Space Hulk

1. Branoic

   Aug 16, 2013

   10

   For me, the game is a 10/10. Is it the perfect game? No. Is it better than a host of other games (XCOM seems to be one bandied around a lotFor me, the game is a 10/10. Is it the perfect game? No. Is it better than a host of other games (XCOM seems to be one bandied around a lot for some reason)? No, and yes XCOM is a better game. So why is it a 10 then? Because they set up from the beginning to make as close a 1:1 digital conversion of the board game as possible, and they absolutely succeeded 100%. It is a 10 for me because it is exactly the game I wanted and expected. I love the board game, and I love this version of the board game.
   
   Anyone who expected something different has only themselves to blame. It was clear from the very start that this was a board game conversion. Adding any other video-gamey bells and whistles would have just detracted from the simple, tense, claustrophobic elegance of the board game mechanics. Persistent character development between missions? Weapon load out customisation? Please! How would that even work? Each "level" in the game is designed and balanced to be tackled with the squad configuration they give you at the start. The pre-set squad load out, the spawn points and numbers of genestealers, the positioning of the objectives, they are all finely balanced for a tense barely-made-it experience. Buffing your marines and swapping load outs between missions would completely wreck the entire balance of the game! To compensate for that, the developers would need to develop and build in other systems, changing genestealer behaviour abilities to react to your increasing marine stats. And pretty soon after that, you've no longer got a board-game conversion, which is what this is meant to be.
   
   Seriously, complaining about a lack of RPG elements character progression in this game is the same as complaining that the digital version of Carcassonne isn't more like Civilization!… Expand

   • 24 of 45 users found this helpful
2. TORANTUL

   Feb 22, 2020

   10

   Nice strategy. Space Hulk is cool game in Warhammer 40,000 universe with sound, good gameplay, coll graphic and atmosphere! Wii U has coolNice strategy. Space Hulk is cool game in Warhammer 40,000 universe with sound, good gameplay, coll graphic and atmosphere! Wii U has cool games and Space Wolf one from them.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
4. faceless-1

   Jun 25, 2014

   9

   I really dont know what the hell people was expecting. This is remake of the Space Hulk board game and pretty good one, not some FPS shooterI really dont know what the hell people was expecting. This is remake of the Space Hulk board game and pretty good one, not some FPS shooter in Space Hulk universe. If you like board game space hulk game, its a must own. If you like 40K i recommend it. If you dont like turn based games (or if you like more casual ones), this one is not for you.
   For me replaying the original BA Space Hulk campaign from board game was nice look to the past. The Terminator and genestealer models are fine and game looks solid (its low budged title).… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
5. unevenpolecat

   Oct 14, 2013

   7

   Just like the bolter in this game it is way to broken to pay 20 or more dollors for. it gets a 7 because the personality of the space hulksJust like the bolter in this game it is way to broken to pay 20 or more dollors for. it gets a 7 because the personality of the space hulks are still very cool.… Expand

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful
6. faultytools

   Aug 31, 2013

   6

   Space Hulk is an unashamedly direct recreation of the 1989 board game. It is somewhat of an enigma and contradiction; a game that on one handSpace Hulk is an unashamedly direct recreation of the 1989 board game. It is somewhat of an enigma and contradiction; a game that on one hand should have gone further to bring Space Hulk to a new audience, but at the same time has missed opportunities to capture the spirit of the original game.
   
   From the offset it is clear that this is an attempt to recreate the original board game as accurately as possible. From the missions being exact copies of those found in the board game, to the "normal" difficulty being described simply as "Like the board game", no changes have been made to the core underlying rules. There is the option to play in Easy or Hard mode, although being able to individually set custom rules would have been a nice addition.
   
   The first major problem that arises in Space Hulk is the speed at which your Terminators move. They lumber very slowly from square to square and turn corners with the finesse of a dump truck. Granted, they may move like this “realistically” due to their bulky armour and the cramped rigid confines of the Space Hulk, but in gameplay terms the inability to skip or speed-up movement is unforgivable. In the beginning you put up with it, but as the game progresses and you play larger and longer maps, it becomes increasingly frustrating.
   
