Owlcat Games is a video game development studio that requires no introduction nowadays, as cRPGs are as popular as ever. Following the launch of the two entries in the Pathfinder series, which showed how the developer doesn't compromise in any way when adapting tabletop RPGs' rules in video game format, Owlcat launched Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader, their first foray into the world created by Games Workshop.
Although the game was, by all accounts, a very solid game, some of the studio's now trademark clunkiness (and pretty much required pre-battle buffing) seeped into it, resulting in a game that was considerably less accessible than the title which contributed a lot to the current popularity of cRPGs: Larian's Baldur's Gate 3.
Last year, Owlcat Games confirmed it was going back to the Imperium of Man with Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy, but with some twists. This time around, players would take the role of an Inquisitor, one of the highest-ranking members of the Imperium's secret police and intelligence, whose authority is second only to the Emperor of Mankind himself.
Even those with little to no knowledge of the Warhammer 40K world can easily understand what playing as one means: the freedom of taking on any challenge as they see fit, backed by what is recognized as one of the highest authorities in the universe.
During last year's Gamescom, I was able to check out a live demo of Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy, which made it abundantly clear how the entire experience is centered around one fundamental concept: the player is always right. Inquisitors, after all, can do no wrong, so if the player so desired, they could have concluded the investigation featured in the demo by just putting the blame for some killings on the first possible culprit, without having to worry about the consequences. This, coupled with some improvements to combat and user interface, definitely caught my attention.
With the release of the alpha version last month, I was finally able to test for myself how far this concept could be pushed and whether there are indeed no wrong choices. Turns out there aren't. In the same investigation set on Scintilla, which sees the Inquisitor look into a series of mysterious disappearances, instead of strictly adhering to the Imperial Creed for the most part as I witnessed in the Gamescom demo, I took a more pragmatic approach, not shying away from challenging the Creed when it suited my purpose.
Appreciating even more the environmental storytelling and the beautiful world Owlcat Games is creating for Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy as well as the new investigation mechanics centered on adding and connecting the clues noted in the Investigation Journal in the game's Mind Map, I couldn't help but appreciate how the developer managed to create an incredible balance between truly giving player complete freedom without punishing them.
While it's undeniable that Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy won't have the same type of world reactivity as Baldur's Gate 3, the differences between the Radical and Puritan "paths", which replace the alignment system from Rogue Trader, will make sure role-playing will be an important part of the experience as much as combat is. Better yet, the game does an excellent job of making it clear in the writing that the Inquisitor is indeed always right, even if they go against the Imperial Creed.
Besides enjoying this sort of player freedom powering what could be the ultimate power fantasy in the Warhammer 40K universe, short of playing as the Emperor, the Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy alpha also made me appreciate the improvements to the turn-based tactical combat system introduced in Rogue Trader.
The streamlining of the cover system, the ability to destroy any objects that can be used as cover, the ability to aim specific body parts to disable enemies before defeating them, the Concentration mechanics which will allow players to prevent an enemy from using powerful attacks, the Morale system which can put the enemy in complete disarray and the ability to end combat as soon as it is decided the enemy will have no chance of winning are all great improvements that are set to make battles better paced and more engaging than ever.
Unfortunately, but understandably given the early nature of this release, the Alpha hands out characters with pre-learned abilities. While this meant I couldn’t test the limits of the progression system, the synergy between classes and skills was already evident and satisfyingly easy to leverage.
With the entire experience having been remade from scratch over Rogue Trader, I was really curious to see how Owlcat Games would address the sometimes excessive complexity of their cRPGs, and from the Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy Alpha, it really seems like the developer is managing to strike a happy medium between complexity and accessibility.
With a story that will be smaller in scope than Rogue Trader but more varied, and with more meaningful combat encounters, I am really looking forward to seeing how my choices will shape the experience and whether the studio's complexity will indeed have been toned down for a more enjoyable experience. Hopefully, it won't take much longer to experience all this and finally wield the power to prove that, indeed, innocence proves nothing.
Alpha access provided by the publisher.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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