Where to start with this one? The Dawn of War series is possibly one of the greatest real-time strategy titles of this decade and that is a fact. Every fan of strategy games who was brought up on old school titles like Warcraft, Starcraft and Homeworld fell in love with the Dawn of War games at first sight. It had the graphics, it had a large selection of races, it even had the army painter feature - but most of all, it was immense. Huge battles on even bigger battlefields were a characteristic of the series, as well as the inventive gameplay mechanisms put into the game with great love and care towards the genre. 

Dawn of War II is different. It definitely is not the game you've come to love with every sequel or expansion. This is not necessarily a bad thing and I won't beat around the bush to lure your attention any longer. If you want to find out what exactly differs in this anticipated sequel from the critically acclaimed franchise, continue reading and you just might.

 

The storyline sets focus on the Space Marines who are at the same time the only playable race in the campaign mode of Dawn of War II. It’s the 41st Millennium and an epic war is brooding right around the corner. The Space Marines clashed with the Orks on the desert planet Calderis and this is where you come in in the form of a new commander allocated to the Blood Raven 'branch' of the Space Marines. You are this archetypal hero who is 'destined' to tip the balance of the battle towards victory. But war is never as simple as it seems. Soon, you'll realise the importance of the Eldar and the Tyranids, but unfortunately, this is where all the 'racial diversity' stops - at only four races, and remember, only one is playable in the singleplayer mode. Luckily the campaign mode is long enough for you not to feel the absence of these races as playable scenarios or even other races who were left out of the game completely. Dawn of War II achieves its lengthy playtime by introducing the storyline as a non-linear one. You'll often have to make decisions that will change the way the storyline progresses, decide whether to dig into certain sidequest, etc. - and Dawn of War II manages to pull it off without coming accross as needy, which is starting to become a rare trait in video games. Despite that, there are numerous other factors aside from longievity that contribute to the game's singleplayer succes. 

First of all, Dawn of War II is more of an real-time strategy (RTS) with role-playing (RPG) undertones, rather than a pure strategic experience. You have your own character with his own special name, a group of friends and a goal. Even though this 'goal' is no more than the average inqusitorial 'burn the heretic'-type agenda, the backstory of Dawn of War II is definitely something to look forward to not only for fans but for newcomers as well. In my opinion, however, the characters don't really drive the story forward which is a must for characters in a role-playing game. Most of all, this is caused by a total lack of the protagonist's personality which was completely wiped in favour of the usual genocidal behaviour Dawn of War's Space Marines are known for.

Character flaws aside, the role-playing elements of Dawn of War II are flawlessly integrated, but a bit stale in the 'reinventive department'. As far as mechanics go, everything is okay but it's nothing we haven't seen already. With the help of the loadout menu you level your character and the character's traits to gain new skills, abilities and bonuses which are always helpful in a battle. Before running into a mission you'll make it a habit to compare old and new wargear (or loot in layman's terms), but you'll often stumble upon a weapon or piece of armour that is advertised to be superior but ultimately falls short in every possible way. This mostly occurs due to finishing one of a set of missions, causing you to level up which renders the loot of the other missions in the same group more-or-less useless.

Next up is gameplay, which is where the game differs the most from its predecessors. As mentioned, Dawn of War II updated its RTS image to a noticeably more RPG one. I think that Jonny Ebbert, the game's lead designer, said it best when he explained that Dawn of War II "takes everything that was great about the original and combines it with the best that Company of Heroes had to offer." So naturally, the cover system has been reworked to much more than just hiding in holes and craters, as you can now take shelter behind vegetation, conveniently placed rock formations and similar 'obvious choices.' It is also worth to note that buildings are more than just a 'conveniently placed rock formation' since you can now enter them and provide covering fire from there, which is always helpful when under siege. Couple those perks with a destructible environment and you've got yourself a fool-proof formula for a fun and dynamic gaming experience.

'It's always good to know what you're up against' is something every RTS buff will tell you when you first enter their world. Mission briefings tell you more than just where to hit, they tell you where it hurts, and you'll be wise to take note of that. The AI in Dawn of War II is no stroll in the park as they will actively take advantage of the high ground, cover and flanking manoeuvres to outlast you. But hey, they're 'human' too, and when they know that they don't stand a chance - they run - so it's smart to try and get rid of them before they manage to pull the old 'exit: stage left' because there is a possibility that you'll encounter an even bigger bunch of bad guys the next time you look around the corner. Mission bosses, on the other hand, are deisgned to take advantage of your weaknesses. It's not rare to find yourself in an open arena-like location when fighting a boss - where cover is practically non-existant and your ranged units main weaknesses are exploited. This is where your true skill as a tactician is tested and your playstyle (possibly) defined - will you button-mash the hotkeys to use all of your character's available skills or will you try and find a way to turn the tide of battle in your favour? But be sure to check the map for glowing crates as those are 'drops' that replenish your skills and are invaluable to successfull completion of the mission. Other than collecting the drops, you should also remember to secure any beacons and buildings you locate on the map or stumble upon on the way towards the mission objective, not only because they reinforce your squads with lost units, but because they can sometimes affect the course of the game.

I must admit: I haven't had the chance to thoroughly test Dawn of War II's multiplayer capabilities. Judging from my brother's playtime and that little free time I spent on it, the game is as good online as it is offline. You can choose to control one of three units from the four races that are featured in the game. Those units are typically centred around offensive, defensive or support styles of play, but certain races work differently and instead of, let's say, an offensive character type you'll find a stealthy one instead. With the implementation of Windows Live also came shaky online games as there is no dedicated server to connect to, but one can argue about that being Live's fault. Maps can hold a maximum of six players, three on each side, where the players mix races and characters in order to annihilate the other team or capture the most control points before time runs out, depending on the victory conditions. This makes for a really interesting mix of different playing skills and styles as you probably won't win the same battle with the same tactic you used last time. Don't quote me on this, but I think that this could finally mean the death of 'exploits' such as the wall of photon cannons from Starcraft and similiar 'tactics' were.

Looking back on the game we can conclude that, although this isn't your typical Dawn of War game, it's great at what it does. I know, I haven't really mentioned the game's graphics: how cool the particle effects are nor how sleek and shiny everything looks - but I don't think graphics really matter for a strategy game. The first Dawn of War title looked dated yet it still managed to capture the hearts and minds of a generation of gamers simply because it was a great game. Dawn of War II is, in my opinion, the same. It opened its doors to a whole new audience and became a game where newcomers don't have to flounder when faced with the learning curve and hardcore fans still have a challenge to look forward to. It took a big step forward in a new direction for the franchise and most probably met the expectations both Relic and their fans built up over time. With so much potential, it's just a shame that it didn't exceed them.

8-D
Backstory
RPG elements
All-new cover system
Good multiplayer

>:-(
Number of races
Lack of more playable scenarios
Windows Live support