Is anyone excited about Space Marine?

[Mr. Coffee]

Multiplayer's XP grinding is hilariously broken if you've got one or two friends. Set up a private game and you can farm weapon achievements, multikills, and kill streaks so easily you'll want to go "Moo". Took a friend of ours from lvl 1 to lvl 15 in a single ten minute match and we've got this shit refined enough that you can easily make 15k-25k XP a match.

[DPDarkPrimus]

The game was pretty obviously tailored so folks who weren't familiar with 40k could get everything going on. The Inquisitor who pops up at the end is probably the most chill Inquisitor in the history of Inquisitors.

[Stark]

You might be mistaking 'relaxed' for 'not acting', but yeah. It's a shame it didn't really get 40k until the very end.

I've heard the game was being made by some studio before it was given to Relic. If it's true or not, it's a shame we got the WoW-style 40k instead of anything thoughtful or interesting.

[Lonestar]

Pff.

I enjoyed the story more than Gears.

[Stark]

Brandslaves think that way. It's fascinating to think that 'rar toughboy go here now' is considered a 'story' - the only plot element in the whole game is addressed only in the climax in the TUNE IN NEXT TIME section, getting nothing else the whole game beyond a veteran sergeant laughing off the idea of chaos taint. JUST LIKE IN 40K RITE GUYZ?

Other people get a big laugh out of 'we can't use that because it takes hundreds of blah blah blah' ... 'oh actually it was fully crewed the whole time and just did nothing. Cool!' The final act would have been a good time to sell some of the 40kness of the imagery (especially the chaos magic, the effect of the hilariously obvious chaos gate on the spire, etc) but it's so thin they don't even talk about what the spire is FOR, let alone how awesome and chaos-y it is that the debris aren't falling.

If they tried to make it accessible by avoiding talking about the setting, they just created a really thin story that misses opportunities for strong storytelling. It's not as bad as Reach, but it's pretty close - my favourite part is the gun that stops all reinforcements landing being breached by a shit landing right next to it. This was likely possible because it can't point up at all.

[Feil]

Weren't they trying to take the Titan facility specifically so that they could get the Titan crewed by all the guys from the space ships that were getting into the city once they blew up the defense cannon? Maybe I missed something, but I thought the whole plot of the first half of the game was, "We have to secure the Titans so that they can fight the orks and the orks can't use them against us. Send in the Space Marines."

[Stark]

All I got from the no-background text cutscene was that they couldnt lose them (which is why no awesome 40k firepower, etc). If they held the manufactorum and could have got a crew in there in act 4, why was it so full of chaos dudes? Why do they say 'hey it's us in the robit' instead of 'we're set up and ready to go'?

The story isn't crap in that the contents are bad; just that whatever is 'supposed' to be happening is threadbare and poorly communicated. Sadly that's the part we call 'writing'. Right at the start I thought it was lame to have them put aside using the robot for practical reasons like crew instead of mystical or political reasons unique to the setting, but then to have old son Enoch just get aboard and start it up off-screen (and it then immediately break because god knows no ship in orbit could have blown up the spire) is an example of the story and events being genericised, to it's doom. Pffffft, chaos taint? Who cares about THAT?

[Lonestar]

Brandslaves think that way. It's fascinating to think that 'rar toughboy go here now' is considered a 'story' -

Pff, that's WH40K in a nutshell, unless it's a Cain or GG book. Doesn't mean fighting hordes of Orks ain't fun. Just like how Left4Dead 1&2 had no plot worth mentioning(well, less of a plot than SM), but goddam it was fun, even single player.

[Stark]

But it doesn't have to be. They could have put actual characters, attitudes, events, or history into the game. For fuck's sake, they don't even bat an eye when chaos marines show up! Not even a line about how they're space marines corrupted by the taint of chaos a veteran sergeant doesn't care about! Do they even credit a writer who isn't a programmer?

A few lines in a throwaway scene that existed only to hide a loadscreen in Gears around the Hall of Sovereigns contains almost as much character development as the entire campaign of Space Marine. Politics? Change? Views? Pffffft, shoot some guys! And that's for a brand-new, threadbare IP; there's scope for way, way better storytelling in a stronger setting.

But I guess 'Relic's 40k' has always been 'World of Space Marine: Simplistic Fanservice'. Oh well? I hear the multi is pretty cool.

[Cykeisme]

But it doesn't have to be. They could have put actual characters, attitudes, events, or history into the game.

But I guess 'Relic's 40k' has always been 'World of Space Marine: Simplistic Fanservice'.

That's not true, it wasn't always. The very first Dawn of War was dripping with 40k atmosphere, all the way from the pre-mission briefings ("from the war journal of Captain Gabriel Angelos"), to the dialogue, to the unit responses.

For fuck's sake, they don't even bat an eye when chaos marines show up! Not even a line about how they're space marines corrupted by the taint of chaos a veteran sergeant doesn't care about!

They should've gotten whoever wrote the story and dialogue for DoW1.. here's some random quotes, all spoken by the excellent voice actor who did the Blood Ravens Captain:
"Even more concerning, we know now that we face more than mere Chaos Cults, but members of an actual Traitor Legion, the very Marines that turned against our Emperor some ten millennia ago."

"In this dark place, in this dark hour, we will stand against the enemies of the Emperor. And they will know that not even here on this desecrated infernal rock will we suffer the existence of the heretic. Not now. Not ever."

