Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2 launched last month to rave reviews and high player numbers. It’s likely the best Warhammer 40k game ever made and one of 2024’s best shooters. But making it wasn’t easy, as developer Saber Interactive had to make sure every piece of armor, gun, and character was lore-accurate.
In a recent interview with IGN, Saber Interactive CCO Tim Willits explained that Games Workshop, the company that owns the Warhammer franchise, has a robust approval system in place that checks on every asset created by a third-party studio or licensee. Then a dedicated staff member at Games Workshop works closely with its partners to provide feedback to make sure everything is perfect.
“Let me give you an example,” Willits told IGN, “the ankle armor we had, the ankle armor was the wrong size and they told us that the ankle armor was wrong.”
Keep in mind that that large, hulking Space Marine design seen today in games, books, and comics, was created over 40 years ago for a tabletop strategy game. So what might work on a tiny plastic model doesn’t always translate easily to a fully animated 3D video game character.
“45 years ago when the guy that made the little Space Marine that sat on the table, he probably was not imagining them animating in a video game 45 years later,” said Willits, “And let me tell you, that was hard to make it. I mean, when you walk and run and fight as Titus, it feels so good. But you’ve seen people cosplay as a Space Marine, right? They can’t even walk down a hallway without falling.”
However, while the CCO of Saber did admit that sometimes these notes and approvals can cause headaches, generally Games Workshop is more about “steering” devs and creators and not demanding changes.
“When we’re coming up with Tyranid attacks, they’re like, ‘Oh, that Tyranid doesn’t really attack like that,’ or ‘That Chaos Marine, you can’t really have him do that.’ So we had to adjust things. And we pushed them a little bit. We did push them a little bit.”
But Willits understands why Games Workshop is so protective of the franchise, saying that “you have to be” when you own and operate something as massive as the W4Ok universe.
“When you have a universe as big as Games Workshop has with Warhammer, you have to protect it like it’s your baby, because it is,” said Willits, “And there’s millions of people that love this franchise, and if we screw up an emblem or we make the chapter wrong, it’s just embarrassing.”
After four years of working on Space Marine 2 and making sure everything is lore accurate, Saber’s CCO says he’s “very proud” of what the team pulled off with the game as they “truly” respected and honored the franchise.
“And when you have the respect of your core fans, everything else is easier.”
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