Warhammer 40K: Boltgun imagines the sci-fi setting as a Doom-like FPS

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun is an appealing combination: What if you took the grimdark setting of Warhammer 40K and examined it through the lens of a classic boomer-shooter à la Doom? BoltgunNamed after the.75-caliber weapon Space Marines use in war, the gun used by Sisters of Battle and Space Marines is a gun that fires huge bolts of energy that explode within their targets. The Warhammer 40K’s charm is due to this kind of metaly, slightly goofy, lore. BoltgunYou can use it with masterful results.

The preview demo I tried was a good one. BoltgunThe tutorial, the first three levels and the final level are included in the. His squad is killed when the Space Marine crashes on the ground. He must then move through the mountains of Graia to find the factories and mechs that make Titan mechs for his Imperium. Of course, he almost immediately encounters heresy — cultists, Chaos Space Marines, daemons, etc. He also finds a holy relic to help him smite them, the titular boltgun.

Boltgun feels like it was made by 40K nerds; there’s lots of tie-ins to the larger lore. The game opens with a cutscene where an Inquisitor, an agent of the Imperium of Man’s secret super police, briefs the Space Marine on what to expect. Boltgun follows the events of 2011’s Space MarineThe Ultramarine Captain Titus stopped the Ork WAAAGH! (that’s how the big green lads refer to a sustained war campaign) and a Chaos incursion. After that campaign ended, the Inquisitor believes there might be some loose ends and should investigate them.

Image: Auroch Digital/Focus Entertainment

BoltgunIt does an excellent job of crossing the boundary between possible divergent directions. On one hand, it’s wonderfully silly. There’s a dedicated taunt button, which has the protagonist Space Marine shake his fist and yell something like “For the Emperor!” or “Purge the Heretic!” at enemies (or at no one in particular, if you’re feeling spicy). The protagonist can also pull out his Codex Astartes to flip through pages if he is not using it.

However, Boltgun faithfully captures some of the best parts about its inspiration of ’90s shooters. There are tons of secrets hidden throughout the levels, like vortex grenades that drag enemies into oblivion, or powerful upgrades to the Ultramarine’s arsenal. It’s pretty fun to blaze through the levels toward the nearest enemy, but I felt rewarded when I took my time and slowed down to shoot at walls and gawk at the surreal and visceral pixelated scenery left behind by a Chaos incursion.

Charming is the enemy’s design, too. The danger for Chaos as a faction is that it can be a bit samey. DarktideAlthough he is a master of combat, there are only so many Nurgles that you can take out before it becomes monotonous. BoltgunDraws from the entire smorgasbord of Chaos troopers, including the Pink and Blue Horrors of Tzeentch as well Chaos Space Marines in armored chaos frogs.

You can choose to play at a lower difficulty level, unlock all levels, and use accessibility options to make yourself invulnerable. It’s a nice way to include everyone. Boltgun’s higher difficulties feel appropriately challenging for fans of a good solid shooter, but it’s also possible for a 40K fan to tour through a lovingly built game in the grimdark universe of only war.