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

That's not true, it wasn't always. The very first Dawn of War was dripping with 40k atmosphere, all the way from the pre-mission briefings ("from the war journal of Captain Gabriel Angelos"), to the dialogue, to the unit responses.

What? No it wasn't. The units spit out a lot of 40kisms, which was nice, but other than that DoW was pretty watered down.

The only Relic game which has really tapped into 40k is Chaos Rising, which from all appearances seems to be a fluke.

[Cykeisme]

I always thought DoW 1's single-player campaign was pretty atmospheric already.. I haven't played the DoW2 expansions, I guess I'd better!

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

I always thought DoW 1's single-player campaign was pretty atmospheric already.. I haven't played the DoW2 expansions, I guess I'd better!

Relic-40K has always been pretty sanitized and generic (and arguably, understandably so because everyone would cry about it being too grimdark if it wasn't watered down). For whatever reason, Chaos Rising bucks the trend and is surprisingly 'purist'. Chaos is srs bsns in it, even including the corruptive effects it has on your own Spess Mehrens, and it has some pretty awesome Space Hulk-style missions.

[Jaevric]

Finally started playing the multiplayer, having a blast but the quality of the teams is varying wildly -- my stunning lack of FPS experience isn't helping matters.

The lack of a 'push to talk' button in multiplayer is a terrible oversight and everyone involved should be embarassed.

[PainRack]

Two things. Anyone knows of a method to kill the Chaos lord on the last level? I think my mouse is too old to spam right click and execute him.... keep dying when he crush my head.

Other, any "friends" I can join? I'm a newb at FPS to be honest, so, I think being abused by people of a community I know should be nicer than being abused by a total stranger......

[Jaevric]

Two things. Anyone knows of a method to kill the Chaos lord on the last level? I think my mouse is too old to spam right click and execute him.... keep dying when he crush my head.

I didn't have any trouble with him -- just kept hitting mouse button 1, didn't really need to spam it, then Space to dodge his swings. I got about 2-3 hits off between dodges (on normal).

Other, any "friends" I can join? I'm a newb at FPS to be honest, so, I think being abused by people of a community I know should be nicer than being abused by a total stranger......[/quote]

I've been on most afternoons, but that's central USA timezone. My Steam ID is Jaevric as well. A friend of mine might start playing but he's in the US also.

[Eternal_Freedom]

Been playing the Pc single-player for the last day or so. Highly enjoyable and remarkably addictive, and I love the method of regaining health. Very satisfying.

From a story perspective I think it served it's purpose: moving the game along from different environments and battles.

Incidentally, I'm glad Lt. Mira survived, too often you get likeable secondary characters who get killed off towards the end. The ending itself was kinder wtf, but oh well.

[Jaevric]

The ending itself was kinder wtf, but oh well.

Spoilered in case other people reading the thread don't know how the game ends: Spoiler

Yeah, I'm not buying a Space Marine going to an Inquisitor to throw his company Captain under the bus like that. On top of that, he did so based on statements by a creature of Chaos. "Oh hey, this daemon says my boss is Chaos tainted, it must be telling the truth!"

Also, they're arresting you for Chaos taint but letting you get on a transport with all your weapons. I have a storm bolter, a meltagun, a power axe, and a bunch of grenades and I've just single-handedly slaughtered my way through an army of Orks and heretics. If I was a traitor I'd see this not ending well for the Inquisitor and the Black Templars.

[Eternal_Freedom]

My thoughts exactly. But oh well, they have to set it up for a sequel anyhow.

Also, what was the point of having that random Blood Ravens squad there? It felt unecessary when you could just have had another Ultramarines squad.

Also, what company were these dudes from?

[Jaevric]

The Ultramarines are from 2nd company. In the rest of the fluff that's commanded by Cato Sicarius, which generated a forum thread about when the game takes place and whether Titus predates or postdates Sicarius, along with a discussion over whether the FPS is even "canon" for WH40K.

I suspect the Blood Ravens showing up is mostly fanservice since that was a THQ/Relic created Chapter and for quite a few of the guys playing Space Marine the Blood Ravens were their introduction to the setting through the Dawn of War games.

Or, as Mr. Coffee noted, they heard there was a lot of good gear and showed up to do some serious looting. The guys you see at the end are only a token force, the rest of the company of Blood Ravens are running around looting all the stuff your character left behind on his rampage. Thunder Hammers don't grow on trees, you know.

[Eternal_Freedom]

Fair enough. I thought they might be 2nd Company but I figured they couldn't be as Sicarius runs that lot. Oh well.

And I love the idea of Blood Ravens looting the place.

[Dartzap]

Finally unlocked the Thunderhammer, Final Vengeance and the OHKO for it. Really enjoying the multiplayer as a result

[White Haven]

Final Vengeance, Dart? Fucking really? Lameass.

[Jaevric]

Final Vengeance, Dart? Fucking really? Lameass.

Unfortunately there is no option to have Final Vengeance only work against plasma cannon Devastators. Thus, everyone must suffer for the sins of a few.

I will admit to taking a perverse delight in landing right in the middle of a group of Devastators, smashing one of them into a thin red paste with a thunder hammer, dropping a grenade and making a rude hand gesture as the rest slaughter me.

[White Haven]

Ah yes, Plascannon devastators, the Marines with the least chance of surviving point-blank combat due to their splash killing themselves. Such a victory over an assault marine.