40K franchise into the virtual medium. Blizzard fans won't be converted, but it's too intense a ride to miss for any RTS gamer.

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Fun game

I liked this game. Why? It had a good tutorial and was easy to learn. The story was better than average. The voice acting was superior to what I see in most games. The music was very good at getting my adrenaline going. The graphics were excellent without slowing down the game. The single player campaign could have been a little longer but I found it satisfying. True it has the usual very simplistic RTS tactics of build as fast as you can and blitz but I see that in all RTS games. The one thing I did not like was when I installed the game it secretly told my firewall to allow it to connect to the internet without asking me. That is very underhanded and deducts one star from this game.

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Very Good.

First of all, I'm a big RTS fan. It started with Warcraft II, then on to StarCraft, then Warcraft III, then EMPIRES DAWN OF THE MODERN WORLD. I found all very enjoyable. As for DoW...I still have yet to purchase the full game, but the demo alone has given me somethin I've been wanting; an AI thats actually pain in the rear in NORMAL difficulty. I like a challenge...though I'll probably find myself playing the Orks to sate my Starcraft ZERG style strategies of overwhelming numbers sent to the meat grinder...

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A RTS Revolutuion

Dawn of War is unique in many ways compared to the normal Age of Empire's 2 style of game. In fact, the differences are numerous. This is truelly a game out of the ordinary-- and for the better.

Dawn of War has an innovative resource gathering system. You capture "strategic points" on the map (like Star Wars Battlefront 2) and they generate "requisition points". These points are supposed to represent your personal attack's value to the overall campaign of the planet. You also gather power via power generators, which are built anywhere. Since you gather more requisition resource by getting more strategic points (and for that matter critical locations and relics) players are forced into a more aggressive style of playing. This constantly forces players to have minor skirmishes. However, if you are too aggressive, you can get crushed as your forces are spread too thin...

Race wise, it has 4 completely different races, which are genuinely interesting and unique. They all have different troops and tech trees; in fact, you almost need to re-learn all your strategies as you learn to cope with these forces. (The Orks are especially different, with a whole extra resource and the ruleset of unlocking higher level troops by having more troops already on the field)

On balance, the game's fantastic. I've played all the races, and I've been able to win with all of them on skirmish mode. (Though I have a difficulty with the Orks, that's because I just suck with races that focus on close-combat *I HATE ZERG*)

The sounds are some of the best ever. They are terrifying and magnificent at the same time. I love how the Space Marines (who in the Warhammer 40K universe follow the God Emperor to death) fight with a sort of fervor not found in the other races. Chaos is terrifying with their blood curdling cries, and the Orks are funny with their crude tech and language.
The sounds of war in general (explosions, gun effects, etc) are cool as well. When I zoom in on a large fight, it feels as if I'm taking part in it as well, with the sounds of chain swords slashing, bolters shooting and rockets zooming.

The Graphics are the best EVER. It is filled with beautiful particle effects, the models are unparallel for and RTS and the animations are a work of art. The animations in particular are amazing. For instance, in close combat, troopers dodge and weave, clash swords and axes, and have terrific death animations. Ranged combat is improved as well, though not to the same degree. For example, in Star Wars Empire at War, ranged troops have the same animation: shoot/aim, recoil, shoot/aim, recoil, etc. In Dawn of War, troops are always switching their aim between enemy grunts, reloading, taking cover, throwing grenades, etc. These animations really help make the feel of a total-scale war.

If there is 1 problem with the game engine, it's the fact that you can shoot enemies through buildings.....

It should be noted that with the plethora of MODS out there, you can really get a bang for your buck. There's pretty much a MOD for each of the W40K races out there (like the Steal Legion, Tyranids, Daemon Hunters, and Tau)

And to top it all off, this games looks great without eating up system requirements. I run it on mid-high settings with an old PC( with maybe 3 computer players) with: A Pentium 4 2.4 ghz, 512 RAM, and a nVidia Geforce FX 5200. So almost any computer can run this game well, though for a true visual experiance, I would suggest something around the nVidia 6 or 7 series...

I easily recommend this to anybody who loves RTS, W40K, and everything in-between....

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Great game for Warhammer fans!

This is the best thing since Warcraft and Starcraft. If you liked those you will love this game. It is well balanced, fun and easy to learn. Great for long hours of fun alone or with friends online! I heartily recommend it!

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War is a revolutionary game that combines shooter action and real-time strategy wih an intense sci-fi storyline. Command a team of hardened troops, with deadly war vehicles and high-tech weapons, on a single objective -- total extermination of the opposition. 2 to 8 person multiplayer action through a LAN or Internet connection New multiplayer features for customizing banners, names, insignia and squad colors Ally with other players to form a larger army, or just watch the fight unfold in Observation Mode

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