WH40k: Dawn of War Soulstorm Announced
By Steve on Thursday, September 27th, 2007 at 5:18 AM PST In Computer, Game Companies, Game Platforms, THQ
I can already hear a thousand “Woohoo!”s over at Relicnews’ forums. Yes, it looks like we are getting more Warhammer 40k RTS goodness next year. Straight from the THQ press release:
… Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm is a complete standalone title and will feature two all-new armies, including the malicious Dark Eldar, for an unprecedented total of nine playable races. In addition to new units across each of the seven existing races, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm will incorporate air units for the first time and introduce multiplayer medals, adding a whole new level of depth to online battles. The revolutionary meta-game introduced in Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Dark Crusade is further expanded to an interplanetary scale in Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm, allowing players to battle across an entire star system…
Dark Eldar? Warhammer RT4x? By the dark gods!
You really didn’t think Relic would abandon WH40k for Company of Heroes did you? Granted, CoH has won more awards and sold more copies. Needless to say, the WH40k:DoW fans are far more rabid. That’s just due to the high standards fans expect from Relic mixed in with those already familiar with the tabletop or “fluff”. I mean you already have this well established universe with an immense back-story placed in the hands of one of the best RTS developers this decade. You really can’t go wrong with that combo. Plus, Relic have a near perfect track record: Homeworld, Impossible Creatures, Homeworld 2, Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War & expansions, Company of Heroes and its recently released expansion (which is probably good). That’s a pretty good resume, to say the least. Then again, the press release does state that Relic is teaming up with the creators of Titan Quest. Let’s hope Relic have the final say in the development process.
It will be interesting to see how far they take this whole “interplanetary scale” thing. The meta-game in Dark Crusade was an interesting way to spice up the campaign mode, but the multiplayer was pure RTS bliss. Are they going for an RT4x ala Sins of a Solar Empire? Or is it going to simply be a collection of RTS battles with perks given to the winner ala Dark Crusade? Either way, it will be exciting to see how each RTS battle will affect an overall outcome. I just hope along the way they don’t forget that RTS is what it is all about. WH40k:DoW (et al.) is by far my favorite RTS to date.
The Dark Eldar’s “better you than me” attitude will make a great addition. Could the unannounced race possibly be the Tyranids (think bugs in Starship Troopers)? Tyranids would certainly bring the “ultimate evil” race to an “interplanetary scale” WH40k game. Oh dear, I hate thinking about it anymore because of the wait.
You can read the full press release after the break.
The Carnage Continues in THQ’s Warhammer(R) 40,000(TM): Dawn of War(R) – Soulstorm(TM)
Standalone Expansion in Million-Unit Selling Franchise Scheduled for Spring 2008 Release
AGOURA HILLS, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sept. 26, 2007–THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI) today announced Warhammer(R) 40,000(TM): Dawn of War(R) – Soulstorm(TM), the next standalone chapter in internal studio Relic Entertainment’s award-winning Real-Time Strategy (RTS) franchise, is scheduled for release on Windows PC in spring 2008. Featuring an extensive interplanetary campaign spanning an entire star system in the Warhammer(R) 40,000(TM) universe, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm introduces two all-new factions for an unprecedented total of nine playable races.
“Relic Entertainment has set the standard for technical excellence and innovation in the RTS genre,” said Bob Aniello, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, THQ. “Dawn of War – Soulstorm continues that tradition as a standalone title featuring all-new, brutally addictive single and multiplayer game-play that will hook newcomers and skilled Dawn of War veterans alike.”
“In Dawn of War – Soulstorm, we’ve taken Games Workshop’s epic war from one planet to an entire star system,” said Tarrnie Williams, general manager, Relic Entertainment. “Allowing gamers to play nine unique races, introducing air units and providing multiplayer achievements for the first time creates a tremendous amount of new and challenging strategic gameplay for all players.”
About Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War: Soulstorm
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm is set in Games Workshop’s (LSE: GAW) Warhammer 40,000 universe – a dark, futuristic, fantasy setting where armies of technologically advanced warriors, fighting machines and hordes of implacable aliens wage constant war – and is played by millions worldwide. Executive produced and co-developed by Relic Entertainment in association with Iron Lore Entertainment, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm is a complete standalone title and will feature two all-new armies, including the malicious Dark Eldar, for an unprecedented total of nine playable races. In addition to new units across each of the seven existing races, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm will incorporate air units for the first time and introduce multiplayer medals, adding a whole new level of depth to online battles. The revolutionary meta-game introduced in Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Dark Crusade is further expanded to an interplanetary scale in Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm, allowing players to battle across an entire star system.
About Games Workshop
Games Workshop is the world’s largest tabletop wargames company. Based in Nottingham, UK, it designs, manufactures and distributes its range of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 games, miniature soldiers, novels, collectible card games and resin models through more than 340 of its own Hobby centers, mail order, Internet and independent retail channels in more than 50 countries worldwide. Further details on the company can be obtained at www.games-workshop.com. Games Workshop, Warhammer, Warhammer 40,000, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Dark Crusade, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm, the foregoing marks’ respective logos, and all associated marks, logos, places, names, creatures, races and race insignia/devices/logos/symbols, vehicles, locations, weapons, units and unit insignia, characters, products, illustrations and images are either(R), (TM) and/or (C). Games Workshop Ltd 2000-2007. Used under license. All Rights Reserved.
About THQ
THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI) is a leading worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software. The company develops its products for all popular game systems, personal computers and wireless devices. Headquartered in Los Angeles County, California, THQ sells product through its global network of offices located throughout North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. More information about THQ and its products may be found at www.thq.com and www.thqwireless.com. THQ, THQ Wireless, Relic Entertainment, and their respective logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of THQ Inc.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Via THQ
Awesome! Damn I love the 40k universe.
I’m a little disappointed that it is an expansion. That engine is getting pretty old and looking even older.
Still, while I wouldn’t include “Impossible Creatures” on their list of great games, Relic is the best and most outside-the-box RTS developer out there. Company of Heroes was a masterpiece that, in a perfect world, would kick the crap out of the cookiecutter drivel Blizzard and Westwood (or whatever EA division they got sucked into) pump out every few years in terms of sales.
The question of the hour is, is it really an expansion? Looking at the press release again:
“…Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm is a complete standalone title…”
To me, that implies that Soulstorm is not an expansion. Of course the images floating around the web today blatantly make it look like it’s just an expansion. I think it’s too early to tell right now. The engine RIGHT NOW looks old, but in RTS terms graphics ain’t what it’s about. Looking at Starcraft II’s engine it’s NOT that great looking either. C&C3’s engine actually looks better. Does that mean I’ll pass Starcraft II off as being another Starcraft expansion? Certainly not.
The more I think about it, the fact that Soulstorm is being co-developed, to me, implies that there’s going to be some serious effort involved here. So I can’t just pass this off as “just another expansion”. Relic is just too awesome at making a good RTS to do so. And Soulstorm seems more like an evolution with the whole inter-planetary thing. I guess we’ll see next year.
In regards to a stand-alone title, considering that else has been said, I’m gonna guess it’s done in exactly the same way as Dark Crusade, as in, if you have the previous versions, you’ll be able to use the other races. Quite a clever way of drawing in more people whilst keeping everyone else happy.
That being said, they still haven’t fixed the blatant imbalance issues, rendering some races as God’s or others as ants. I hope that is fixed by the release.
Also…Good God! DC’s metacampaign was lame enough as it is. This new one better be good.
man u guys are at it again!!! i just luved the last dan of wars and im lookin forward to adding this 1 to my collection, keep up the good work guyz!!!!!!!!!
Tyranids Are Not Evil You Morons!!
Tyranids Are Just Super Preditors, They Need to Eat In Order To Survive. 
Go To Games Workshop And Read The History Part Of Their Codex. 
But still 
Dawn Of War With Tyranids Sweet! They Shall Pwn The Dark Panziez (Orkish Word For Eldar) Off The Map 
WOAHZ!
Cant wait…but its next year :[
From screen shots, the engine does look rusty, but i mean, c’mon guys, theres a few months till realese, which means itss still in the BETA stage whihc means theyr gonna perk up the graphics soon.
