This article contains spoilers for Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2.
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- Saber Interactive had a controversy when developing Space Marine 2 over including too much 40K lore.
- Ultimately, they felt that the elements they included added much-needed depth to the game.
- The inclusion of the planet Demerium was particularly controversial.
When Saber Interactive was developing Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II, there was internal conflict over what to include in the game, with some team members worried that adding too much esoteric 40,000 lore would alienate casual players.
These fears are not unfounded. Judging by the game's massive success, many of the players who played Space Marine 2 aren't particularly interested in a 40K setting. After all, the “killing hordes of enemies with your friends” genre is a popular one, regardless of the setting.
In an interview with GamesRadar+, Creative Director Oliver Hollis-Leick and Game Director Dmitriy Grigorenko discussed some of the fights they had over various aspects of the game. One particularly controversial topic was the inclusion of Demerium, the setting for the game's final level, Dawn's Descent, which involves liberating an Adeptus Mechanicus facility on the planet's surface.
Ancient Android Alien
As revealed in the level, Demerium is actually a Necron Tomb World. In other words, it is one of several planets where an ancient alien race is in stasis underground, and as you can imagine, they have been interfered with by the Adeptus Mechanicus. This revelation is just one of many ways Saber has shown some of the lore of 40k, but its inclusion in the game has been a source of controversy among the developers.
“It’s fair to say that Dmitry and I had to fight quite a bit to include it,” says Hollis-Leick. “At one point, there was concern raised by one group that we were investing too much into the game. In their minds, it was almost becoming a kind of 40K costume party.”
Hollis-Ryke says that level in particular shows the scale of the 40K universe without going too deep. There’s an entity that’s existed for millions of years beneath the earth before humans existed. “So I’m really glad that Dmitry pushed that because I think it adds dimension, but it wasn’t easy to get to,” he concludes.
Warhammer 40,000 is one of the most expansive and explored fictional settings ever created. With over 400 novels, that’s just one medium. It’s always going to be a balancing act for Saber to figure out what to include, what to focus on, and what to leave out.
The studio's dedicated efforts seem to have paid off, with Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 becoming the most popular Warhammer game in Steam history.
