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Life & Arts

‘Warhammer' goes beyond earthly realm 

‘Dawn of War' takes tabletop game to new heights with sleek graphics, multi-player fighting sequence 

by STEPHEN CLEBOSKI 
The Daily Cougar 

Warhammer: Mark of Chaos took place in the fog-shrouded nights of times long since past. Forty thousand years later, the battle continues to rage on, wreaking destruction upon the war-weary combatants and their homes. Only this time, the war spans galaxies filled with ancient and terrible foes. Warhammer: Dawn of War is yet another Games Workshop franchise stemming from the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop game. 

The battles in Dawn of War shake the cratered ground on a variety of different planets and environments. Wars are fought in jungles, ruined cities or lifeless wastelands. The game features single and multi-player modes. The multi-player is fantastic because it offers different scenarios such as capture the flag, assassinate, or the classic annihilation match for total destruction. Unfortunately, the single—player campaign is very short and focuses only on the story of one of the four Warhammer races. Races include the heavily armored and annoyingly pious Space Marine; the wretched, mutated and delightfully evil Chaos Space Marines; the obnoxiously intelligent and pale Eldar; and the ridiculous, green-skinned orks. With such a delicious medley of armies, a story and history behind each race would be expected. Sadly, Relic fell short of having four campaigns, and centers on the Space Marines. 

Steadfast commander Gabriel Angelos, a loyalist to the Empire and his troops, leads the Space Marines. A simple ork extermination leads Gabriel and his fellow warriors into a web of intrigue woven by the dark forces of Chaos. Players must direct Gabriel and his Space Marines into combat to eliminate evil and stop a heinous plot before Chaos grips the galaxy. The campaign is interesting and well done, but despite the quality of the single player campaign, the absence of a plotline for the three neglected races is a noticeably uncomfortable flaw.

The graphics are quite impressive for a strategy game. The units are well built and move fluidly across the battlefield. The shooting animations are particularly impressive. As squads crouch and fire their weapons, yellow tracers zip towards their targets, occasionally ricocheting off an armored foe or building. Units with lasers blast away with enormously bright and colorful beams that sizzle enemy flesh upon impact. Close combat is slightly less impressive as the motions are rather repetitive, but a vigilant player will notice the excellent finishing moves that are unique to each unit. Sometimes a Chaos soldier will rip the arms off an opponent, or an Eldar Farseer might plunge her sword deep into the maw of an attacking ork. The camera is fully customizable in that players can adjust the angle and height of their view to better formulate battle strategies. 

A highlight of game play is the environment, which actually plays an important strategic role. Some terrains such as marshes or mud pits are undesirable for walking soldiers, forcing them to slowly slog through unprotected from incoming fire. It is extremely frustrating to see a Space Marine squad crouched in a crater as your troop's bullets embed themselves in the soil while the Marines aim headshots, as you scream, "Why won't they just die?" 

Dawn of War gives a very entertaining, albeit short, experience for a single player. However, the online play opens up long hours of fantastic game play. Although not as epic in scope as Mark of Chaos, Dawn of War gives great entertainment for a relatively inexpensive price. In addition, expansion packs for Dawn of War look quite promising for future space battles. 

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