Space Hulk: Deathwing has launched, adding to the endless conga line of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 licensed games that vary wildly between "great" and "kinda poop" at about a 50/50 ratio. This is a first-person shooter in which you play a Terminator—genetically modified superhumans in giant suits of armour—tasked with clearing out shipwrecks infested with hordes of insectoid Tyranid creatures.
Left 4 Dead is the closest touchstone for this, even though the original Space Hulk tabletop game is a turn-based dice-off. In the singleplayer campaign you play as a Librarian hunting for ancient Space Marine artifacts while you give your two Terminator buddies basic orders such as "go there" and "heal Bob he's lost an arm". In multiplayer you can roll with friends in co-op, and I have a feeling that's where the most fun will lie. As you move through the space hulks the Tyranids come at you in hordes, much like Left 4 Dead's zombies.
I'm reviewing it at the moment, and so far it is quite good at capturing the feeling of battling incredible odds with absurdly big guns. The real star so far has been the hulk itself, which is suitably dark and skull-ridden. It looks as though Alien's Nostromo has crashed into a cathedral, which is perfect. They are more interactive than I expected too. You can shoot gas pipes and spurts of flame will incinerate Tyranids who charge through it (the Genestealer melee variants have proven to be a dim so far) and you can seal doors a la Killing Floor to manage the flow of enemies. If you're into Warhammer 40,000 there are some nice lore insights to be found in the terminals hidden about the place as well.
We'll hopefully have a full review for you by the end of the week. Until then enjoy this massive space bell. If you shoot it, it rings! See, I told you the hulks were cool.
