Review for Warhammer 40000: Gladius - Relics of War. Game for Linux and PC, the video game was released on 12/07/2018
Warhammer 40.000: Gladius - Relics of War was one of the most interesting titles of the year just ended for all fans of the "Grim Dark" universe conceived by Games Workshop. Developed by Proxy Studios and distributed by Slitherine, the game looks like the first 4X (à la Civilization, to understand) theme Warhammer 40.000, with a plot that sees four different factions fighting tooth and nail for domination over Gladius Prime, a remote planet, the scene of a failed colonization attempt by the Imperium but also coveted by Orks and Necrons for the 'abundance of ancient and mysterious relics on its surface, dating back to an ancient and forgotten civilization; for further details, we refer you to our review of the base game.
Lately though, there seems to be something even more dangerous about Gladius Prime. Something that, despite the power of the Adeptus Astartes and the organization of the Astra Militarum, populates the nightmares of the Imperial administration, something that will not stop neither in front of the suicidal boldness of the Orks nor the icy precision of Necron. The first signs of a Tyranids infestation have been spotted on Gladius Prime!
For those unfamiliar with the very rich background and lore of Warhammer 40.000, we can say that the Tyranids are the embodiment of a fearsome and alien Hive Mind, a race that has made engineering and genetic manipulation the cornerstone of its existence. Each Tyranids unit, structure, ship, or weapon is a living being, or set of creatures, specially evolved to fulfill a specific purpose. All the technology of a Tyranids swarm is in fact entirely made up of highly adaptable and specialized living beings. Terrifying prospect, and even more terrifying is their ultimate goal: to infest a planet to fully assimilate its biomass, so that the monstrous biofleet of which they are a part can enlarge and further evolve.
All these peculiar and fascinating features have been made to perfection in this new DLC which, as will become clear by now, adds this monstrous and lethal race of world eaters to the list of playable factions for the control of Gladius Prime.
In addition to the obvious addition of new units, new buildings and new lines of research, Tyranids adds a whole new management style to the game. If playing with one of the four factions available in the base game the ultimate goal was, however, net of the already marked differences in approach between one and the other, a race to conquer and control resources and relics, playing on the side of the Tyranids changes everything, as their purpose is to accumulate and consume biomass, the only resource they need and which makes all their facilities and lines of production and research work or, better said, evolution.
The flow of biomass is a constant in a game with the Tyranids, as the facilities dedicated to extraction only serve to speed up the collection process, but the very existence of our "cities" leads to literally consuming the environment of the hexagons in they are built, reducing it to sterile unproductive rock after some time, thus limiting the influx of new biomass. Although in an emergency we can still cannibalize our own units to reuse their biomass, the "continuous hunger" of our settlements will push us to use extremely aggressive expansionary tactics, perfectly supported by the bizarre discoveries of our "technology", such as the Broodhive, or structures that bog down a dense network of bio tunnels, able to quickly move our troops from one nest to another. Or behind enemy lines!
Another typical trait of the breed, which is the bewildering evolutionary adaptability, has been recreated to perfection in the game. In fact, by destroying biological units in the vicinity of our Malanthropes, for example, we will obtain considerable research bonuses, which allow us to make our swarm evolve faster.
Tyranids, of course, don't just have advantages. In fact, the vast majority of our units suffer from malus, even quite heavy, if they find themselves acting for too long out of the reach of a control synapse, even losing cohesion and "becoming wild", becoming in fact no longer controllable and potentially hostile.
This, and many other small and large details, not only impose a real new way of approaching the game to the player, but also make fans of the original Warhammer 40.000 setting happy, offering a videogame transposition of the Tyranids race precise and faithful, with all its peculiarities, strengths and weaknesses.
Play the Tyranids DLC for Warhammer 40.000. Gladius - Relics of War was truly a pleasure. The new faction implemented is rather difficult to manage at the beginning, but once we get in tune with the "Hive Mind" the music changes, bringing new life and new possibilities to our games, also going to improve what was good. already in the base game.
► Warhammer 40000: Gladius - Relics of War is a Tactical type game developed by Proxy Studios and published by Slitherine for Linux and PC, the video game was released on 12/07/2018
