Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II (PC, 2009)

I've played a lot of RTS titles on PC. Most as we know are driven by building structures and gathering resources. For some I'm sure that's your ideal RTS. Personally I always enjoyed Diablo type RTS/RPG games. Where you focus on your character or your party and you gain in strength and utility as you level. Well DoW2 works along those lines. We leave the structure building and put a twist on resource gathering. I'll begin this with the multiplayer aspect.

Firstly the only structure is your main production building. You could also look at it as a teleporter relay that sends troops to you as you que them. You are not required to build additional structures whatsoever. However, if your main building happens to be destroyed in game you may not rebuild it.

Resources, oh how I sometimes despise thee. Resources always felt like a nuisance for me. I prefer a very instructional control over combat mechanics. I want to be in the fight and stay in the fight with very little need to focus elsewhere. DoW2 does this for me. Resources are obtained by merely taking various nodes in game by clicking it with a unit and staying there for the duration till it's captured. Usually a minute to take. Once taken it is yours and increases resource income. This is also a means of strategy as resource harrassing as in other games can become a strategy. However due to this easy means of resource gathering you are focused almost entirely on combat. May I also add that combat is almost completely nonstop from start to finish.

Lastly your units. You choose a race then one of three commanders/heroes associated with that race. Each has it's strengths and weaknesses and you'll want to choose one based on your style of play. Once you start the game you will begin in Tier 1. It's the first of three tiers where only certain units are available for your purchasing. More become unlocked as you advance to each tier. Commanders and units gain xp in multiplayer as they sucessfully kill enemies. Commanders may reach a max of level 10 and units a max level of 4. Obviously trying to reach those levels may not always be easy and managing your units to keep them alive while making wise kills and sacrifices is imperative. A level 4 squad vs a level 1 squad obviously has an advantage, but one that isnt unbeatable by any means. Strategy and unit composition and make a level four squad just as easily beatable as the level 1.

Singleplayer has been fun. Your units gain xp and of course level up as you progress. THe campaign is non linear so you will be able to choose which mission you'd like to partake on. If a side mission pops up with a good reward, you may feel inclined to take it before you continue the storyline. As you move through missions and fight your way to the end you'll experience item drops. Or loot as many of us call it. These items or loot can be distributed to your squad at the squad selection screen between missions. Weapons, armor, secondary items, enhancement items etc are all readily available. So this gives it a Diablo type feel as your characters level up, become stronger and loot weapons, items and gear.

Overall I enjoy the game. I find myself playing the multiplayer often. It's been a great alternative to the typical RTS, "build your city then attack," game. I can only hope more games with this take on gameplay are released. Dawn of War 2 is definitely on the right track of creating something new but very fun. It is action packed.

for what i spent on this game i was disappointed. the graphics were nice but the units lacked creativity. as far as i can see the only thing that makes this game better than its predecessor is the tryanid race. the strategy was far removed from the field of battle. Short of overwhelming your foe with numbers its a toss up between which party has the upgrades and firepower. above all other flaws, this game requires the internet to install. A program called steam prevents the user from logging in on an already used game. DO NOT by one used without the password and username first. if your looking for a bloody battle experience then perhaps this game will appease. if your looking for a user friendly and fun game. try these: age of empires 1,2,3. supreme commmander1,2 command and conquer red alert.
If these aren't your drift then try turn based strategy. a good one is battle for westnoth. its free and fun. what more could a gamer want?

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II is a fun and fascinating game with a bit of an identity crisis. In one corner you have an explosively intense multiplayer real-time strategy experience, brimming with savagely satisfying competition. In the other, you have an odd and somewhat enjoyable single-player campaign that plays more like an action role-playing game than an RTS. The relationship between these two disparate entities is superficial; the structure and gameplay of the campaign has little in common with that of your skirmishes against other players or the computer. It's a bizarre dichotomy that doesn't always work, but online play is so deeply rewarding that the scattered campaign missteps are easily forgiven. Overall Great Game!

The game is very well done, has a good story mode, unique combat system for an RTS. The multiplayer is fun and perhaps better than the campaign mode. This game, mechanics, etc was very well thought out...but:
Problems with Windows Live, digital download protection (even though I bought the disk version?!), cause the game experience to be difficult to attain if you have problems with logging in, installing, and playing multiplayer. I am sending my computer for repair, I hope the game reinstalls afterward. so this review may get even tougher!

The game play is great once you get the hang of all the symbols, squad based RTS one of the better ones I have played. Graphics are great, and lotsa bonuses like the army painter for multi-player you can just use to get color schemes for your actual 40k painting.