A
fter more than five
years surrounded
by Vermintide’s
skittering, shrieking
Skaven, Fatshark has
jumped into the grimdark future of
Warhammer 40,000. Darktide pits
another four brave souls against
unrelenting waves of monstrous
enemies in a city being corrupted
by the power of Chaos. It’s a meat
grinder, but you get to be the teeth,
chewing through hordes, leaving
nothing but dismembered body
parts in your bloody wake. And this
time, there are chainswords.There was a teaser trailer in July, but
since then Fatshark hasn’t given
much away about its next co-op
outing. Chatting to the team, it’s clear
they’re being careful about what
exactly they reveal at what is still a
fairly early stage. They want to keep
some surprises, but there’s also much
that’s still up in the air. They’re
asking themselves a lot of questions
about Darktide’s final form.
“We are still iterating on it and
still trying to find our feet,” saysFatshark co-founder Martin
Wahlund. “It’s all about the fun factor
and getting it right, and getting the
feeling right. We want to welcome
Vermintide players, but we also want
to make sure that everyone who
hasn’t played them is just as
welcome, and we need to onboard
them in a good way.”
What is clear is that Darktide
expands on Vermintide rather than
completely reinventing it. You charge
into missions with three friends,
slaughter your way through enemies- with occasional breaks for some
problem solving – and over the
course of your misadventures you
grow stronger, get better equipment,
and maybe tart yourself up with
some cosmetic flourishes. Within
that familiar routine, however,
Fatshark is tinkering away and
planning some significant changes,
with seemingly every little system
being put under the microscope.
GRIM TIDINGS
The setting, of course, necessitates
some of these changes. This is the
far-flung future, so there’s fancy tech,
guns everywhere, and gargantuan
hive cities that house billions of
people. But this is still a universe
with knights who wade into battle
with swords and shields. There’s a“AS WE’VE SEEN IN
VERMINTIDE, PLAYERS
REALLY ENJOY TWEAKING
THEIR LOADOUTS”
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide
COVER FEATURE
The humble guardsman
is the lasgun-toting
backbone of the
Imperium’s army.