Warhammer Dawn of War 3 - DAMNATIO MEMORIAE

[Suicidal]

Watched some videos of the game today, and while the core gameplay (building things and killing things while fighting for things) seems decent, the game just feels very unfinished and has a lot of questionable design decisions. There are barely any maps to choose from, maximum 6 players per game, having to unlock stuff, the escalation stages, etc. It all feels very wrong and not like an RTS should be. For fucks's sake, is a normal RTS that follows the classic formula of building and expanding, fighting over resources and destroying your enemy without any of this new-age mobile game shit too much to ask for? This genre is deader than RPGs have ever been

 

[Maculo]

I completed the campaign on hard. It was a mixed experience with highs and lows. In my opinion, DoW 3 is currently an unhappy marriage of DoW 1 and DoW2. Still, part of me is optimistic, because DoW 1 and 2 hit their strides in expansions (Dark Crusade, Soulstorm, and Chaos Rising) in my opinion, and I hope DoW 3 can do the same.

At this point, I would bring up Starcraft 2 and DoW 2. Although Starcraft 2 had a derpy story and its multiplayer never lived up to broodwar, Blizzard did mission variety well. Each mission had its own special feature (robbing a train, flame destroying the map slowly, etc) with optional objectives that rewarded you. On top of that, in between missions you could purchase upgrades, unlock units and powers, etc. Another reason I would bring Starcraft 2 is how good the control and reactivity of the units could be.

In comparison, the DoW 3 campaign looks thin. The missions are straight forward, with some timed objectives. You go from point A to point B with your army. As a result, the missions mostly are easy, even on hard with some exceptions that are too few. Also, before missions you can select elites (some of which are gated behind buying them with skulls). You also can choose doctrines, but you do not have any doctrines to choose from until you buy them. Then comes the disappointment that is leveling elites...

In DoW 2, you had war gear to equip and had proficiency trees you could upgrade stats and abilities. You had a reason to replay the campaign to explore different builds and obtain unique gear. In DoW 3, when elites level up you earn skins, portraits, and 2 army doctrines per elites (well, technically the same one, the level 3 doctrine requires you to take the elite to use it and at level 8 becomes a general doctrine). And, that's it. It utterly fails to provide a sense of progression and has little replay value. Another aspect I disliked is the super units. These units typically took the difficulty out of the missions that already are trivialized. They can wipe out armies instantly. For example, I managed to beat the second to last mission (ork part) with just the morkanaut.

I know the above paragraphs are mostly negative, but I still got some enjoyment out of the campaign. DoW 3 definitely met my rts itch. It is just hard to justify a full price of $60 for a game that feels half done.

 

[Sturmgewehr44]

No entry in the Dawn of War series has surpassed Dark Crusade to me.

 

[Major_Blackhart]

Im truly anngry that this game turned out the way it did.

 

[thesheeep]

Im truly anngry that this game turned out the way it did.

Angry, but not surprised, am I right?

 

[lightbane]

Soo, how is the ingame story then? Is that salvageable at least? How are the events of DoW2 taken?

 

[thesheeep]

You know shit has hit the fan when people look at the story in a WH40k game to find something positive
I think every review I read says that the campaign is utter shit, btw. Not even sticking to a faction, but jumping wildly. No sense of progression, etc.

Some current data:
Steam reviews still at 55%

Concurrent players:
At launch: 26k
Today (not even 2 months later): 3.7k

My favorite review snippet:

I don't know who these devs are but frankly this is a game that was developed for a fanbase that didn't want it, by a dev team that was completely clueless.

 

[Commissar Draco]

Soo, how is the ingame story then? Is that salvageable at least? How are the events of DoW2 taken?

From what I have gathered by watching in game movies on jewtube its meh with campaign forcing you to play eldars and orcs too and usual ancient Demon awakened drivel; its short and is copy pasta from first part; Shame after interesting story of DOW1 and DOW2 to be honest.... but maybe they will fix the game in expansion.

 

[Cyberarmy]

You know something about the game is depressingly wrong when good'ol Commissar Draco speak about it without using any "Smilies"

 

[Maculo]

Soo, how is the ingame story then? Is that salvageable at least? How are the events of DoW2 taken?

