Dark fantasy shooter Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine deployed on NVIDIA SHIELD
Fans of the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop strategy games from Games Workshop should seriously consider getting hold of an NVIDIA SHIELD device as Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is now available to stream free with a GeForce NOW membership.
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine takes place on the Forge Planet of Graia, which is largely a giant facility for the manufacturing of weapons. Unfortunately it has been invaded by hordes of alien Orks and the Imperial Guards stationed on the planet are taking heavy casualties in the one-sided battle.
Enter a three-man team from the Ultramarine chapter, 2nd Company. The small squad is led by Captain Titus – the playable protagonist of the game – who is ably assisted by the gnarly old Space Marine veteran Sergeant Sidonus and rookie marine Leandros. Levels either play out with the three-man squad working together or with Titus alone.
While there is an interesting story to be told through frequent cutscenes, the focus is really on the relentless and immensely satisfying action on the screen. The environment is viewed from a third-person perspective and the combat takes the form of a combo of using ranged weapons and melee attacks.
Titus begins the game with a basic pistol and knife but soon gets to try out a variety of much beefier weapons including cannons, bolt guns, plasma rifles, a devastating power axe and a weapon new to Warhammer called the Vengeance Launcher, which fires sticky mines at your enemies.
Despite this plethora of hardware it is in no way overkill as throughout the game Titus is repeatedly assaulted by wave after wave of vicious Orks. The general pattern of combat sees our hero taking out substantial numbers of enemies using the ranged weapons before throwing himself headlong into the Ork ranks and finishing them off in brutal and barbaric ways.
Of course, what is extremely good fun on your own gets even better when you play with others. There are two multiplayer modes available. The first is a cooperative mode that enables players to team up and take on the waves of Orks shoulder to shoulder.
The second option is a competitive mode in which teams of eight Marines face off against one another in order to either annihilate the enemy or capture the flag.
In multiplayer there are three different classes of marine on both the Loyalist and Chaos side of the conflict. Each different class brings something unique to the table. The Devastator Marine, for example, is slow moving but armored and has a good range of weapons. On the other side, the Chaos Raptor is a specialist in close-up combat.
Warhammer's transition from table-top to NVIDIA SHIELD in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is one of the best titles in the franchise and it's particularly engrossing in that it lets you experience the battling first-hand.
If you're already a GeForce NOW member (free to try out for three months and just $7.99 a month after that), Space Marine comes as part of the basic package so you won't have to spend a single extra dime to play it.
