Review: Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War 2: Retribution

Name: Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 - Retribution

Developers: Relic Entertainment

Publishers: THQ

Genre: RTS

Release Dates: March 2011, Out now!

Platforms: PC


Dawn of War 2 – Retribution is the standalone expansion and follow-up to the plot of Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War, as well as included expansions and sequel. The story of Retribution picks up after the ending of the expansion Chaos Rising which follows the plot of the Blood Ravens, a Space Marine chapter who carry the title of protagonists in both Dawn of War 1, as well as 2. Retribution however offers a new variety of protagonists, as the new campaign features a total of six playable factions with their own agendas and story, although it is all based on more or less the same identical maps, with different views on the fields depending on what faction you play. Sadly only one of the playthroughs count as official canon, but I would still suggest playing through them all, as each campaign features its own interesting way of play and characters, as well as interesting and/or hilarious dialogues between the cast.




Story:

SPOILERS FOR DAWN OF WAR 2 + DAWN OF WAR 2 CHAOS RISING

All the playable factions in the singleplayer campaign

The game proceeds after the ending of Dawn of War 2 Chaos Rising. Azariah Kyras, chapter master of the Blood Ravens, has turned traitor, and Apollo Diomedes, the original captain of Kyras Honour Guard, along with the other Blood Raven heroes of previous games, are brandished as heretics and to be killed on sight. Apollo, with the help of some of the original cast, including Cyrus the master scout, Martellus the techmarine, and a new character, dubbed merely The Ancient, a silent character, a marine who's taken a vow of silence because of his past sins. The marines do their best to purge their chapter of Chaos taint, and get revenge for their fallen brothers. Of course, this is only the plot if you choose to follow the Space Marine storyline. There are five more to choose from, and they are as follows:

Imperial Guard: Lord General Castor sided by Imperial Inquisitor Adrastia travel to the Aurelian system to find evidence of Kyras treachery before an all-encompassing Exterminatus fleet is scheduled to arrive, wiping out all living things in the sector to cleanse it from corruption.

Orks: The crashed krooza of Kaptin Bluddflagg has the Ork Freebooter captain having to make his way off the planet. On the way out of the area he is confronted by Imperial Inquisitor Adrastia, who employs him (or tries to at least) to hunt down and kill Kyras.

Chaos: Eliphas the Inheritor, now a Chaos Lord of the Black Legion, is sent to the sector to kill Kyras and harvest his soul for his new master Abaddon the Despoiler, to try and cleanse himself of his past failures. Although Eliphas has an agenda of his own..

Eldar: Autarch Kayleth of the Altaioc Craftworld is sent to the sector to try and stop the realisation of a prophecy that is to happen in the sector which would inevitably bring the death of the planet Typhon Primaris. The Eldar Ranger Ronahn, however, is there not just for this reason, but to find the soulstone of his dead sister, Farseer Taldeer.

Tyranids: You are the newly spawned Hive Lord, in the sector to consume all that there is to consume for the sake of the Hivemind. However, a mighty entity has been located within the sector, that might threaten the swarm of Tyranids, and must be stopped.

Gameplay:
Dawn of War 2: Retribution is an RTS, a Real-Time Strategy game, and has you controlling several units at once, all produced from your main base of operations. The game features three resources in-game: requisition, energy, and population capacity. The first is acquired by capturing Requisition Points, adding to your overall income over time, and is mainly used to purchase units. Energy is acquired similarly at Energy Points, and is a supplemental resource that works in conjunction with requisition, and is needed for more higher tech units and upgrades. Population capacity is as it implies, the number of units you can field on the map at the same time. Larger units and squads take up a larger number, which has you juggling whether you need a few giant units or many lesser ones. All units can be upgraded somehow, either with specific equipment or better armour, new abilities, and such. Hero units, the Commanders, one of which you choose at the start of each multiplayer match, has their own types of equipment, and once purchased, can be re-equipped if another weapon or armour is more needed at a certain time, to tip the edge in your favour.

Gameplay in the campaign follows the same style as the original Dawn of War 2 and its follow-up expansion of Chaos Rising, with some slight differences in the campaign mode. Where the original game had you only controlling four units at one time to upgrade, level, and equip, you now have up to four hero units to control, as well as a buildable army on the fly, after you capture recruitment spots. At the start of each mission, with a slight limitation to the first few levels, you may choose if you wish to take with you all four powerful heroes, or swap them out for more powerful versions of regular units, with some other added benefits, such as a higher population cap to start. However your primary hero (such as Captain Diomedes for the Space Marines, or the Lord General Castor for the Imperial Guard) is always needed in your army, and may not be swapped for something else.

The way you level your characters is also changed a bit, where you get only a few points to put into your stats, but each step up gains an ability, instead of the original game's, where you had to put several points into a stat to gain a new ability.
Throughout the campaign you also unlock new units and the chance to unlock additional upgrades for them, equipment, and similar.
The campaign also features 2 player co-op, with each player able to purchase and manage units on the battle map.

The multiplayer remains the same as the original game, pitting you against a number of opponents in different modes, them being either regular Deathmatch, or Victory Point Control. In the former, all you really have to do is annihilate the enemy, as the name implies, but in Victory Point Control, you and your enemies will battle to control three static beacons placed over the map. Each player starts with a number of tickets, and whenever one player has more beacons than the other, the one with the least beacons will start losing tickets at a rate fixed to how much of a disadvantage he has. The first player to reach 0 tickets will lose. This works in essence the same way as it does in the game Company of Heroes, also made by Relic Entertainment.

There is another mode, as well, called The Last Stand, which makes you able to choose one of six (seven if you purchase a DLC, the Tau Battlesuit) heroes, the Space Marine Captain, the Eldar Farseer, the Ork Mekboy, Tyranid Hive Tyrant, Chaos Sorcerer, or the Lord General, and along with two other players, make your stand in an arena where continous waves come to try and kill you. Your objective is to stay alive for as long as possible. This mode gives cause for some great co-op and fun times while trying to manage to stay alive. This mode reminds me greatly of the Horde mode featured in the game Gears of War.

Power Bitchslap!

Conclusion:

This is a great game. I like it a lot, and I have played it for many hours now. I personally enjoy the lore and setting of the game, and with this added expansion, being standalone as it is, adds even more depth to the Dawn of War series. The characters featured in the campaign are well-written, and some have even appeared in earlier installments of the series (for example, Sergeant-Major Merrick, an Imperial guardsman, is featured in the last few levels of the original Dawn of War 2 campaign, where he and other guardsmen have fought the Tyranids for a long time), which makes for some fun moments of nostalgia when they are presented. And, while perhaps not the most serious of the campaigns, I greatly enjoy the Ork campaign following Kaptin Bluddflagg, showing the ruthlessness and hilarity that can ensue when Orks enter a combatzone. And just being able to put the centre of focus on another faction than just the Space Marines, having been given quite enough attention from previous games, is a refreshing breeze.

All in all, I enjoy this game. Many hours spent in the campaign, and several more in the added Last Stand gamemode. I heartily recommend this game to all gamers who like RTS games, or who like the Warhammer 40,000 universe, or both!

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 - Retribution uses Steamworks, and can be purchased here.