Space Marine ending for DoW II: Retribution is canon (no surprise here). Gorgutz is the canon winner for Soul Storm (at least, Gabriel blames him for killing Boreal and half the chapter). No word on Captain Hairgel and the others from DoW 2 (outside of Jonah).

Story is alright, if not standard. Personally, I would call the Space Marine missions salvageable. The Space Marine missions were the closest thing to a high point in the campaign. Storywise, you see that Gabriel has become wiser (kinder?), compared to his DoW 1 incarnation. Without spoiling much, he tries to take responsibility for the DoW I and letting the demon loose and tells off the Inquisition. Mission-wise, the Space Marine campaign is more satisfying due to the difficulty and the need to micro. In that sense, you do feel like a small squad against infinite Xenos hordes. Small engagements do feel good in this game, especially with how you can micro units and use abilities. In comparison, the large battles and the super-units felt like crap to me personally.

In contrast, the Ork and Eldar missions are standard missions, where you build a blob army and move across the map. The missions are so much easier, with the exception of two (2) missions (one Ork, one Eldar). I do not know if they had different designers or were rushed, but the quality drops.

Take mission one for Space Marine on Hard difficulty: you are given Gabriel and a handful of squads (at max 1 dreadnaught, 1 assault marines, and a choice of 2-3 scouts or 2 tactical marines) and you have to fend off Ork forces with much higher supply count in terms of units. Unless you use your stuns and abilities, you will lose. If Gabriel dies, you lose. If you lose too many units, you will likely lose, because after you fight multiple waves of Orks, you have a boss battle. You have no chance to reinforce (too few requisition) before the boss fight. This mission forces you to be smart.

Now, take Ork mission one: you use Gorgutz to wreck an Imperial Guard base (you climb walls, etc). You then establish a base, create a blob army, and attack. Later on, you have to defend a moving artillery gun from the Eldar. I beat that part of the mission (on Hard difficulty mind you) just by spamming the basic melee fighter. No restarts required.

This pattern REPEATS THE ENTIRE campaign, with good Space Marine missions and boring Ork/Eldar missions, with the exception of 1 decent Ork mission. Even the final missions for Ork and Eldar are fucked up. I beat the final Ork mission with just a super unit (it could one shot the objective and nothing could hurt it). In contrast, the final Space Marine mission requires you to split your forces across three (3) defense points, and the enemy brings anti-vehicle. In that mission, you have limited resources and must outlast infinite waves of enemies.

 

[Gepeu]

Are you people really keeping track on Warhammer's stories?

What for?

 

[Maculo]

Are you people really keeping track on Warhammer's stories?

What for?

It is more so the characters. Captain Diomedes and all the yelling increased my enjoyment of DoW II Retribution. Tarkus was invincible, Cyrus was edgy, Gabriel Mangelos, etc the list goes on. The stories were so-so, but the characters grew on me.

DoW III is the culmination of these games in my opinion, and ideally, we should see all of the characters return. My only regret is that they did not get the original voices actors, especially for Diomedes.

 

[Gepeu]

They're a bunch of pixels even their authors don't care about.

 

[Maculo]

They're a bunch of pixels even their authors don't care about.

And? That can be said about most characters across most mediums. It is the entertainment factor though, whether that be Boreal's speech impediment or Diomedes screaming into your ear for even the smallest command. The DoW characters have basically become memes in their own right.

 

[Gepeu]

And? That can be said about most characters across most mediums.

This is true.

.

 

[thesheeep]

 

[Destroid]

Real time strategy!

 

[Infinitron]

Welp: https://www.dawnofwar.com/article/community-update-june-13-2017

Community Update: June 13, 2017
The next update will introduce some highly requested community features, such as Annihilation Mode and buildable defenses!

Hey everyone!

It’s been a wild ride since the release of Dawn of War III – a game we loved making and are so glad to finally have in your hands. We’re thrilled to put out a new installment after an eight-year hiatus, we’re proud of the innovations we’ve made within the genre, and we think the game is full of potential.

But…we’re humans who have the internet. We know there are lots of you who don’t feel the same way. That matters. We make these games for you, and we need you in order to keep making games. So, let’s talk about where we go from here.

Dawn of War III was meant to reunite our Dawn of War and Dawn of War II fans with a bombastic, action-RTS packed with incredible heroes, giant space lasers, and whole, new planets made of things that go BOOM. While we’ve checked those boxes, it’s clear that those weren’t the only things that you were looking for. So, what now?

