Space Marine 2 is a long-awaited sequel to the 2011 action title set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, but it looks like fans are going to have to wait a little longer. Focus Entertainment has announced that the game has been delayed until the second half of 2024. The delay will “provide the time needed to properly polish the game and to ensure the best possible experience.”
Space Marine 2 was originally slated to release in winter 2023, but it looks like it’ll be several more months before players can assume the role of Titus. Space Marine 2 pits the Ultramarine Titus against the Tyranid threat, a ravenous swarm of highly adaptable alien beasts. There’ll also be Chaos Space Marines from the Thousand Sons legion, which will likely offer a much more magical challenge.
I’m very interested to see how Space Marine 2’s co-op three-person campaign turns out; it’s designed to be played with AI teammates, or a couple of battle buddies. The co-op campaign, plus the fact that Space Marine 2 is spread across two worlds instead of just one, suggests it’ll be a larger game than its predecessor. Space Marine 2’s gameplay demo, available to press earlier this year, certainly nailed the gore and visceral combat from the first game.
In the meantime, there are still a few great games that allow you to explore the weird and wild galaxy of Warhammer 40K. Darktide is a co-op shooter with a banging soundtrack that takes place in the lower levels of a brutal hive city, while Boltgun is a boomer shooter homage that also happens to star an Ultramarine.