Space Marine 2’s lead dev says more games can trace their DNA back to 40K than people might think: ‘Many young gamers probably don’t realize the influence it had on your favorite game’

Everyone loves a space marine. But is it just a coincidence that so many of our favorite franchises feature heroes fully encased in hulking power armor? Not so, says Tim Willits, chief creative officer at Saber Interactive (and, I imagine, most people who’ve seen more than one flavor of space marine). In an interview with PC Gamer at Gamescom, Willits said every Master Chief and Doomguy has a healthy amount of Warhammer under all that heavy plating.

Asked about how the gameplay of Space Marine 2 stands out compared to other action games, Willits said “it’s very Doom” in its aggressive, forward-momentum combat. But, he continued, Doom—like many games—owes a lot of its impact to Warhammer 40,000. “The Warhammer 40,000 universe existed 45 years ago,” Willits said. (Slight correction: The first edition of Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader was published 37 years ago in 1987.) “Many young gamers probably don’t realize the influence it had on your favorite game.”