Yesterday, Nic took James and I on a tour of the co-op campaign of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. We had a blast, romping through fortress cities like a small herd of Crusader buffalo, using the game’s absurd jetpack feature to destroy invading Tyranids, and getting our screens so covered in blood that we no longer knew who was killing what.

It looks like the giant action game’s PvP multiplayer is about to get even more chaotic. Saber and Focus Home have released an in-depth trailer that takes you through two main modes – the PvE boss and wave battle frenzy of Operations, and the 12-player PvP carnage of Eternal War, which includes a range of match types. Aside from the ecstasy of dying for the Emperor, both bring back horrific memories for me of the early days of Gears Of War.

Each multiplayer mode gives you six upgradeable and fairly self-explanatory classes – Tactical, Assault, Vanguard, Bulwark, Sniper and Heavy. Class abilities include an invisibility cloak and a banner you can heroically place to infuse your battle-brothers’ veins with zeal and allow them to sweep away mortal wounds like cobwebs (i.e. it boosts their defenses). Teams are divided into regular Ultramarines and perfidious Chaos Marines: they look and sound different but function the same. You can’t play as a Tyranid or other non-human species in PvP.

Space Marine 2’s Gears of War nature is evident in the oversized character models, stomping handling, fatness of the weapons, and the bulky regularity of the map layouts I’ve seen, which favor diagonals over curves. Of course, there’s no cover system. Space Marines don’t take cover. Their faith is their shield. Also, they’re genetically modified, centuries-old giants who wear elephant armor. One of the classes does get a hand shield, though.

Look out for our collective thoughts on Space Marine 2 next week. My immediate verdict on the campaign is that it’s great fun if you turn your brain off and just wallow in the spectacle of dozens of Tyranids populating the equipment. With the ability to choose the difficulty/effectiveness of companions, it’s a game for button-mashers and AOE fanatics and anyone who responds to the suggestion of subtlety with rightly flared nostrils and a roar of “Heresy!” It’s out September 9. If you’re tempted, here are the system requirements for Space Marine 2.