At least…
I HOPE thats the case…
STILL!
Cannot WAIT!
*orders..as soon as its out*
i hope thay put in new units like witch hunters for imp guard. Can’t to get it!!! come on tyranids!!!
If it’s not the Tyranids, then I get the feeling it’ll be the Sisters of Battle, which would be pretty sweet I think. But the Tyranids are definitely going to be the stars DoW2. So, if the nids are in it, then I think they’d change the name before it came out. If the said DoW2, most people would guess the other race to be nids. The graphics will get better, they’re probably just testing the models on the old maps of DC.
I’m wondering if they plan to put the air units on the ground battlefield or if relic is planning to make space battles, where you can make units to board the enemy ships and such. All in All, I’m excited.
I want inquisition. Put sisters of battle in em:)
WOW can’t wait (even though im a greenie through and through!
)
Where did you guys find those screen shots I couldn’t find any new ones?
@ORKS^3
Gamespot has a few screenshots here:
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/warhammer40000dawnofwarsoulstorm/images.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gsimage&tag=images;all
I wouldn’t assume they represent what the final game will look like. There are some mods out there pushing the current engine far more than that.
Hey guys, DoW Soulstorm will have the same graphics as the other games, but will be able to have air units on the actual game (no space battles, they dont want the game to end up like Star Wars do they) so sorry to disapoint you peeps, but at least there is something good bout the campain, by the looks of the screenshot that is from the next campain (yay thank god, I hated the other campain on DC) so woot!
Come on Relic!!
lol, fair enough your right, the screenshots are only showing new basic models of Dark Eldar, but what makes you so sure, im intreged. xx much love
i think they should have added tyranids nd grey knight but i love dow so i reckon this wil be a good addition to the dow family
What’s wrong with the graphics????
Uh huh. Well, I certainly think that the graphics are fairly good in spite of its age. And besides, I really doubt that Relic would ever dish out anything worse than what they previously made, so they should take as much time as they need to polish off any of the game’s aspects.
Oh, and by the way Starcraft II is an old school kind of game so lay off the rude comments.
Well i have heard *this is just rumours* that they are adding are new race to the warhammer 40k table top game and that might be the new race on the game its also a good reason to keep the second race a secret. but the game will be cool whatever race they put in so i cant wait
Man I hope the second race is Tyranids, I’ve been waiting for em since Winter Assault was announced. I mean come on, Sisters of Battle? “Yes, we’re exactly like space marines, only lame”. Give me a chitinous horde of slavering abominations over a bunch of battle nuns any day.
It has to be Tyranids, unless they bring back the squats or Hrud
. If you think about, the storyline is going going to be DC in space with more planets; if they have three factions from the Imperium (Inquisition, IG, Space Marines), they either have to be on one side or fight each other. Relic barely swung it with the Blood Ravens by implying that they were borderline heretics (all things aside, DoW:DC said that they would be watched by the Inquisition), but they can’t have loyal guardsmen vs. Blood Ravens (maybe if they go traitor) vs. Inquisition, because then Guard wouldn’t be loyal still.
I hope thay put something like special units or mercenaries when you conquer a new planet,it would be cool to see “tanith 1st and only” or something or more deamon hunter units cos thay where great but really limited to one per game. still I want to see Tyranid make and appearence even if it was like the way necrons showed up in winter assult. Thats all I can think of….
if u think about it unless they do a full inquisition race then the only other race is the tyranids… i think
DARK eldar look awesome 4 this game
will this game require a better graphics system than previous DOW titles?
Why Dark Eldar? I never thought that those guys would ever make it to DOW I mean they are the most useless 40K race there is. The other HAS to be Tyranids they are one of the biggest races and they should have been in Dark Crusade instead of those piece of s*** Necrons.
By the way does anyone know if the old races will get any new units besides flyers?
If anything they should do Tyranids. I mean, it would make for some momentous fighting and I think it would benefit the story greatly, so my fingers are crossed.
