Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II

Relic have tried to refresh the rts genre, by removing the typical element of base building. they have also trimmed down the number of units, the game mainly focuses on micromanagement and planning your advances carefully and using the newly implemented cover system to full effect.

unit counters are very important in this game so its best you learn them all quickly :)

i found the 3v3 mode to be the most enjoyable.

this multiplayer is awesome if you invest alittle time and effort.

If you look past the fact that you need steam and Windows Live to be able to play even the single player campaign, and the fact that because its steam you can't play it unless it's up to date, this is an excellent game. The graphics are excellent, the gameplay is great - though don't expect it to be the same as Dawn of War.

Dawn of War 2 is highly bent around the use of tactics, as opposed to base building. This is not a bad thing - indeed, it makes for a very interesting play style.

Once again I'd like to emphasise the fact that you need an internet connection, and be prepared to download any patches.

I've already pre-ordered this game from mighty-ape, however I still wanted to see what it was I was actually looking forward too. I found the Warhammer II Multiplayer Beta - which can be found in the "Steam"'s demo section. Google "Steam" if you don't have it, or don't know what it is. I've played it a number of times, with the people online, including the AIs to understand more of the game. There isn't much too learn, it's quite basic. The game is pretty much built on the graphics, and front line action.

The Good:
Graphics are awesome! Although the Beta limits me, from putting everything on to the highest graphics, it's a new world of anti-aliasing and zoom in action! - Yes, you can see the Marines chain-sawing the enemy - it's pretty intense.
Simple and easy - the game is pretty much a click and point. Hardly any building involved, just a few turrets. After that, it's all fighting, and capturing strategic points.

The Bad:
Not many units! One thing I found very disappointing, was the number of units you can use, or get. Either the Beta doesn't show much, or there just isn't many. The Space Marines only have 4 in Tech 1, 3 in Tech 2, and 1 in Tech 3. 2 of those consist of vehicles. - Tragic, I know! - Perhaps they plan to put many expansions on, for this game to strive? I Hope so! Well, in order for this game to be a success and have a "WOW" factor, it needs a lot more options, and units.

My point of this, TRY the demo first before you buy it, like any game. If you don't have a good graphics card, already you've lost 3-quarters of the intensity and fun!

Good luck!

If you like micro intensive strategy games, this game is for you. If you like building lots of buildings and making pretty bases, you probably won't enjoy this.

The gameplay is very similar to Company of Heroes, just simplafied a little and made to be a smaller scale.

The single player campaign is really good with a really nice storyline and very rpg like feel to it, with having characters leading squads who can be leveled up fine tuning them to the way you intend to use them.

Only bad thing about this game is the bug caused when running on a computer with an Athlon X2 CPU, after 1 hour of play in singleplayer the game will start to stutter and freeze, but knowing Relic they should get this fixed fairly quickly.

I'm no rts fan but i'm surprised how much I enjoy playing this game.

Best part of this game for me is the simplicity of the units and easy to understand.

There's no dozens of upgrade or variable upgrades I need to Study/Memorize in order to start enjoying the game. and it still provides enough room for new tactics etc.

Worth every penny.