Saber Interactive’s Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has performed well, selling over two million units and causing it to re-evaluate future projects (for the better). Though it has several new features and content on the way, including later this month, the developer has revealed that a PvEvP mode isn’t on the docket.
Currently, the third-person shooter offers PvE in its Campaign and Operations, and PvP via the Sparring Arena on the Battle Barge and Eternal War. So why not combine the two? Speaking to MP1st, game director Dmitry Grigorenko says PvPvE is a “holy grail” of game design, but there are “no plans for it.” “PvPvE is a holy grail of game design. A lot of studios are trying to find it, and a lot of them fail. The truth is that it’s a very, very difficult task.”
The main reason? Balance. “It sounds great on paper, but when you actually start trying, it becomes apparent that it’s very annoying when you fight other players only to get back-stabbed by an AI opponent. This is why most of the games are trying to ensure that PvP and PvE aspects don’t intersect that much, i.e. AI opponents are restricted to specific places on maps, etc. It’s a complicated mode to implement that would change the experience significantly, so I’m afraid there are no plans for it.”
On the bright side, players can look forward to Horde Mode sometime in 2025 as part of Season 4. There will also be new Operations, enemies, PvP modes and arenas, and an expansion to the Battle Barge. Check out the post-launch roadmap here.
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. We scored it a nine out of ten – head here for our review.