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Company of Heroes 2 calls for smart, aggressive decision-makers
While the rhythms of authenticity and graphics aren't faint, the drum Relic Entertainment is keenest to bang with Company of Heroes 2 is that of getting commanders to play smart. Quinn Duffy, the game's director, tells us that from a gameplay standpoint the biggest thing his team is focusing on is re-injecting tactics into its real-time strategy."We want to be rewarding smart players," Duffy told us, "It's not an APM (actions-per-minute) game. To play Company of Heroes 2 you need to play smart and be aggressive in your decision making. We want smart players to be able to maximize the value of their units. A guy playing smart with his defenses and his cover and his movement, you want him to beat up on a guy with three squads."
Company of Heroes 2 deploys Digital Collector's edition, pre-order goodies
War may never change, but it certainly has gotten more expensive. The frugal warmonger must secure funds for a conflict as early as possible, and THQ is hoping to capitalize on this need with pre-order incentives for Company of Heroes 2.Plunking down money right now will grant you German Rotbraun and Soviet Leningrad skins for medium-weight vehicles. Pre-ordering through Steam will enlist you in the Steam Pre-Purchase Tiered Reward Program, which grants players goods in Team Fortress 2 and Relic Entertainment's Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War 2. A pre-order through Origin tosses in the Soviet Bryansk Front vehicle skin for heavy vehciles, while pre-ordering directly through THQ awards a free Command Pass that unlocks bonus multiplayer maps and entrance into "exclusive member's only events." The Command Pass will also be available for purchase following launch.A $99 Digital Collector's edition is aimed at those who find their war coffers are overflowing, granting access to the first three single-player content packs post-launch, some additional vehicle skins, and a veteran badge displayed next to your name. Plus, this edition will pack in the original Company of Heroes and its two expansion packs.%Gallery-166158%
Relic auctioning collectors items for cancer society
Relic is selling memorabilia on eBay – not to help its precarious parent company THQ – but for the nobler cause of the Canadian Cancer Society. The studio is gathering money for an event called Road Hockey to Conquer Cancer, where each team has to raise $10,000 to participate in a dawn 'til dusk hockey tournament. All the money goes directly to the charity. Also, we can't think of a more Canadian charity event we'd care to write about today."We're closing in on our goal, but we still need a bit more money – so we're holding an auction for some signed swag," Relic designer Ryan McGechaen told us. "We have a ton of cool stuff, including an unopened copy of Homeworld 2 signed by the dev team!"Other items up for auction, signed by their respective development teams, include a Company of Heroes 2 notebook, Space Marine: Collector's Edition for Xbox 360 and several posters. Check out the items on eBay – shouldn't it be eBeh?
Freeze to death in Company of Heroes 2
Company of Heroes 2 will feature death by brutal Soviet winter. Relic's upcoming strategy game for 2013 will utilize a "ColdTech" system, exposing infantry units to extreme cold, where they can "gradually freeze to death unless the player keeps them warm." This can be done by building fires and garrisoning troops in buildings with Soviet snuggies.The winter maps will also blast blizzards and snow that can accumulate on buildings and vehicles, but can also be melted or removed. The depth of snow will impact troop movement and reveal vehicle tracks.If you're an awfully cruel commander, remember to triple-dog dare troops to lick a frozen pole.%Gallery-161004%
Entering the Rzhev Meat Grinder in Company of Heroes 2
If seeing Soviet forces engage the Germans in the PC-exclusive Company of Heroes 2 taught me anything, it's that the war would have be lost if I was at the helm of the world's defense.At a pre-E3 event in Los Angeles last week, Vancouver-based developer Relic Entertainment revealed the newest entry in its strategy series. Company of Heroes was a landmark title for the developer, solidifying its presence in the genre with one of the best RTS games ever released, followed by standalone expansions. I sunk hours pushing Jerries back from the brink of world destruction in the original Company of Heroes and its expansions, but the newest game seems unrelenting.%Gallery-155918%
Company of Heroes worth every penny at $2
This weekend, following the official announcement of the sequel, the Company of Heroes franchise is 80 percent off on Steam. The original game, which helped breathe new life into a tired genre and setting, is a mere $2. Two bucks! Two smackers! Dos dollars!Got a little buffer in the budget to spend more? Well, the Opposing Fronts expansion can be bundled with the original game for $6, with the Tales of Valor expansion added for a total of $10. The deal lasts until May 14 and you don't want to miss out on these 1940s prices for video games. Don't think about that previous line too long.
