Come take a look behind the scenes at the upcoming Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy video game from Owlcat in a new dev diary.
Time to root out heresy at every turn—Owlcat is back with another look at the upcoming Dark Heresy video game. In a new “Dev Diary” the developers show off the game in a nutshell for those who might not be familiar with what Dark Heresy entails. You can catch a glimpse of the world, the story, and even some of the consequences for your actions in the game. Which sounds sketchy. Consequences? For my actions? Surely THAT must be the heresy. But on the off chance it’s not, let’s take a look and see what lies ahead.
Dark Heresy Dev Diary – Inquisitors, Investigations, and More
First things first, if you don’t know what Dark Heresy is, in a nutshell, you play as the retinue to an Inquisitor, tasked with seeking out heresy and threats to the Imperium. The Inquisition’s acolytes are feared wherever they turn up. Because they don’t tend to show up in places where everything’s going well. Even if it’s not what they thought it was, they always seem to find something. Usually with a lot of plasma and prometheum involved.
In Dark Heresy, as in Rogue Trader, you’ll be in charge of your own party of weirdoes assembled from the ranks of 40K’s narrative corners. You might recruit a loyal Guard from the death world of Catachan, or perhaps, if you’re a more permissive type, you might hire a Kroot Mercenary, who eats their victims in order to gain their power. Your warband will be your own. As will the consequences of your actions.
One of the big things on display in the new dev diary is the idea of different paths for your whole crew. You might play as an Inquisitorial Puritan, and cling to the traditions of both the Imperium and the Inquisition. Some might call you hidebound, but your ways are tried and true and predictable. Or perhaps you’ll play as a Radical. Inquisitors with this kind of conviction seek out unusual weapons and tactics, even employing the weapons of the enemy—because in their minds, the ends justify the means. But who can say when their means stray too far afield from the Imperial Creed.
According to the developer diary, you can expect a lot more choices in the game. And a lot more consequences ensuing. Every choice entails sacrifice, every mark leaves a stain:
“Dark Heresy peels back the veil on the Calixis Sector’s festering heart, exposing the rot born of centuries of atrocity. The decisions players will face aren’t presented as a spectrum of good and evil, but of purity versys pragmatism. This presents extremely fascinating, if not near-impossible moral dilemmas, ensuring players feel the full weight of the consequences.”
If you played through Rogue Trader, you know a little bit about how they envision consequences. But it sounds like the dev team has been really focused on fan feedback. Both for a deeper choice/consequence system, as well as for things like the intense combat that you can expect to get into.
Dark Heresy Means Updated Combat
In the press release accompanying the Dev Diary, Owlcat talks about taking in feedback from Rogue Trader and looking to improve Dark Heresy across the board. Specifically with regards to combat, players can expect to see a reworked class system, as well as improved combat encounters. This will probably take the shape of a more consistent enemy—in the Dark Heresy Dev Dairy, we got a glimpse of who you’ll be facing.
It’s the Night Lords. Who “strike from darkness, never for glory, only for terror.” Which, you know, is maybe not always true. In my experience, sometimes they strike from darkness to try and seize control of an objective, even if they’d rather be causing terror somewhere in my main infantry line. But you know. The fact still stands, there’s more Chaos and more brutal combat in this game. You’ll need to plan your squad carefully. So far, we’ve seen the Catachan Veteran, an Ogryn, and a Kroot Mercenary. But that’s only the barest beginning of the roster, I’m sure.
But it’s not just combat in the Dark Heresy Dev Diary. We also learn that at its heart, the new video game will be a “detective-style story” that unfolds over the course of your adventures. Which means there’s an Investigation mechanic included. Owlcat describes this as an interactive mini-game that lets the Inquisitor investigate crimes, analyze evidence, and dispense verdicts.
The Calixis Sector and the Tyrant Star
We also got a look at the worlds you’ll be exploring. You’re setting out from the Koronus Expanse and its bright, resource-rich environs, and instead heading to the Calixis Sector. Dark and gothic and laden down by “centuries of atrocity” it’s a much less forgiving sector of space. Especially since here is where you’ll face the Noctis Aeterna and the Tyrant Star, whose sudden appearance has been known to drive populations to madness and terror. Which is probably why you’re fighting the Night Lords.
At any rate, you can look for Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy on the platform of your choice. It’s coming to Windows PC, as well as both Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X | S. You can either wishlist the game in the store of your choice, or if you’re really into it, you can snag a Founder’s Pack from the link below and get yourself access to all sorts of goodies, starting with exclusive beta access and going all the way up to physical collector’s items if that’s your speed. Check it all out at the link below!
Innocence Proves Nothing is a heck of a tag line for the Inquisition!
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