By Sagar V. Mankar 
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, a third-person shooter hack-and-slash game by Saber Interactive, has officially become the most successful Warhammer game to date.
Publisher Focus Entertainment announced the milestone on X (formerly Twitter), thanking its 4.5 million players for their incredible support.
The game has had explosive starts since its September 9 release. Here are some of the remarkable achievements it has made so far:
- On its first day, it hit 2 million players, thanks to strong pre-orders.
- It ranked as the 11th biggest launch on Steam in 2024, according to SteamDB, with over 134,000 concurrent players on the first day of advanced access.
- Its all-time peak on Steam saw over 225,000 players, making it the most-played Warhammer game on the platform to date.
- Additionally, it became the best-selling game in Europe in September, surpassing new releases like Astro Bot and Star Wars Outlaws.
- Updated on November 29: 5 million players reached
What is Space Marine 2 About?
For those new to the series, here’s a quick rundown:
- It’s the sequel to the original Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine from 2011.
- You play as Lieutenant Demetrian Titus, who re-joins the Ultramarines after years of serving the Deathwatch, following the events of the first game.
- Titus, now demoted to Lieutenant teams up with fellow Space Marines, Gadriel and Chairon, to lead the Imperium of Man.
- The game throws you into epic battles against Tyranids and Chaos Space Marines.
The game has earned high praise for its engaging combat, stunning visuals, and faithful depiction of the grim, dark universe created by Games Workshop.
It currently holds a score of 82 on Metacritic, placing it among the top-rated games of 2024, alongside popular titles like Astro Bot, Dragon’s Dogma 2, and Balatro.
What’s Next for Space Marine 2?
In addition to sales announcements, the publisher also revealed the one-year roadmap for Space Marine 2 in a blog post. Here’s what players can anticipate:
The First Major Update (Free):
- New maps, modes, and cosmetics
- A new “Lethal Difficulty” setting
- A new PvE operation called “Termination”
- Face off against a massive Tyranid Hierophant Bio-Titan
Future Free Updates:
- A new weapon: the Neo-Volkite pistol
- More PvE operations
- New PvP maps and modes
- A challenging Horde Mode
- Additional free and premium cosmetics
Season Pass Content:
- The first season pack focuses on the Dark Angels Successor Chapter
- Exclusive weapon styles, armor pieces, and color schemes
- Future seasons will feature different Space Marine Chapters
DLC or sequel?
Given the game’s success, it’s no surprise that talks of DLC or even a sequel are already in the works.
Priced at $59.99 on Steam and $69.99 on consoles, Space Marine 2 has become a highly profitable venture. This sentiment is echoed by Saber’s Chief Creative Officer, Tim Willits, in his interview with IGN last month, where he stated that the game’s success has “changed everything” for the company.
Willits expressed optimism that Space Marine 2 could achieve similar player numbers to Saber’s co-op zombie shooter World War Z, which has reached 25 million players so far since its 2019 release.
He also confirmed ideas for potential DLC or even Space Marine 3. “Our game director, Dmitry Grigorenko, has suggested some story concepts that could serve as either DLC or a sequel,” stated Willits.
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is currently available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Steam, and the Epic Games Store.