Company of Heroes 2 officially announced, arrives 'early 2013'
THQ announced this morning that Company of Heroes 2, the sequel to its critically-acclaimed 2006 real-time strategy title, will storm retail in "early 2013." The sequel parts ways with the commonly covered Western Front of World War 2 and has players taking control of the Russian Red Army to the east, as they repel the Nazis.Relic will utilize the "state of the art" Essence 3.0 Engine for prettier environmental destruction and graphicalizations. "Company of Heroes 2 is a true successor, introducing a new front, new protagonists and new technology," said Greg Wilson, producer at Relic. "While retaining the unique mix of strategic gameplay and competitive multiplayer that made the original Company of Heroes such a success."Due to its current financial condition, THQ won't be showing Company of Heroes 2 on the E3 show floor, but will hopefully be giving a taste of the title in meeting rooms upstairs at the show in a month.
Company of Heroes 2 official reveal coming May 7
Company of Heroes 2 was already revealed yesterday, thanks to magazine scans, but some promo materials sent to Joystiq today say we'll get a "briefing" next Monday, May 7.
WAR40K devs laid off, game will no longer be an MMO
The on-again off-again saga of Warhammer 40K is apparently off again, at least in regard to the title's future as an MMORPG. In early February we reported on some rumored THQ financial trouble, but the company later pooh-poohed the concerns and said that WAR40K was still on track. Today, though, our sister site reports that Dark Millennium Online will axe the online portion of its lengthy moniker and the company will be producing the title as a single-player game going forward. A substantial number of jobs have also been cut, with 79 Vigil Games employees and 39 Relic Entertainment employees receiving pink slips.
Warhammer 40,000: Dark Millennium MMO now single-player game, 118 laid off
Troubled publisher THQ announced today that Warhammer 40K: Dark Millennium Online will drop the "online" portion of its name and become a solo experience -- with multiplayer aspects. Actual product details will be made later."As previously announced, we have been actively looking for a business partner for the game as an MMO. However, based on changing market dynamics and the additional investment required to complete the game as an MMO, we believe the right direction for us is to shift the title from an MMO to a premium experience with single and multiplayer gameplay, robust digital content and community features," THQ CEO Brian Farrell wrote in a statement.As a result of this change, THQ raises the body count of its collapse, with 79 full-time employees let go at Vigil Games in Austin and another 39 employees at Relic Entertainment.
Best of the Rest: Arthur's picks of 2011
Battlefield 3 I love Battlefield 3. I love it almost as much as it seems to hate its players. At least, that's the way it feels sometimes, trying to get into a game, trying to get correctly squaded up, trying to find a server with room, having to use a server browser on consoles in 2011, downloading 2 GIGABYTE patches ... y u no luv me, BF3? But when it does love me, it loves me so well ... and there I go, into that cycle of abuse again.
Space Marine Twitter teases Dreadnought
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine will receive a "big metal surprise" in January, according to the game's official Twitter feed. Game Informer took note of the tweet and its accompanying picture of a space marine (SPACE MARINE!) serving the eternal will of The Emperor against a Dreadnought. As fans of the Warhammer 40K universe and Relic's Dawn of War RTS know, the Dreadnought is actually a battle sarcophagus, where the barely living body of an invaluable warrior is entombed to live out existence in the massive armed mech. Relic gave no indication of how the Dreadnought will be added to the game, but expect some kind of DLC announcement come January.
Space Marine DLC unleashes chaos this December for $10
Fall in, marines! As you know, the war on the Orks goes well -- we're gigantic, chainsword-wielding monstrosities and those green bastards slice up nice. As such, the Emperor has seen fit to bolster our Exterminatus efforts with a new mode, called Chaos Unleashed. The Emperor's dispatch promises "new boss rounds, new co-op arenas and new enemy units like the Imperial Sanctioned Psyker" in December. But here's the catch: Our war is costly, and the Emperor is asking every marine to come up with, uh -- wait, $10 or 800 Microsoft Points? This has to be a typo, because out here in space we've never heard of these things. We'll have to get back to you on that one. Chaos Unleashed also brings with it three new warzone operations across Habs Ablaze, Station Tertius and Aquila Canyon, plus a -- wait, this has to be a typo, too. A new "Capture the Flag mode" for multiplayer available to all players outside of Chaos Unleashed? Frankly, we're starting to doubt the Emperor is of sound mind. [Thanks, Copybass.] %Gallery-138253%
Relic reflects on Warhammer 40K: Space Marine reception
"Was it our best work?" Warhammer 40K: Space Marine producer Andy Lang asked Eurogamer. "It was our best console work." Relic, best known for PC real-time strategy games like Company of Heroes and Dawn of War, took a risk by attacking the third-person shooter genre so late in the console cycle. We enjoyed Space Marine, noting it showed Relic's "expertise can extend far past the RTS genre they've already conquered," but critical reception has been varied. "I'm pretty humble; I don't look at [criticism] and get all upset. I thought most of the reviews were fairly on the mark with what they had to say," Lang admitted. "The character design does get a bit repetitive and certain parts of it, just how the game plays - we didn't have time to really polish that stuff to where we wanted to get to. There wasn't anything that was oh-my-god shocking in the game." Head on over to Eurogamer for more Space Marine postmortem.