It started at launch by keeping our eyes and ears open. We spend a LOT of time on the forums, and just as much looking through the data on what you’re playing, and what you’re not. We’re using that to plot out our next steps and are hoping to share plans with you soon, and get you involved in how we bring them to life. But that takes time.

So, what happens in the short term? Great question…

NEW MODE: ANNIHILATION
To start, we’re going back to our roots with new multiplayer modes that challenge you to wipe out every last Waaagh Tower and Webway Gate to earn that victory screen. Get ready for Annihilation Mode. Wait, make that: Annihilation MODES.

Dawn of War I fans will feel right at home in Annihilation Classic. To win, you’ll need to destroy the core structures of your opponent. It’s tough, but we’ve added a couple tools to help you out: new doctrines that will let you build faction-specific turrets throughout the map.

Want a headstart? Load up Annihilation with Defenses to kick off the match with several of these turrets already installed throughout the map, buying you more time to build up your army. Both modes will be available in Custom Match for 1v1, 2v2, and 3v3.

We’ll be releasing a video on later this week with more information, and debuting the mode live on Twitch at 10AM PST on Friday, June 16th. Keep your eyes peeled!

NEW DOCTRINES: BUILDABLE TURRETS

And those fancy new turrets? You won’t need to hand in your hard-earned Skulls for them. We’ll release them unlocked, for all players, for use across all multiplayer modes. Turtlers rejoice! You’ll have new defensive strategies to play with, and against, in no time. Here’s your first look at one of them in action!

The turret doctrines won’t be available in campaign mode, but it is something we’re going to take a look at. No promises, but we’ll see what’s possible and get back to you.

NEW MAP: MORTIS VALE
All existing multiplayer maps have been retrofitted to play host to Annihilation showdowns, but we’re happy to share a brand new Mortis Vale map – a fresh battlefield to burn to the ground! We’ll share a closer look at Mortis Vale next week, but here’s just a taste of what to expect. And yes, these maps will be equally available to load up in Power Core!

ENGINES OF ANNIHILATION
We’re sneaking one more treat in for you. Get ready to bring glory to the battlefield with the free Engines of Annihilation skin pack! Send out your super walkers in style with the House Raven skin for the Imperial Knight Paladin, the Exalted skin for the Wraithknight, and the Deathskulls skin for the Gorkanaut. We hope you like them!

This will all go live in our Annihilation Update on Tuesday, June 20th.

We know this is just a start, but it’s an important one. And it helps us say thanks to each and every one of you for playing, posting, and yes – even some of the yelling. It hasn’t fallen on deaf ears.

We’ll start with the Annihilation Update, we’ll keep listening, and together, we’ll keep moving forward.

For the Emperor!

 

[Nahel]

Skins like in a MOBA. That is how far strategy has Fallen...

 

[Raghar]

Welp: https://www.dawnofwar.com/article/community-update-june-13-2017

The game has been cracked today, thus they needed to announce something.

 

[Cyberarmy]

I tried the pirate version, still can't believe how bad it was.This game is gone too far away from its predecessors. Especially aesthetics wise.

Animatons, sound effects, voice overs and e.t.c. you name it and this game shits on it.
Singleplayer campaign is OK mostly. Playing it without any patches so

is all over the place. Space Marines die suprisingly easy, especially assault marines who nearly loses CQC against shootaboyz. Elders are OP as fuck. Kinda like the orkz gameplaywise but their "altered" voiceovers and non-WH40K-orky actions makes me die inside every second.

So, you all know what time it is

 

[ERYFKRAD]

ssault marines who nearly loses CQC against shootboyz

Wut da zog

 

[vonAchdorf]

They need a justification for a Primaris Space Marines DLC :D

 

[Shadenuat]

Well, was worth it for wrecking shit with sliding Legolas-Wraithknight with Swordwind music suddenly popping up.
As a game it's bad and story is dull as fuck. Even Macha-waifu couldn't help.

 

[Fedora Master]

I still don't understand why they went with the MOBA direction. They had a good thing going with the other DoW games, why change something that wasn't broken?
Knowing GeeDubs, their suits probably looked up "Highest grossing game genre" on Google, discovered MOBAs and said "Do that. That's where the money is."