Just found out what second race is “Sisters of Battle” I dont know much bout em looked em up on Dow Wiki and they a branch of the “Witch Hunters.” Gamestop.com has 3 videos on Soulstorm, 1) Dark Eldar, 2)Sisters of Battle, and 3)An Interview with the makers. Its gonna be a stand alone game like Dark crusade so its not an expansion, which means the Inquisition Daemonhunter Mods might not work with the new game, and they addin a new multiplayer feature u will have to go see interview for yourselves. Ill post link if u all want but as far as I see the Sisters of Battle race looks pretty much like a female version of space marines which is really cool cant wait for it to come out.
Would it be possible to convert the Inquisition/Tyrand mod from DC to SS? Because that would allow all the races.
OMG OMG OMG YAY though they better make tyrnaids i cry at some point… MUST FIND GAME TO PREOCCUPY TIME TO GO FASTER…TO THE RPG’S but in all seriousness….(forum)… They really need to make the cover system more like Company of Heroes and make it so all Space marines and chaos space marines can in fact equip Chainswords YOU CAN IN NORMAL WARHAMMER 40K YAY BESERKERS (sorrry random but on a dice roll beserkers charging get 4 attacks and if they have Khornate ChainAxes They make all armour saves 4+)(in other words you roll a 4,5,or 6 on a six sided die you survive if not u die they get four attacks
ALSO forgot to say LAST 2 RACES IN WARHAMMER 40K UNIVERSE AFTER THIS EXPANSION IS DAEMONHUNTERS (Grey Knights) AND TYRNAIDS (dont correct my horrible spellling plz) WHICH WE ALL KNOW SO BYE
Argh, it stole my gaming name – Soulst0rm.
Omg guess what the second race is!!!!!!………………………………………………………… sisters of battle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! look it up !!!!!! theres trailers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NLso2tdqKQ
no nids :roll…I guess nine races will just have to do…..
so cool like the best game in dawn of war alive
LOVED IT SO MUCH
like the best game in dawn of war alive
LOVED IT SO MUCH
best game in dawn of war history
err guys…hate to dissappoint you but i dont think they will ever make tyranids or deamon hunters because they allready exist as mods and those mods are copyrighted so relic cant publish them if they alter them so err…yeah you get the picture.
WTF!! i understand with the whole mods for tyranids and the copyrights but i mean…those are jesat mods from people..right? THQ is a company that can get right sfrom thew creatores from the tabletop sooo why cant they like.. “force”, best word to describe it, tyranids into thier game??
sorry for bad twping
i also agree with firstborn 84!! why put in a race with yet another “huminoid” race the last thing this needs. the game needs alien bone ripping beats full of blood lust and slaughter, not some kind of nunes that are like female version of the inquisition. The inquisition has alredy mad its apperance and the tyranids have not, so the logical thig to do is put something new in the game. please reply and prove my ass wrong if some can!!
Well think of it this way,if they put in nids there’d be a whole lot of re-balencing and thay probly would’t look good with the current game engine,so I’d say needs will be in eventually but not right now (if your on bebo go here:http://www.bebo.com/-warhammer40k-)
BATTLE SISTERS FTW!
I cant wait until this new game comes out
im gonna go crzy waiting for it
ok every1 dow dc has 2 mods inquisition and tyranids, soulstorm is gonna add sisters of battle and dark eldar so there is no point hopin for tyranids on soulstorm btw sisters of battle are a mix of space marines and inquisition but just women
i have an idea why don’t they put the tyranid and daemon hunter mods as an expansion for soulstorm so that every1 that says they should have tyranids as a game they will
reply to ammadar there is tyranids its a mod u just have to search on the internet cos i can’t remember the site i got it from
Ahh!!! its diverted from what 40k is about its meant to be 9 races and theres 3 human races which is pushing it!! wheres the blood and gut wrenching carnage!!
I think Nids would have been a better choice by miles! think about it Worlds getting swarmed on a solar scale by Hordes of hungry aliens?
They cant do the nids justice on the current engine. How many damn times does it have to be said? They will need to make a DOW2 for tyranids.
Thats true… i new engine for Dawn of War would be wicked
AHEM. “unprecedented total of nine playable races.” LIAR!
Have a look:
http://www.enlight.com/wbc3/
16 different playable races was done in 2004. 9 was done several years earlier in WBC1!