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 'Exterminatus' DLC drops Oct. 25
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine's free "Exterminatus" co-op DLC will kill in service to the Emperor on October 25, according to Eurogamer. The DLC includes two, four-player scenarios that pit the Space Marines (or "SPACE MARINES!" as is incessantly shouted throughout the whole game) against Orks and Chaos. Relic is reportedly working on more content for the game, which will be released as free and premium DLC sometime in the future -- certainly sometime before 40K. Relic is better known for using the Warhammer 40K universe in its Dawn of War real-time strategy series. Space Marine, Relic's new, more action-oriented take, fittingly launched into the hell of end-of-year game retail and is apparently surviving. In our review we found the studio's "expertise can extend far past the RTS genre they've already conquered," and the game has held steady on the UK sales charts.
Company of Heroes franchise 80% off on Steam this weekend
To celebrate its fifth anniversary, the Company of Heroes franchise is 80 percent off this weekend on Steam. When Relic developed the original game those many years ago, the WWII setting and RTS scene were both feeling tired, but Company of Heroes delivered a fresh take on the aging genre and delivered a graphically gorgeous experience that still holds up. You can own the intense, immense campaign now for $2. If you're willing to spend more than a gallon of gas for tens of hours of refined RTS entertainment, the original game is bundled with expansion Opposing Fronts for $6, and with the Opposing Fronts and Tales of Valor expansions for $10. If you have any interest in the RTS genre -- even if the WWII setting is a bit of a turn off -- don't miss out on Company of Heroes for $2.
Relic Entertainment holds charity auction to mark developer Brian Wood's death
If you've finished the game, you'll know that Relic Entertainment's recently released Warhammer 40000: Space Marine is dedicated to developer Brian Wood, who passed away in a car accident last year (but not before turning the car so that his pregnant wife would survive the wreck). This week happens to mark the one year anniversary of Wood's death, and to honor him, Relic has started up a set of eBay auctions featuring a number of Space Marine and Relic-related goodies, from signed posters and game copies to even consoles and other promotional items. Most of the auctions end in about four days on Sunday, and plenty of the items only have a few bids so far. All of the money will go to setting up a memorial bench for Wood in Vancouver, where his wife and now 9-month old daughter live. The company has also set up a memorial trust in his honor, as well as an in-company internship. This auction is a great way to show your support for Wood's legacy, and get some one-of-a-kind Relic gear to boot.
Warhammer 40K Space Marine review: The smarter side of slaughter
Games Workshop's Warhammer universe hasn't really gotten the respect in the video game realm that it deserves. Blizzard liberally borrowed from the line for both its StarCraft and WarCraft universes, and those have obviously been quite successful among the mouse-and-keyboard crowd. And even on consoles, the concept of a "space marine" is almost cliched at this point; almost every major developer has churned out a third-person shooter featuring a big bad dude with a bunch of big, bad guns. But Warhammer (and this, its sci-fi, year 40,000 variant) really is the grandfather of the genre, the prototype for all of those gruff space warriors and the green-skinned and slimy hordes they battle against. Marcus Fenix and his ilk may have grabbed some headlines and sold some games, but it's about time the Ultramarines got some credit for being the original killing machines and wearers of huge shoulder plates. And thanks to the talented designers at Relic Entertainment and their pitch-perfect use of the Warhammer universe in Warhammer 40K: Space Marine, they deserve to get that credit. %Gallery-124485%
Space Marine gets 'Exterminatus' co-op DLC in October, free for everyone
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine may be pushing its meaty shoulders into retail this coming week, but its co-op mode won't arrive until "early October" says THQ. The mode, with the Latin-derived name "Exterminatus," will be made free as a download to "all players" according to THQ's release. Exterminatus contains two separate "scenarios" in which four-player groups can maneuver their bulky trio of classes around, chainsawing through everything in their path. Global leaderboards are also included, posing "dynamic challenges" to players and supporting additional "score modifiers" (read: Skulls). Some confusion was raised over the game's co-op back in August when a GameStop advert pinned the co-op mode exclusively to GameStop pre-orders, but today's announcement clearly refutes that information.%Gallery-132494%
NHL 12, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine demos assault Xbox Live
Sticks and giant hockey players may break some bones, sure, but chainswords will rip flesh asunder. Today's high-profile and violent demo additions to the Xbox Live marketplace include hockey simulator NHL 12 and bulked-up shooter Warhammer 40K: Space Marine. Don't forget, if you play the competently created downloadable game, Warhammer 40K: Kill Team, you'll unlock the "Power Sword" when Space Marine starts its orbital assault on September 6.%Gallery-124485%
