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Dawn of War II's free 'The Last Stand' DLC released

by Randy Nelson { Oct 16th 2009 at 1:00AM }

THQ and Relic have released "The Last Stand," a free update for the Warhammer 40k RTS Dawn of War II. As we reported during PAX 2009, the DLC adds a Horde/Firefight style survival mode to the game. In addition, the pack contains two new maps and what THQ describes as "numerous balance updates and bug fixes."

The publisher has also mentioned that Dawn of War II is receiving what we can only imagine is a limited time price cut to $20 on Steam, effective immediately. It should last 'til at least dawn.
[Via VG247]

Dawn of War II's 'The Last Stand' mode detailed

by Griffin McElroy { Aug 28th 2009 at 5:00PM }

It seems the increasingly popular "Horde" mode first presented in Gears of War 2 (before spreading to other popular FPS titles in some form) isn't just proliferating through the shooter genre -- GameSpy recently revealed details for "The Last Stand," a similar gametype which will soon be introduced into Dawn of War II.

The new mode, which will come as a free download for those who own the full game, lets three players select either the Space Marine, Ork or Eldar hero classes, then face off cooperatively against wave after wave of computer-controlled adversaries. Between waves, players will be able to level up their heroes and manage their equipment. The series' strategic roots aren't being thrown out the window -- players will need to work together to stay alive and capture score-multiplying control points.

We'll undoubtedly learn more about this intriguing expansion to the well-received strategy title during Relic's panel at PAX 2009.

[Via Big Download]

Steam weekend deal: 25% off THQ pack (includes Dawn of War II)

by David Hinkle { Aug 28th 2009 at 2:30PM }

This weekend's Steam deal focuses on titles from THQ, as the ginormous bundle that is the THQ Collector Pack has been discounted 25%. The bundle (which now features Dawn of War II) is packed to the gills with content -- so much so that a simple paragraph alone can't describe the plethora of titles available, forcing us to utilize the bullet-point method. Here's what you'll get:

Dawn of War II
Company of Heroes
Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts
Frontlines: Fuel of War
Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights (yes, that Juiced 2)
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
Titan Quest
Titan Quest - Immortal Throne
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Dark Crusade
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Gold Edition
Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War - Soulstorm
Full Spectrum Warrior*
Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers*

The bundle will set you back $75.

*Not available in Germany

Dawn of War 2 leads Steam weekend sale

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jul 31st 2009 at 7:15PM }

This weekend's Steam sale is 50 percent off Relic titles, including the developer's latest, Dawn of War II. Not only that, but a DoW II purchase also includes the "There is only war" DLC, which adds 8 new multiplayer maps, a map editor and more.

But wait, there's more! Since they're Relic games, Company of Heroes and the original Dawn of War are also included. Don't let the WWII theme turn you off from Company of Heroes; beyond its cliche setting is an enjoyably deep RTS experience and a long campaign -- definitely worth $10.

Dawn of War II getting major update this month

by Griffin McElroy { May 2nd 2009 at 10:00PM }

If you've spent the past couple months enjoying THQ's Warhammer-ed RTS, Dawn of War II, you might want to brace yourself for a massive influx of new content coming soon in "Patch 1.3." Chief among these is a new 2v2 multiplayer mode (as well as two new maps which compliment this mode), UI improvements, push-to-talk voice chat, new squad decorations and a few "significant" AI improvements. The update is due out in "early May," which is ... right now! Keep an eye out for a firmer launch date -- we're sure to hear it soon.

Single-player Dawn of War II demo now available

by Justin McElroy { Apr 15th 2009 at 11:59PM }

Good news for you friendless, cheap, space-marine-lovin' Scrooge McDucks out there: You can now pick up a single-player demo for Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II for free. The sample casts you as a gun-toting band of soldiers "battling the heretic Eldar, the pillaging Orks, and the ravaging Tyranid threats."

If you want to know what to expect from the game, you can check out our hands-on here, or, you know, just go play it. It's free. If you like what you see, you can buy the game for 25 percent off until April 20.

Download Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II Demo (333 MB)

NPD lists top selling PC games in February

by Alexander Sliwinski { Mar 13th 2009 at 4:20PM }

The debut of Dawn of War II and F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin did little to hold back the mighty power of the Lich King. NPD has released a list of February's top 20 selling PC games at US retail and, per usual, the World of Warcraft and The Sims 2 are a significant presence.

Just to give an idea of how significant WoW and Sims 2 are in the PC space, nine out of the 20 titles on the list are held by some SKU of those franchises. Check out the full list after the break.

Continued →

The Direct2Drive Top 10: Week of February 27

by Justin McElroy { Mar 5th 2009 at 10:20PM }

Everyone loves the NPDs, but sales data for digital distribution channels has been much, much harder to come by. That's why we're happy to bring you the top 10 sales chart for the Direct2Drive service. As you can see in the chart after the jump, new kid on the block Dawn of War II was at the top of the pile, but Galactrix is putting up a fight in the number 2 position.

See, we think this stuff is interesting, but we want to make sure you do too. Is this the sort of thing you guys and gals would want to see every week? Let us know in the comments.

Continued →

NPD: Dawn of War II topples the Lich King in first week

by Xav de Matos { Mar 3rd 2009 at 9:30PM }

As reported last week by GI.biz, the NPD Group revealed THQ's new RTS, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, had topped PC sales for the week ending February 21 -- knocking World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King down to second place in the process. We'd analyze the data ... only there is no data to analyze; the NPD Group didn't include unit sales on its list. So, the lingering question remains: Is Dawn of War II a new trend in PC sales or was this simply a surge for a new -- and anticipated -- title?

