Best Warhammer 40k games – Top titles to satisfy your grimdark needs

In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war. Luckily for you, that constant conflict is prime setting material for a whole slew of Warhammer 40k games. From plentiful strategy games where you control whole armies, right down to power fantasies as a single unstoppable force taking on unending waves of enemies.

There are countless Warhammer 40k games, either directly based on the tabletop game or inspired by the plentiful lore. Either way, they usually come with a stellar eye for the over-the-top aesthetics of the universe. Ahead of Total War Warhammer 40k and Dawn of War 4’s impending releases, we’ve gathered together the best Warhammer 40k game recommendations for adventuring through grimdark space.

✓ VideoGamer Summary

• Many of the best Warhammer 40k games fall into the RTS genre, making the most of the tabletop war game inspiration.
• Whenever you control a Space Marine, prepare for a ripping and tearing Warhammer 40k power fantasy.
• Warhammer 40k’s aesthetic elevates its games from good to great, providing an atmosphere that other settings struggle to match.
• Stories in Warhammer 40k games can be a bit samey, but you can always rely on an unimaginably horrible threat to fight.
• The most compelling Warhammer 40k games dive deep into the lore and offer a more novel perspective.

Space Hulk Tactics (2018)

Firepower only means so much if they’ve got you surrounded. Image credit: Cyanide Studio

• Available on: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

Space Hulk Tactics is faithful to the spirit of the board game that inspired it, Space Hulk. It’s an asymmetrical turn-based tactical tussle between the slow-moving, heavily armored Space Marines and the fast-moving, ambush-predating Genestealers.

You play as either side, slowly pushing forward with heavy fire and limited forces, or working to set up ambushes and tear open the enemy tin cans one by one. Space Hulk Tactics maps are cramped corridors with few options for maneuverability, rightly feeling like the walls are closing in around you.

Playing as the Space Marines, even just turning around costs movement points, so your superior firepower has to be correctly deployed to stand a chance. Space Hulk Tactics suffers from a mediocre campaign and limited replayability, but it serves as a great digital version of the tabletop game.

Necromunda Hired Gun (2021)

• Available on: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

Necromunda Hired Gun drops you in the grimy underbelly of Warhammer 40k as a killer for hire on the factory world of Necromunda. There’s no glorious crusade or greater service here, just kill or be killed amongst the filth of the galaxy. The gameplay is fast with plenty of maneuverability, oodles of weaponry, and enough bionic enhancements to make Cyberpunk 2077 jealous.

The main draw of Necromunda Hired Gun is the powerful art direction, with what is possibly the most wonderfully imagined Warhammer 40k setting. It doesn’t just have the right level of scale, but also the right level of oppressiveness. The story isn’t up to much, and the game is full of jank, especially with your upgradable cyber-canid companion, but in many ways that adds to the charm.

Battlefleet Gothic Armada 2 (2019)

• Available on: PC

Battlefleet Gothic Armada 2 is for any of you who have always wanted to control a fleet of Warhammer 40k’s city-sized ships. It’s a space naval RTS on a big scale, with plenty of detailed ships from all manner of factions and species. 

One of the most interesting parts of Battlefleet Gothic Armada 2 is the morale system. Let things get too bad for a ship, and the crew may start to refuse orders or even mutiny, giving a more personal feel to the impersonal size of the ships.

There’s not too much need for piddly micro, but there are options to target specific parts of the enemy ships to disable particular effects. It’s like what Star Wars Empire at War should have always been. It even has different campaigns with a distinctive Stellaris-like 4X veneer.

Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War II (2009)

• Available on: PC

Following up on the original Dawn of War is a tough ask, so when Relic Entertainment took a stab at a sequel, they went with a different kind of strategy formula. Dawn of War 2 eschews grander battles for something smaller in scope, with fewer units, no base building, and more tactical combat.

There’s more emphasis on using cover for each engagement, using the environment to your advantage, and giving your commander more power. There’s an RPG-style loot system for heroes that feels Diablo-esque, and you’re more incentivised to play carefully with your limited troops.

The campaign is an interesting fight against the clock during a Tyranid invasion, as you choose when and where to fight your battles. It’s not Dawn of War as we know it, but it’s still a fun play on the formula, with compelling characters fighting against overwhelming odds.

