Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine Preview
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One of my primary concerns with Space Marine is whether it will maintain a player's interest once the novelty of running through walls and fighting (orcs with guns) wears off. The graphics aren't particularly impressive and the only enemy revealed so far is the Space Ork, who only seems to have a couple of character models as it is. Fans are more than likely hopeful for an appearance by another race, i.e. Tyranids, which are essentially the aliens from Aliens or the Zerg of StarCraft fame (which owes a lot of its style to Warhammer, actually). These would make for a great addition, as would the Imperium's nemesis, the Chaos Space Marines. But honestly, I don't foresee fighting anything other than hordes of mindless green goons.
Another aspect worth mentioning from the released gameplay footage is the game's aesthetic and color palette. What sets the Warhammer 40K universe apart from other sci-fi yarns is its setting: 38,000 years in the future as opposed to the usual couple hundred. Artwork and novelizations really gave fans a sense of what the far future was like a dark, oppressive, neo-Gothic landscape that seemed almost too bleak in its lack of hope, or peace. The art direction of Space Marine seems to eschew this for a much brighter and more colorful palette than fans are used to, making it seem as if the game is set in the year 2525 and not the year 40,000.
