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While Dawn of War 2 is a year old, I never really got the chance to talk about it.

Dawn of War II is the sequel to the first one, obviously. Despite its status it doesn’t really feel like a sequel, mostly due to the fact that it has been revamped a lot. Most RTS elements have been stripped, and replaced with squad based-RPG ones. While this change is refreshing, I really missed the base-building and resource collecting from the first game. Naturally, Relic has, in my opinion, done a good job to revamp the series with this new game, and I heartily welcome the changes it’s implemented.

First off, you’re no longer able to build bases or collect resources, as I previously mentioned. Instead, you have a main headquarters from where you deploy various troops on the battlefield. The game, as it claims, strives to bring us the front-line battle feeling, and in doing so, added several elements to enhance this fact. Warcraft III players will be familiar to this change, specifically, adding the ability to equip various weapons, armor and accessories to boost the abilities of the commander of your squad. Furthermore, you get to level up your commanders (and in the campaign, specific squad leaders) and add wargear collected to them. They have several abilities, usable and passive, that are able to be deployed on the battlefield, some more powerful than the others, and some that can change the course of battle.

Second, the campaign in the game is story-driven, meaning that you don’t have to pointlessly go around the galaxy and capture territories  just for the sake of ultimate conquest, in stead, here you fight as a Space Marine from the Blood Ravens chapter (order), and you are faced with several imminent threats across 3 different planets in a solar system (sub-sector). The Orks, that are causing havoc across the planets. Then there are the Eldar, that are mischievously scheming for an unknown purpose. Then there’s the greatest of them all: the Tyranids. Aliens from outside the galactic ring, that devour entire planets so they can grow. Not much is known about them, only the fact that they want to devour you and your planet. As a veteran of multiple wars, it is your duty to defend sub-sector Aurelia (the solar system you’re defending) from all these threats with only a handful of Space Marines to aid you. Are you up to the challenge?

While some missions in the campaign are repetitive, boss battles at the end of each mission provide a different flavor and a twist to all your missions, and I welcomed them heartily. I do love a challenge. You’ll find that different tactics are required for each mission, as the mobs that lurk in that are differently equipped or in greater numbers each time. There are also optional missions available to enhance your wargear, and some of them have time limits. You won’t be able to complete all of them, so choose wisely. During the campaign, you are provided with 5 different squads to choose from. They are unlocked as you progress, and each of them have different abilities. You can only deploy 3 in a mission to aid you, and as I previously mentioned, you might have need for all of them so its best to equip all of them regardless if you’re gonna use them in the future or not. You’ll never know. There are different categories of  traits in which you can spend leveling points, gained by leveling up, which is gained by experience, which in turn is gained by killing stuff or accomplishing missions. Each category of skills provide different abilities, as you progress through the tier. You won’t be able to invest in to all so you better watch out in what you invest. On top of all this, there’s a ranking system in the campaign which determines you current rank, which in turn is determined by how you progressed throughout your campaign. Complete missions faster, kill as many enemies as possible, lose as few squad members as possible, and you’ll gain points that determine your level. You can view your current statistics before any mission. While this rank doesn’t affect you in any way, it’s purely for your sense of accomplishment, if you have any. The campaign is fun and a refreshing experience from the boring one found in the prequels. Depending on your difficulty level, I completed it in 8 hours on medium difficulty.

Once you completed the campaign, you can play skirmish modes either online or in singe player. To do so online you need to register for Windows Live. In any case, in skirmish you’re only limited to 4 races: Human Space Marines, Orks, Eldar and Tyranid. Each have their own tactics to master, and in turn, each have 3 different heroes to choose from: assault, stealth or support. But they also vary for each race. Whats disappointing is the lack of emphasis both in single player and in multiplayer skirmishes, due to the fact that there only are 7 maps to choose from, 3 of them are 1v1 and the rest are 3v3. Furthermore, you only have 2 game modes to choose from: annihilation, where you need to destroy the enemies’ HQ(s), and Victory Point Control, where you need to control a certain amount of points until you gain enough resources to win the battle. In skirmish modes, your resources are determined by strategic points, and energy generators. Both are required to deploy units and buy upgrades. On top of that, there is a faction-specific resources determined by the amount of enemies you have killed, such as WAAAAAGH!! or Zeal. Nevertheless, skirmishes are fun especially on multiplayer.

Overall, the campaign might bore you sometimes due to its repetitive missions, and the lack of variation in skirmishes can be a letdown. But ignoring those two, Dawn of War II is a great game and I will want to get my hands on Chaos Rising that is gonna be released soon.

- Leetgamer