Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Dark Crusade Single Player Demo

Because the Warhammer lore spans across a few decades now, there are always more things that can be added into the mix, including new stories, races or units, as well as a vast number of legendary heroes that were created for the tabletop adventures. Thus, this new Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War expansion pack brings a whole bunch of additions to the series, which are bound to take the war to new lengths.

The first thing you need to know about Dark Crusade is the fact that, unlike the previous expansion pack, it is a standalone game, which means that you do not require the previous titles in order to enjoy this one. The two new races are Tau and Necrons, both of which have their own strengths and weaknesses. Hence, while the Tau may have the upper hand when it comes to ranged attacks, the Necrons overpower their enemies through sheer numbers and their ability to resurrect themselves on the battlefield.

As far as the races that were already present in the game, they have also received a few improvements, whether in the form of balancing, or entirely new units. Because of this, you do not have to fear that the new races have received all the attention and they might be overpowered, since Relic paid close attention to the whole picture and designed the new mechanics with perfect balancing in mind.

Another nice addition is the improved campaign mode, since you can now view the map of the entire planet and choose which territory to attack and when. You can also gain various items for your main hero after each won battle, which give you certain bonuses. Special units are also available and they can be spawned as soon as you enter the game, without having to wait for the barracks to finish building.

On the other hand, the lack of a clear path throughout the map and the conflict leaves you with a rather confusing plot, since you frequently just keep on conquering lands and forget about the main goal of the campaign. The campaign, however, although much more refined than in the previous titles, does not hold a candle to the skirmish matches, where the real war is usually happening, especially in multiplayer mode.

In the end, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Dark Crusade provides you with a total of seven races, which are more than enough to keep you playing for quite some time, especially if you want to unlock their secrets and find out what their strengths and weaknesses are. On the other hand, this also means that the game has a rather long learning curve, since you can easily be caught by surprise even after you consider yourself to be experienced.