- cross-posted to:
- games@hexbear.net
- games@lemmit.online
- cross-posted to:
- games@hexbear.net
- games@lemmit.online
cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7026545
Depending on how much time you’ve clocked in at the rumor mill, Total War: Warhammer 40,000 is either the worst-kept secret in gaming or one of 2025’s most mind-blowing reveals. Either way, the news is out: here is a revolutionary step into sci-fi territory for Total War, taking the strategy series into the stars with a remarkably bold vision for capturing the vastness of 40K’s setting.
While visiting Creative Assembly, Total War: Warhammer 40,000 is on the tip of every developer’s tongue. Those on the technical side marvel at what the studio’s new Warcore engine is already achieving, from strafing units to destruction physics, while developers working on the game itself boast of being able to conquer sky-scraping hive cities and customize Space Marines’ fingers.
Still, few are as animated as Simon Mann (product owner – campaign design) and Andy Hall (principal narrative designer). Sitting down to discuss all things Total War: Warhammer 40,000, the pair’s enthusiasm is immediate – and as they unveil the true scope of their game’s ambition, their excitement proves infectious.
“Like you’d expect in the tabletop game, a unit of your warriors isn’t just made up of one unit type. It’s not the same person: they’ve got different specialists, different weapon styles,” Mann explains, pointing to Space Marines as an example. “If you play the tabletop, a sergeant with an intercessor squad is armed with a chainsword and bolt pistol. They’re good in both melee and ranged.”
These loadouts can be changed by players, from picking their weapon loadouts to even more in-depth customization via a fully-fledged unit painter. Neither Mann or Hall seem phased by the balance of power between ranged and melee combat. The confidence brings to mind Total War: Warhammer, which prompted fears – since proven unfounded – over how flying units, godlike beings, and spellcasting would gel with the once exclusively historical series.
Also here is the info of a german article about how campaigns will work in total war 40k
Gamestar Article: How campaigns will work in Total War 40k
Galaxy Map
The galaxy map functions as a hybrid between a campaign selection menu and meta-progression. You don’t actually move armies or end turns here, instead you’re given an overview of the galaxy at large and offered several campaigns to take part in.
Those campaigns are split into three types: Full campaigns, short campaigns, and singular decisive battles. Full campaigns will be closest to traditional Total War, set in a full star system meant to be longer and finished over multiple sessions. Short campaigns will feature only a few planets and be intended to be completed in a single evening. Singular battles are self explanatory. So it’s a “choose your commitment” type system
Campaigns can either be generated, or narrative. So there will be campaigns set in handcrafted systems/locations from the lore, with narrative objectives and factions, and also campaigns that are more randomized
Completing campaigns carries over effects and changes to the galaxy layer and potentially future campaigns. The example they gave was helping the Imperial Guard in one campaign leads to allied Imperial Guard forces showing up to support you throughout battles in your next campaign
It’s unclear how much management will be done at this layer, but the article does seem to hint that you’ll manage the systems you’ve taken in campaigns
Campaign Layer
The campaign layer sounds like it will function like a traditional total war campaign. You have armies, fleets, resources, infrastructure to manage, and you move them around the map
Campaigns will feature multiple planets in single systems/sectors. Planets will be different biomes and states of war (some may have ongoing battles, be hive planets, etc)
Planets will be separated by space (seemingly connected by lanes, if the gameplay preview is anything to go by), which will be traversed by your fleets. Similar to the role the sea played in previous total war’s
Upgrading fleets and fighting space battles was mentioned, but those details aren’t being revealed yet
Planets
Each planet will function like a little mini total war campaign map.
Continents are stated to be about the size of provinces in current Total War. Armies move around here like a normal Total War map, where you move them around on a board essentially.
Instead of building cities you are mostly relegated to building outposts and bases. Cities will still play a part however, they will be more like independent entities that you occupy and then manage from there instead of building and upgrading yourself. Constructing buildings and recruiting units in them was mentioned, so it seems like it’ll be a similar to current city management just more horizontal rather than vertical.
Your fleets can interact with planets by doing orbital bombardment, exterminatus, etc.
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This sounds so good, but Creative Assembly and Sega infects everything they touch with Denuvo malware. I wouldn’t buy a Denuvo-infected game for $1.
It seems like the parody elements of Warhammer have completely disintegrated and now we just have an extremely prolific franchise centered around glorifying authoritarianism and pushing the argument that if things get bad enough any semblance of individual autonomy becomes a “luxury” that can’t be afforded. I am fully sick of seeing gamers delight in their imaginary fascism while ignoring the proliferation of real fascism. Even with Helldivers, where there’s at least some still visible parody element, it doesn’t seem to outweigh the glorification and the full-throated glee that comes with it.
