Space MarinePC and Xbox Demos out

[lordsquinty]

PC and XBOX demo's are available to download from STEAM
PS2 available tomorrow apparently

Just finished playing the 2 Demo levels

Not overly impressive gameplay-wise, just run from point A to point B hitting the chainsword button as much as possible.

Boltgun is nigh-on useless, Bolt pistol worse, sniper variant pointless as levels that are on the demo are to cramped to use it and I dont have a clue what the vangeance is meant to do apart from fire pretty blue dots?

So, chainsword all the way until I found the power axe and more button bashing ensued.

Jump pack on the other hand - takes a fair bit of arseing around to get it working, but good fun for the short time you get it.

On the plus side - it is VERY pretty - its as good a 40k spacemarine game (looks-wise) as you'll get.
(levels details not so much, but the marines certainly)

I would advise anyone thinking of getting it to try the demo - its very nice, but its gonna get tired very quickly for some tastes.

Multiplayer with assault packs might be fun though

[marlowe]

Felt the button bashing also, a shame but stunning graphics

[Asurya]

Gave it a good solid testing last night. Overall, I was quite happy with the demo and will certainly buy the full game and not regret it *cough* Ultramarines movie *cough*

Visually the game is very nice. Not as nice as I think it could have been, but very nice overall.
The level of detail on the Marines is very nice but most of the Orks and Grots look the very same as the one that was on the screen 10 seconds ago. I know it's always going to be a lot harder to make x models of Ork for the game, but simple changes like weapon skins, different sized choppa's etc could have made difference, but all of that is being overly picky on my part I think.

Personally I think the level design is what I would expect from an Imperial Forgeworld (which I think is where it's set). What I mean by that is a drag background desert type world with many of the same style of building. I think if the game had been set on an Imperial Hiveworld or an Agri-world then it would have perhaps been a little prettier to look at, but you still nice effects like wind, debris etc

The gameplay was enjoyable and at harder difficulty levels is not a simple hack and slash. I honestly feel that comparing this to a button bash is wrong. Although the control system only offers a Strike/Alt.Strike/Evade/Stun/Execute button system, so did Batman:AA (swap Execute for Instant Take-down) and the melee system in that is far from button bashing and more over, if all you do in Batman and Space Marine is hit the Strike button, you'll soon find yourself dead, which conversely the only thing I really don't like about the combat in the game is the way you heal yourself.

I'm not so sure that the Boltgun is next to useless. There were a few points in the levels where using the cover* available you could engage with some Orks without simply running straight ahead and it's certainly the case that you don't engage a Nob without pumping a magazine of Boltgun ammo into him, but overall, clever use of grenades and Boltgun prior to engaging a mob of Orks makes the combat that little bit easier. Not is that sense of difficulty but in terms of being able to see the combat as sometimes the screen is just too busy.

The jump pack I really liked (apart from the silly cut scene where Titus changed into it). It's not quite perfect control when you're in the air and you tend to deviate on landing, which is very reminiscent of the old 2nd Ed rules for Jump Packs, where each member of the Assault squad would scatter D3" on landing but I absolutely loved jumping sky high with my jump pack, pulling out my bolter and killing a few Orks whilst in mid-air to land amongst the rest and roll up (using Evade) into BP+Chainsword to hack the rest up.

Other than all of that the only other comments I have is regarding polish and bugs. If you zoom in really close on your squad mates you can see through gaps in their armour and and one point during a swirling melee I ended up being stuck inside a large crate/container and had to quit (i.e. no option to restart from last checkpoint - but that might be in the full game) and finally, turned a corner at one point and blew an Ork away with my bolter and he simply vanished, no body, no blood, nothing - but these bugs happen.

Also, multi-player looks like really good fun, almost like Gears of War (which is awesome) but with Space Marines. I've heard people gripe about why it's simply Marines vs Chaos Marines, but I bet the same people have never complained that in Quake/UT/CoD/GoW both sides were essentially the same with only the slightest difference (usually weapon names as they ended up doing roughly the same damage).

Anyway, to sum it up. I'll buy it the day it comes out and no doubt be very happy.

* Cover being defined as simply standing out of the enemies LoS. Would adding a duck button and animation really have been the challenge of a lifetime.

[lordsquinty]

Aug 25, 2011 11:16:17 GMT Asurya said:

I've heard people gripe about why it's simply Marines vs Chaos Marines,

Thats sureley just to make both sides equal though...?

[warsmith]

I've enjoyed play Space Marine & just the amount of detail on things like the building or the armour. I would like to go into detail on some of the stuff but don't wish to spoil it.

Overall I enjoy useing the standard Bolter, Stalker patten Bolter, Plasma Pistol & Melta Gun. THough I just got the Storm Bolter recently ;D
Also the Power Weapon been my combat weapon of chose.

Bomb squigs are the bane of my life in this game. Really, really hate them.

Jamie