Space Marines are really powerful in the SF universe of Warhammer 40k. This was a real problem for the developers of the upcoming co-op shooter “Warhammer 40,000: Space Marines 2”. They had to provide worthy opponents.
What game is it? “Warhammer 40,000: Space Marines 2” will be the new game in the dark Warhammer universe.
Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2 shows you the Tyranids
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“These are superhumans on an absurd scale”
Space Marines in the world of Warhammer 40,000 are quite powerful, and they are set to be just as powerful in Space Marines 2. Brand and creative manager Yann Francois explains in an interview (via gamesradar) how they dealt with the problem of implementing the extreme, individual strength and power of the Space Marines in the game.
What are Space Marines? Space Marines were originally humans who were then genetically modified and optimized for combat.
When you read about Space Marines, Ultramarines and Primaris, you realize that they are superhumans on a truly absurd scale.
They grow up to two or three meters tall. They have two or three functioning hearts. Because they are the only people who can withstand such heavy armor and damage on this scale.
Representing this strength in the game was “quite a challenge for the team,” says Francois. The design of the opponents in particular posed a problem.
“They have their own behavior”
With such overpowered units as the Space Marines, you obviously need opponents that still offer a certain challenge for the players.
It took quite a while to find the right balance between being able to have hundreds of enemies coming at you – but Tryanids are not zombies.
They have their own behavior, their own way of moving, and their own way of attacking the players. Tyranids are a faction with hive intelligence in Warhammer lore.
And how do you find the perfect balance between an enemy that is charging at you but still has its own intelligence?
To find this balance, Space Marine 2 uses the so-called “swarm tech”. This technology was already used in “World War Z”, where the zombies were not particularly intelligent. For Space Marine 2, the “swarm tech” has now been further developed.
“Saber Interactive CCO” explains in an interview (via gamesradar):
So we’re able to create these epic battles where you just have hundreds, maybe thousands of Tyrannids swarming towards you, and then when they hit the breaker they start to turn around, split up, and come after you.
The whole thing works with an “AI director” who controls the hordes of enemies, “knows you, and knows your teammates.”
The enormous strength of the Space Marine also led to another important decision. The co-op shooter can only be played by three, not four, players together: Space Marine 2 only offers co-op for 3 players, because 4 Space Marines would be “too much massacre” in the world of Warhammer 40k.