Enough of this shit. Give me a franchise about rebellion against authority and stop lionizing bootlicking and thoughtless obedience.
All fandoms have the people who REALLY don’t get the message. Chief amongst them is basically any time chuds listen to Rage Against The Machine. Others are the people who key in that Vegeta is awesome but don’t understand why so much of that is centered around the Buu saga and him rejecting who he used to be.
As for 40k? Yeah. I do have a problem with the people who very unironically worship the imperium.
But it is also worth remembering how many of the beloved (imperium) stories are about actively defying that. Eisenhorn and Ravenor are both poster children for radicals who regularly fall afoul of the more puritan of their orders. Gaunt is regularly set up to die by other Imperial Guard. Hell, we somehow got a sequel to frigging Space Marine (game) and both of those are very much about the fundamental flaw in how the imperium fights Chaos.
Hell, the Ciaphas Cain series is literally space Blackadder with so many plots basically being about Ciaphas actively trying to prevent the imperium from killing both him and itself (to the point Inquisitors cover for him… and only one of them is after his Cain).
And of the lesser known books and games? So many of them are fundamentally tragedies that highlight the futility of war with PLENTY of characters dying for the stupidest of reasons.
Is 40k anti-fascist? At one point, maybe. But it very much hasn’t been for the past 30 or so years and there are a LOT of stories about GW actively interfering when a writer gets too close to the actual point (allegedly a large chunk of why Abnett and a few others more or less disappeared for almost a decade).
But it is also important to remember the power that these long running cultural touchstones have. Star Wars has very much flirted with politics for its entire almost 50 year run. Sometimes for good, sometimes for bad. But, as a result, Andor was immensely powerful for having 40 years worth of build-up to an episode that centered around a speech in which a politician condemned fascism and genocide. And… a lot of people were kinda forced to listen to that “against their will” because they like the laser swords.
Do I at all think Total Warhammer 40k is going to be that? No. But it will continue to do what 40k has done for decades: Chuds will cheer because chuddiness. And the rest of the fanbase will increasingly realize “so… the super fascist armies are bad?”
I think the issue is that 40k doesn’t get the message either at this point. It’s just straightforward glorification of the space marines. I don’t see anything in the modern iterations that feels remotely tongue in cheek. Rage Against the Machine may have fans who are chuds, but they’re extremely clear about their message. They’re unambiguously anti-authoritarian. Star Wars, likewise, has always featured anti-authoritarian protagonists and is usually centered around rebels. 40k’s message at this point seems to be “look how cool these fascist soldiers are” and not much else. That doesn’t just accidentally attract chuds, it’s a chud magnet that overtly encourages them to become more chudish.
A huge chunk of Space Marine 2’s story is about how Titus basically got screwed over by the Imperium for the sin of… treating Guard like human beings and fighting back against Chaos. A big arc is even that his squadmates (other Spesh Mahrines) don’t entirely trust him but learn to do so. And while I haven’t gotten around to it yet, I would be shocked if Owlcat didn’t take some pot shots at the zealots in Rogue Trader.
There are a lot of 40k fans, me included, who are very antifascist. The game has a large queer audience and many fans who enjoy the grimdark aspects of the setting as a cautionary tale. Anyone that knows anything about 40k knows that there are no “good” guys, and that everything sucks for everyone but a few in power. That’s the appeal. It’s a universe where everything is awful all the time and trillions of lives are wasted, and yet stories of compassion and hope can still arise in the middle of it (even though they’re ultimately fruitless). I personally refuse to monetarily support GW but enjoy the setting in other ways. There will always be those that don’t get it and glorify the evil unironically. We just make fun of them and move on.
Yeah, I know 40k fans who are certainly anti-fascist, but I’m also acquainted with 40k fans who seem to be generally pro-authoritarian and sometimes it seems like their enthusiasm is the mask slipping. These are usually the ones who are obsessed with 40k and will routinely spend entire days talking about it if no one changes the subject.
The thing is that there aren’t a ton of franchises that lean so heavily into fascism. 40k and Helldivers are about it (maybe Stellaris), and while we’re in a period where real life fascism is on the rise, it’s maybe not a great thing that these franchises are as popular as they are. If there were some sort of rebels to identify with in the setting that might at least improve the situation a bit, but there don’t really seem to be and I don’t really see any sign of 40k having any sort of actual criticism of the outlook they’re spending a lot of time and money presenting to the public. It’s just uncritical glorification at this point, and that’s really the last thing we should want people internalizing.
You can say that about a lot of authoritarian settings, most obvious example is a hardcore of Homelander fans, despite Homelander being a figure of fun and scorn in the Boys. There will always be people who either lack the critical thinking skills or willfully ignore ample evidence.
