If you like XCOM-like games and Warhammer, then Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters is a game you should consider playing.
I’ve always been fond of Warhammer games, 40k and fantasy, and over the years have played many of the more well-known and well-regarded titles such as Dawn of War and the Total War: Warhammer games.
Turn-based strategy games have also been a favourite of mine since I was young, and whether it’s commanding armies or squads of heroes, I’m always game for the genre.
So when I saw Chaos Gate had been released, I couldn’t resist trying it out, and I was pleasantly surprised for the most part.
Setting and characters
The game is centred around the struggles of a Strike Force of the Grey Knights Space Marine chapter as they investigate and combat the spread of Nurgle’s corruption.
That probably makes sense for anyone familiar with 40k. For the uninitiated, the Space Marines are genetically modified warriors, explicitly created to protect humanity in the grimdark of the far future and are divided into factions referred to as Chapters.
Each Chapter has its specialities and purposes, and for the Grey Knights, this requires them to seek out and destroy the servants and creatures of the Chaos Gods, which includes cultists, demons and everything in-between.
In Chaos Gate, you act as the newly-appointed commander of a Strike Force of the Grey Knights and, thanks to the meddling of an Inquisitor, must investigate the growing threat of Nurgle corruption.
Nurgle is the Chaos god of decay and more or less the father of all things diseased and disgusting.
This might sound somewhat complex, but it’s relatively simple to grasp in practice. The game presents it all fairly simply and demands little investment from the player beyond trying their best to mince cultists and demons.
Gameplay
Most of your time in Chaos Gate will be spent commanding a squad of four Grey Knights in short, dedicated combat encounters with clear goals.
These encounters are turn-based and are purely combat-focused – there is little exploration or other content, which isn’t a bad thing.
Combat is based on the action points that each of your Knights has and which you spend when they move or take actions such as shooting a cultist or healing an ally.
Each round, you’ll get a set number of these points and spend them as you command your Knights. When done, your enemies will get their turn to move and act.
This gives combat a weighty, impactful feel while not making it slow and tedious.
Outside of combat, you’ll be managing your Knights and moving about the galaxy map with your warship, the Baleful Edict – a vessel you upgrade over time to unlock more features and benefits.
The management side of the game is just as important as the combat. If you aren’t careful about the management of your Knights and don’t upgrade the Edict, you can quickly find yourself falling behind the growing strength of your enemies.
This includes the health of your Knights who, if they fall in battle, will receive wounds, and if they exceed the limit of wounds they can handle, they permanently die.
So making sure you give your injured Knights time to recover is essential.
All this provides an enjoyable, challenging experience that combines the best of tactics with the visceral combat one expects from a 40k game.
Difficulty
Chaos Gate has several difficulty settings, and while XCOM veterans will likely feel right at home on the harder difficulties, those of us who are new to the genre will find even the lower settings a challenge.
This cannot be overstated enough – as enjoyable as this game is, it is also very hard.
If you’re careless or even just unlucky, you can lose battles and Knights; this is already rough in the early game, but in the late game it can be positively awful when you lose a high-level knight you’ve been relying on throughout the campaign.
Likewise, the more fights you lose, the more the corruption will get out of hand.
If you’re looking for a spectacle that won’t challenge you, this isn’t the game you should play.
But if you enjoy a challenge, you’ll likely enjoy what Chaos Gate offers.
Drawbacks
I would be remiss in this review if I didn’t comment on the central issue I’ve encountered while playing since release.
Ironically, the worst issue was the developer’s constant updates, which invalidated my game saves several times and forced me to restart or wait for the next update to fix the issue.
This is likely only to be an issue in the short term, however, and as the developers improve the game, such errors will surely become less frequent.
Of all the issues that the game could have had, this isn’t the worst, as while it is certainly irritating, it is good to know that the game is actively being supported.
Verdict
Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters is a brutally-challenging, turn-based strategy game that tests your skills and patience.
However, if you enjoy a challenge and enjoy visceral action, then Chaos Gate is a game you should try.
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