That's a question which can't be answered until new data -- hopefully with numbers -- shows us second-week sales of the game. THQ is in dire need of a cash injection after a February announcement in which company announced plans to axe 600 jobs and analyst rumblings it has a 50% chance of bankruptcy. However, after a week's worth of sales and toppling the current (Lich) king of the PC market, it is possible that the publisher may not have such "mediocre product" as analyst Mike Hickey once theorized -- and, if all else fails, it could always unleash 50 Cent.

Dawn of War II beta now available to all

by Justin McElroy { Jan 28th 2009 at 1:24PM }

Just a quick reminder that the Dawn of War II beta is now available to all people for the low, low price of nothing. With just a click, a little free time and 5.5 gigglebytes of hard drive space you could be well on your way to pitting orcs against space marines in the most stunning visual metaphor for the state of the video game industry ever.

Sure, you've read our thoughts on the game, but now we're dying to see what you think. Let us know in the comments below.

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 beta on Jan. 21

by Kevin Kelly { Jan 12th 2009 at 4:44PM }

click for hugeness

Relic Entertainment's Mark Noseworthy has confirmed with Joystiq that the Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 closed beta will begin January 21st if you purchased the original Dawn of War expansion, Soulstorm. Procrastinators, take note: you'll be introduced into the public beta just a week later on January 28th. Or, break the cycle of lethargy and pick up the expansion in order to grab an early beta spot.

We got a closer look at Dawn of War 2 during CES, and fans of real-time strategy games will not be disappointed ... unless you don't own a PC (but c'mon, how could you be an RTS buff without owning a PC?). Dawn of War 2 will be a PC-only release with Games for Windows Live features like voice chat and Achievements.

Joystiq hands-on: Dawn of War 2

by Kevin Kelly { Jan 12th 2009 at 4:29PM }

We learned a valuable lesson at CES last week: Don't demo an RTS game on a trade show floor. Why? Because it's nigh-impossible to hear a developer's instructions over the deafening noise of geek-outs. It turns into something like this dialogue snippet from our hands-on experience with Warhammer 40000: Dawn of War 2:

Relic: "So, you'll quickly want to set a rally point here." *taps screen*
Joystiq: *clicks on random units* [units march off-screen]
Relic: "Okay, so if you look at this icon, you'll see that your character is earning zeal. You might want to build some heavy firepower units for support."
Joystiq: *attacks enemy power generator* [cue: bad move!]

It was just too darn loud at CES to get good instructions, and Relic only had one demo station on hand, which obviously did not feature any PVP gameplay. Naturally, we had StarCraft 2 in mind as we fooled around with Dawn of War 2, measuring Relic's RTS against what we've played of Blizzard's next blockbuster. We can say that Dawn of War 2 is currently winning in the looks department. As we watched an Imperial Tank literally roll through walls and crush them into powder while Space Marines jumped over the action with jetpacks, we were remiss to have left our drool bib back home in the hamper.

We've embedded a pair of videos from our session after the break, including producer Mark Noseworthy blowing stuff up!

Continued →

CES 2009: The Microsoft outer hub of booth games

by Kevin Kelly { Jan 11th 2009 at 4:00PM }

Situated in the exact opposite corner of the CES Central Hall, Microsoft must have been strategically placed so that no wars would break out between the two juggernauts. Although Justin McElroy thinks it's so that an employee from Microsoft won't fall in love with an employee from Sony and cause complete chaos. That's definitely more plausible.

However, just like Sony, Microsoft only had a tiny section devoted to gaming. You could get some hands-on time with Fallout 3, Lips, the new Scene It, Gears of War 2, Dawn of War II and Halo Wars. The rumor we'd heard that Fallout's upcoming Operation: Anchorage DLC would be there turned out to be untrue, so we spent most of our time beating young girls at karaoke with Lips. Okay, we kid. We geeked out on Dawn of War II. More on that soon. Meanwhile, enjoy the gallery below for you booth addicts.

Gallery: CES 2009: Microsoft Booth

THQ's new strategy is to make a few 'core' titles yearly

by Alexander Sliwinski { Nov 13th 2008 at 4:43PM }

THQ CEO Brian Farrell has revealed that the company plans to only release one or two hardcore titles as part of its "significant business realignment." According to Gamespot, Farrell stated at a recent conference that the new model would cut the publisher's previous development expectations in half and focus on quality over quantity.

Don't expect to see the changes until at least 2010. THQ already has four core titles set for 2009: Red Faction: Guerilla, Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War 2, Darksiders: Wrath of War and Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor. Saints Row 3 could become one of those two 2010 titles, considering the game is currently in development.

Glimpse some Dawn of War II gameplay footage

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jun 7th 2008 at 7:00PM }

Cleanse the heretics and long live the Emperor! The latest Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II video gives us an amuse bouche of in-game footage to check out until we (cross-fingers) get to see at lot more at E3 next month. With the series back in the hands of Relic studios, hopefully the game will help THQ's bottom line when it releases early next year.

For those who missed out on the original Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War series (which is three games -- four, if you count Soulstorm), it still holds up well and can be found in a boxed Platinum Set, and on Steam, for around $30. For the sake of DoW II's sales, we hope Starcraft II isn't released anywhere close to the same time.