   The second thing that struck me is just how much you can abuse having Terminators on Overwatch. Overwatch allows your Terminators to attack any enemy in line of sight during the Genestealers turn. If you have two Terminators on Overwatch covering the same corridor, and you save some Action Points in reserve to counter your weapon jamming, there is practically no chance of Genestealers getting anywhere near your squad. Most missions can be broken down into finding a choke point and using this tactic, and it seems to be actively encouraged, if not the only available tactic to the Space Marine player.
   
   And while this is one mechanic that can be argued is abusable in the board game too, there is another that is related only to the digital game; the Undo button. Moving your Terminators can be quite a clumsy ordeal, so the Undo button is essential in this situation, and at times a game saver when you mess up accidentally. But unbelievably you can Undo your attacks on the enemy until you get the dice roll you require to kill them! While most gamers would avoid doing this, it's still something overlooked by the developers and demonstrates the overall unpolished nature of the game.
   
   The graphics are basic, uninspiring and at times very unclear; you often need to bring up the strategic map to keep track of your squad, and I often mistook a doorway for an open archway or vice-versa. While sub-par graphics can usually be forgiven in a turn based strategy game, Space Hulk suffers from quite severe slowdown when there are a lot of models on screen and surprisingly long load times, which doesn't make sense given the lacklustre graphics. The "armour cam" is a nice touch, that manages to capture the claustrophobic conditions of the Space Hulk and injects a dose of "Aliens" into proceedings, but has no gameplay benefit, including being of no help when trying to estimate line of sight, which can be troublesome. Animation is awful at times, to the point where I wish they had actually recreated the game fully, even down to unanimated miniatures and tokens.
   
   The sound is extremely repetitive, particularly when your Terminators plough through dozens of Genestealers while on Overwatch. There is no music in-game music, other than atmospherics. The only positive here is the fantastic mission briefing and sparse in-game voice over.
   
   As you become more efficient at finding Overwatch choke points, you will find more and more that your biggest nemesis won't be the Genestealer's tactics, but rather yourself! Forgetting to Overwatch, forgetting to use a Terminator or left over Action Points will become your biggest downfall. A simple way of checking if you have used all your points and keeping track of Terminators yet to move before you press End Turn would have been very welcomed.
   
   If you are looking for a truly faithful copy of the board game in digital form, you won't be disappointed. It suffers from poor graphics and audio, a painfully slow pace, and riddled with bugs and oversights. In all honesty, Space Hulk in any of it's forms is not a terribly deep strategy game. The board game is enjoyable for reasons beyond the gameplay mechanics that have been digitised so accurately, and unfortunately this digital recreation can't capture the feeling of sitting down with a friend, some beer, and a handful of dice!… Expand

   • 3 of 3 users found this helpful
7. Vortex51x

   Aug 17, 2013

   4

   As a huge fan of X-Com and other turned based strategy games, I had high hopes of another entry into this over-looked niche. Although not aAs a huge fan of X-Com and other turned based strategy games, I had high hopes of another entry into this over-looked niche. Although not a bad looking game, the mechanics and movement of it are extremely clunky and slow. By that I mean with the marines so large and the hallways so narrow, it pretty much means place 1 marine (and you can only fit one marine per hallway) and just over watch the enemies as they stupidly run into your narrow hallway one by one. Although I love the tension and ambient dark feel of the game, first person camera view HUD, almost all of that is shot out the window based on poorly designed maps and bad AI, After killing the same umpteenth Genestealer and getting another zoom in, you'll begin to understand why all the blood brothers killed themselves out of boredom. I see the care put into this game graphically but also the laziness on the mechanics. Good premise horrible implementation.… Expand

   • 5 of 14 users found this helpful
8. animatethedead

   Aug 20, 2013

   0

   Let's ignore the most basic gameplay of your present time and put some uninteresting graphics. Yes this game is great, for people who likedLet's ignore the most basic gameplay of your present time and put some uninteresting graphics. Yes this game is great, for people who liked space hulk back in the day. In DoW 1, 2 terminator are, well TERMINATORS, not some can old people that can barely move. Compared to this, XCOM is a way better warhammer game, even though it has nothing to do with warhammer universe at all… Expand

   • 5 of 18 users found this helpful

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