Warhammer 40,000 Boltgun (2023)

• Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

If you wanted the spirit of Doom, but thought that the demons could do with some Warhammer 40k flavor, then look no further than Warhammer 40,000 Boltgun. Boltgun is a boomer shooter with fast-paced combat that encourages you to tear through enemies as a one-man Space Marine army equipped with plenty of heavy weaponry, including a chainsword that practically lunges you around the map.

You’ll feel the weight of being a Space Marine, but still have enough momentum on the battlefield that makes you feel like a genuine threat. It’s a simple game with no upgrade system and no reason to exist other than to destroy the foes of the Imperium, but that’s all this power fantasy needs to be. It’s all brought together with an absolutely gorgeous art style, with lovingly rendered horrific daemons.

Warhammer 40,000 Darktide (2022)

• Available on: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

Warhammer 40000 Darktide is an absolutely excellent horde shooter with the sci-fi setting equivalent of Left 4 Dead or Warhammer End Times Vermintide. Up to four players fight as conscripted soldiers facing off against endless waves of cultists and daemons devoted to the Chaos God of Decay, Nurgle. 

The classes are varied, with different weapon styles, abilities, and expansive talent trees, which feel very Borderlands. You’ll be putting them to use, as much like Helldivers 2, you’re completing objectives while facing off against huge numbers and terrible odds. 

Luckily, you’re surrounded by that gorgeous Warhammer 40k aesthetic, which really hammers home just how terrible your existence is. Darktide feels like everything you would want from a horde shooter, and has received plenty of updates since launch that add even more choice to how you play.

Warhammer 40,000 Mechanicus (2018)

• Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

Warhammer 40,000 Mechanicus lets you play as techno-cultists raiding cybernetic Egyptian tombs, and that’s almost enough said. It’s a turn-based tactical game where you take control of the Adeptus Mechanicus, delving into dungeons filled with the robotic undead Necrons.

You’ll fight on different changing maps, pushing your luck to collect more rewards, while the danger of the dungeon ramps up with each turn. In combat, if you have line of sight, you’ll get hit, meaning you’ve got to be very aware of how you move about because there are no lucky misses.

You’ll work to avoid absolute catastrophe as the tomb world you’re plundering continues to wake up, with a ticking clock similar to XCOM 2. All this with a visual style that does a lot despite a lack of detail, and stellar sound design.

Warhammer 40,000 Rogue Trader (2023)

• Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

Warhammer 40,000 Rogue Trader puts you in the role of the titular Rogue Trader as you work on the fringes of the Empire of Man, beyond the usual structures of power. It’s a big and crunchy CRPG, much like Owlcat Games’ Pathfinder Kingmaker.

You’ll contend with dangers from across the Warhammer 40k lexicon, from chaos cultists to the sadistic space pirate Drukhari, while navigating the politics of the Imperium along the way. Perhaps most interesting are the moral choices, as what you consider good differs from the setting’s definition and often fails to be the most helpful.

Rogue Trader’s plethora of level-up options can be overwhelming, so I’d recommend looking at online build guides. It’s a fun RPG running around within the Warhammer 40k mythos, though at times it can be a bit too shallow and too deep at the same time.

Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine 2 (2024)

• Available on: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

Space Marine 2 builds on the first Space Marine and makes everything bigger and better. You take control of a walking tank Space Marine and put that power to good use against some meaty foes. 

This time around, your primary enemies are the Tyranids, never-ending Xenomorphs that arrive in staggeringly large numbers. They climb over each other to make their way over obstacles, just to get to you, forcing you to make good use of your full arsenal. Your boltgun will only deal with so much damage, so be ready to use explosives and melee to carve your way out of trouble.

Best of all, you can play Space Marine in co-op, sharing all that weighty gunplay with a friend. Unfortunately, it does have some of the monetization trappings of a live service game, but that doesn’t detract from the fun on offer.

Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War Definitive Edition (2025)

• Available on: PC

Dawn of War would have made our list, but Dawn of War Definitive Edition takes everything we love about the original game and makes it actually function well on modern platforms. Dawn of War is just a great RTS with quick base building and a resource system that requires you to get out into the field to keep pace.

Dawn of War Definitive Edition features all the different factions from across the expansions for skirmish mode, as well as the original campaigns. While Relic Entertainment is maintaining its own form of balance for the skirmishes, each of the old campaigns keeps its old quirks from their original release, simply adding polish rather than too many invasive tweaks.

Dawn of War is an excellent game, and now that it’s being maintained with continuous updates, it will happily tide us over before Dawn of War 4.

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