Many modern action games can be boiled down to male power fantasies, but “Warhammer 40K: Space Marine” takes virtual power tripping to a whole new level. Cast as the nine-foot-tall Ultramarine, Captain Titus, players wade into enemy hordes while shrugging off machine gun fire, and hacking Orks to bits with axes, hammers, and swords. Chainsaw swords. No single enemy has even a remote chance of killing Titus; only through sheer numbers do the Orks present a threat. It is not uncommon to have 20 or 30 enemies charging at you at once. Weaker enemies will simply turn tail and flee when singled out. A variety of ranged weapons are also at the player’s disposal, mostly the usual suspects like machine guns, sniper rifles, and pistols. It is the mixture of ranged and melee combat that defines “Space Marine” and keeps it from being yet another generic 3rd-person shooter.
The combat system of “Space Marine” is somewhat shallow, but satisfying enough to remain entertaining throughout the campaign. The shooting is the standard 3rd-person shooter style defined by “Gears of War.” Four weapons are mapped to the D-pad, the pistol has infinite ammo and you shoot at the enemy’s head until it explodes. The melee system is simple, with buttons mapped to attack, stun, and execute. Don’t expect the complexity of a game like “Devil May Cry” or “God of War.” The most complicated maneuver required of you is attack, attack, attack, stun. The fun of “Space Marine” comes from blending the two to effectively take on seemingly endless enemy waves. Thinning an oncoming attack with a rifle then using melee once the enemies reach you is a simple strategy that works well early on, but later in the game target prioritization becomes key. Gunfire is barely noticed by Titus, but explosions and melee hits from the more powerful enemies deal severe damage. Figuring out how and when to take out the heavily armored melee enemies or those packing rocket launchers becomes the most important part of many encounters.
“Space Marine” takes a unique approach to health regeneration, forcing players to adopt an aggressive play-style. After the typical 3rd-person shooter rechargeable shield has diminished and you have taken damage to your health, the only way to regain that health is to kill an enemy with a brutal execution move. These moves range from stomping on a downed enemy’s head to shoving your chainsaw sword into an Ork’s open mouth until its head pops like a jam-filled balloon. Forcing the player to dive head-first into the enemy when they are most vulnerable, instead of hiding behind a wall waiting for their health to regenerate, gives the combat in “Space Marine” a faster pace than other games of its ilk.
The presentation of “Space Marine” is its strongest asset. Textures and models are sharp and clean, and the game has unusually well-rendered faces. The sound design serves the action well; all the guns offer deep booming reports, and enemies explode with a satisfying sploosh. Every footstep of Titus feels like a minor earthquake as each emits a metallic thud and slightly shakes the screen. The only minor presentation issue is the game's lack of environmental variety. You’ll see the same Gothic architecture through the majority of the game.
The most glaring issue with “Space Marine” is that it is predictable and repetitive. After the first hour or so the only ways combat evolves are minor, as you gain slightly different weapons and fight slightly different enemies. The same tired video game clichés found in a million other games on are present here. The action is sometimes broken up with turret sequences. You know which door to go through because there is a green light above it instead of red. Long elevator rides mask the load times. Halfway through the game you become separated from your comrades and must go it alone through a sewer level. For difficult encounters you can enter a slow-motion mode. Hidden audio-logs are scattered throughout the world to provide background for the story. I have a page-long list of these, but you get the picture. The story is almost not worth mentioning, as it only gets slightly interesting in the very end, then leaves you with a cliffhanger.
Despite all of its obvious shortcomings, I enjoyed “Space Marine.” Maybe it was the refreshing lack of a cover system, maybe it was the fact that everyone, including the Orks, had British accents, or maybe I’m just a sucker for power trips. Whatever it was, “Space Marine” provided enough fun to keep me hooked through the seven or so hours it took to complete the campaign.