Warhammer 40,000: Darktide Reviews
Developer Fatshark’s newest outing builds upon the great foundation of its work on Vermintide. Darktide offers a refined and evolved co-op experience with expanded, thrilling combat and more robust customization. While a lack of an engaging story and network issues hamper its potential, this co-op shooter still offers one of the best Warhammer games I've seen in recent years.
Even as omnipresent as Darktide‘s technical woes are, it’s the exhilarating thrill of a mission run that shines most brightly in my mind when I think about my experience with it. Even on low graphics settings, shining your rifle’s underslung torch down a dark corridor, only to see a horde of Poxwalkers glaring back at you before your whole squad unloads on them, provides an utterly giddying rush.
Darktide is a game that has atmosphere seeping out of every orifice. Its design brings a crushingly depressing and oppressive aesthetic to life in new and exciting ways, transporting the player to the grimy underbelly of Tertium. The most shocking realisation is that you don't want to leave.
Fatshark has ruled the co-op horde game for years, but I find aspects of the game lacking or not as enjoyable as it should be. Darktide has a strong core to build upon, and so thankfully Fatshark has earned enough goodwill over the years that I trust this’ll only get better over time. Knowing Warhammer is not a requisite to enjoy what’s here, anyone will be able to play this and embrace the chaos. As it stands today, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide has more than enough content in classes, weapons, and mission to enjoy, and it’s clear that the best is yet to come.
With Darktide being more of a live service game, there isn't necessarily an ending to its narrative to speak of. Players will rank up and be treated to short cutscenes reflecting the increase in trust and standing the spaceship's NPCs hold for the player. However, each character feels rooted in the dark sci-fi future the Warhammer series takes place in, as they deliver hints of its complex lore. More story will likely be introduced over time, with hopefully new locations to explore, because players may be left hungry for more narrative and beautiful levels to look at. Still, mowing down enemies with friends has rarely felt as satisfying as it does in Warhammer 40K: Darktide.
[Warhammer 40K Darktide] is clearly 2022's best feel-good multiplayer group game with dark humour, carnage, and accents aplenty, evolving from Vermintide in all the right and satisfying ways.
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is the 40K-version of the Vermintide games and Fatshark delivers again a fantastic co-op experience. The combat feels visceral and meaty and is a true upgrade compared to the former games. There are however a lot less classes, even though they all feel unique. Some features are clearly removed during production, so hopefully they will get added next to more classes. Fatshark has already released some updates, so the future is looking bright for Darktide.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
The lack of content and repetitiveness do not prevent Warhammer 40,000: Darktide from being extremely fun.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Once you get down into the dilapidated yet impressive levels of the Hive and start swinging, Darktide is as great a swarm shooter experience as any, but it needs to improve much of the surrounding infrastructure to make that core combat experience feel rewarding and meaningful. Who knows? I may even come back in a year to re-review the game (which is something that should generally happen with more game reviews), but in the meantime it’s a simmering cauldron of potential that still feels a little raw.
As a "survival" game, Fat Shark games has absorbed a lot of successful experience from Vermintide. Darktide inherited the classic "cooperation + grinding" gameplay, it has shown good quality in the plot; game settings; and background music, but the annoying network, poor optimization, mistranslation and half-finished equipment system also dragged down the game experience of players. I hope that Fat Shark games can solve these problems in the future updates, so that I can continue the journey of "killing mice" nicely.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
Despite its many flaws, Darktide's adrenaline-fueled gameplay and grimdark atmosphere are captivating enough to keep you playing for multiple hours on end.
Warhammer 40,000 Darktide is a title that needs more content and some adjustments. Graphically it is excellent and the play of light and shadow, in particular, make some moments even memorable. However, the balance between the classes is to be reviewed, as well as the in-game economy and the cost of aesthetic elements.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Overall, Warhammer 40000: Darktide is an immersive, fun experience that allows players to shape the game to their playstyle while still challenging them to adapt to the game mechanics. Darktide delivers graphically with RTX on gameplay but is nothing special when RTX is off. Further, though the gameplay is immensely satisfying and challenging, the repetition leaves much to be desired. Warhammer has great potential and opportunity to build a truly unique experience for gamers who want to take on its challenge and serve the God Emperor’s just will.
The developers should be yelled at for giving us an Early Access game disguised as a full release, but their fans are used to it. I have no doubt that, over time, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide will get new content, fixed bugs and an overall boost in quality.
Review in Polish | Read full review
The gameplay is great, brutal and dynamic, at the same time the game came straight with a decent selection of maps, albeit very similar. You will enjoy slashing, shooting and throwing out hordes of enemies with grenades. But the authors have literally not put many systems into the game yet, and more content will come later.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Warhammer 40000: Darktide shows a lot of raw talent but needs more polish and much more content in order to become a solid co-op experience. Nevertheless, if you are a fan of the Warhammer universe you will definitely find something to love here.
Review in Persian | Read full review
At the end of the day, Warhammer 40K: Darktide is a thoroughly enjoyable experience (especially when you can run it).
I am sorry that the game has come out so stripped of content, with such a marked service game philosophy, and with so many polishing problems, and especially performance, that make it practically unplayable on Steam Deck, where by the way it is not yet available. verified. Although I should almost say thank you for being able to try it on the Deck, since Vermintide isn't even playable on Valve's handheld yet. Something I don't understand because if games like God of War (2018), Death Stranding, Red Dead Redemption II or Elden Ring, to mention a few recent ones, work without problems, why can't I play the fantastic FatShark titles properly? That's why I think it's best to leave it in the fridge for a while, and give it a second chance when it hits consoles, where I'm sure we'll already have a more stable version, and with more things to do.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Although it feels more like an early access release at this point, this is a promising start for what should eventually eclipse Vermintide 2 and all the other Left 4 Dead wannabes.
"As Darktide's levels aren't grouped into acts, it's much harder for Fatshark to tell coherent stories across them"