Warhammer 40,000s Dawn of War- Soulstorm is the newest addition of the franchise for the PC, since its first arrival several years back. Soulstorm is still a spirited (Real time strategy) RTS that offers a few new changes in play and options for play along with the addition of a couple new armies for a different type of battle experience.
The goal of a RTS game is for your army to have ultimate domination. To dominate you have to take control of the new flying units and eliminate the enemy below and to win the interplanetary war of conquest by your chosen race. Soulstorm has the choice of playing in single player mode or with the on-line play if multiplayer mode is desired. To defeat your enemy you can chose to be in either the Sisters of Battle and exercise your faith to decimate your enemies or be a member of the Dark Eldar and start harvesting souls. Whichever you choose your goal is to go out and conquer, to advance, and to win.
The Sisters of Battle use the abilities called “Acts of Faith” to seek and conquer and remove abominations. The Dark Eldars appear as a twisted reflection and are always out looking for ways to start making a bloody war whenever they choose. These Eldars indulge themselves in practices that cause pain and torment along with the Eldars need to drink the souls of their victims. Depending on which army you choose and the units you will build will be specific to your success. Some armies are faster than others and have different skills and tactics for success of war. Others you will find lack resilience and go about conquering the enemy in a totally different fashion, so choose your units wisely.
Each unit has their own set of available vehicles, buildings, and abilities in which they can use to their benefit. The vehicles range in appearance and functionality each providing protection and combat abilities. The buildings in Soulstorm provide mainly a means of managing and training infantry units and providing a means of defense and command centers for the armies. Each unit also has their own special abilities ranging from piercing vision to a purifying light along with angelic visage to a soul shock in addition to many others. Depending on the powers and abilities that each possess depends of how they will use them to conquer the enemy. These abilities are very strange but actually go along well with the whole theme of the game which is altogether in a category of its own. During play upgrades can also be gained for additional abilities and vehicles to further aid you in your success.
If you are a warhammer veteran then you will quickly realize the upgrades in its vehicles and weapons along with the changes in abilities. If you’re not a warhammer veteran then you have a lot to discover and learn about the skills and weaknesses that each unit possesses. After learning how the game is played and the quest you will embark upon each time you begin you will learn more and more about all your options and decide what strategy you will use for your next mission, because you will play again.
Soulstorm has several similarities to its preceeders but also has many new additions. Soulstorm provides many hours of a different type of war-time battling with its large maps which are overall easy to navigate. Audio and graphics are nothing to brag about but don’t by any means discourage play. If you’re a warhammer veteran you should definitely want to add this to your collection if your not, then Soulstorm can still provide many hours of variety in play by itself or with its hybrid expansion design you can combine it with Dawn of War, Winter Assault, and Dark Crusade to create the largest RTS game ever.
