There is only war!
The Dawn of War series is an epic set of real-time strategy games set in Games Workshop's legendary Warhammer universe and if you're a fan of Final Liberation or Chaos Gate, then this needs to be in your collection. This Gold Edition is a decent way to get into the franchise as it includes both Dawn of War 2 and the expansion pack Chaos Rising. The base game introduces you nicely to the system, offering as it does an extensive single player campaign where you take the might of the Space Marines on the rampage as they face off against orks, tyranids and eldar (space elves for the uninitiated) in a series of intense missions. This is very much an action-based RTS, so there's no resource mining to worry about and instead you've just got to worry about using your various troops and heroes in the right way to turn the enemy into a stinking paste. Chaos Gate follows on from the main game, introducing the twisted Chaos Space Marines as well as a few other bits and bobs, including the intriguing corruption rating along with new levels and units. Dawn of War 2 really is a superb game, whether you're into 40K or not. It certainly looks the part, really bringing GW's grim and gritty sci-fi universe to life and all the units and environments are brought to life in convincing detail. The gameplay too is hugely enjoyable, thanks to its mix of units which brings a lot of depth and variety to things and the range of enemies to take on. It's also a pretty hefty game with a good level of challenge so when you add in the expansion pack, you have a fine experience that is well worth picking up.
