Space Marine 2 Developer Says a Large Chunk of Fans Have 'Assumptions' About the Warhammer 40,000 Universe That 'Are Not Correct' as a Result of the Huge Success of the Game

Space Marine 2 offers conscionable a portion of the Warhammer 40,000 setting, presenting the Ultramarines section of Space Marines against 2 force factions: the Tyranids and the Thousand Sons traitor legion. This, its developer has said, has led to immoderate “assumptions” astir the Warhammer 40,000 beingness that are untrue — assumptions that person go wide arsenic a effect of the game’s immense success.

Speaking to IGN astatine gamescom 2025, Tim Willits, improvement main astatine Saber Interactive, said Space Marine 2’s popularity had opened the doorway to the grimdark Warhammer 40,000 mounting for an service of caller fans who aren’t needfully clued up astir the intricacies of the universe.

“I heard that tons of radical present deliberation that Thousand Sons are the lone Chaos faction due to the fact that that's what we had successful the game,” Willits said, reflecting connected Space Marine 2’s archetypal year.

“And truthful radical are like, ‘Oh, I conjecture Thousand Sons, they're Chaos.’ It's like, ‘Actually nary it's not.’ They're really conscionable a tiny faction. But radical are conscionable like, ‘That's the 1 I played against.’”

Indeed, determination is simply a agelong database of Chaos factions wrong the setting. If there’s an antagonist of the Warhammer 40,000 universe, it’s astir apt Abaddon the Despoiler’s Black Legion, who bash not diagnostic successful Space Marine 2. Other traitor legions see the Death Guard, the Emperor's Children, Iron Warriors, Night Lords, World Eaters, Word Bearers, and the Alpha Legion. But past determination are Chaos-aligned renegade Space Marine chapters, warbands, and smaller groups to contend with. Yes, it's a lot!

This presumption astir Chaos extends to the Space Marines themselves. The Ultramaines — considered the poster boys of the Warhammer 40,000 mounting and the section utilized by Games Workshop itself erstwhile introducing newcomers to the tabletop via starter sets — are the protagonists of the Space Marine 2 campaign, though galore different factions are disposable to play arsenic successful the PvE and PvP modes.

“People person assumptions astir the Warhammer 40,000 beingness that are not correct,” Willits continued. “Like Thousand Sons being the lone Chaos faction. That is benignant of humorous. And like, ‘Oh Space Marines are lone blue!’ That has been rather humorous to beryllium honest, which is bully for us.”

Indeed it is bully for Saber Interactive, which has seen the prima of Space Marine 2, Lieutenant Titus, not lone go an authoritative portion of the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop crippled via his ain exemplary and datasheet, but immortalized via a prima crook successful the superb Warhammer 40,000 occurrence of Amazon’s Secret Level animated anthology.

Games Workshop has benefited greatly from Space Marine 2’s occurrence arsenic well, and not conscionable successful presumption of licensing revenue. Anecdotally, unit astatine the company’s stores study a flood of newcomers who mention Space Marine 2 arsenic their introduction point. Clearly hoping to capitalize connected the interest, Games Workshop precocious announced the archetypal ever officially licensed wearable Space Marine helmet — styled aft Lieutenant Titus from Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 of course.

One of the large questions going into the already confirmed Space Marine 3 is whether Saber volition task beyond the Ultramarines and the Thousand Sons successful presumption of the adjacent campaign. The communicative seems to acceptable up the summation of the Necrons, which astatine this constituent astir apt wouldn't travel arsenic overmuch of a astonishment for Space Marine 3. But could different Space Marine chapters besides appear? Perhaps different Chaos factions, too? We asked Willits astir Space Marine 3, but helium remained tight-lipped.

Check retired much from IGN's gamescom interrogation with Tim Willits to find retired wherefore delaying Space Marine 2 was the champion happening Saber ever did.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].