It looks like Space Marine 2 will let you go head-to-head in PvP multiplayer

Gears of Warhammer sequel Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 will feature some kind of PvP multiplayer mode, similar to the first Warhammer 40k game, going by an early look at an art book for the upcoming third-person shooter.

A flick-through of The Art and Making of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 was shared by YouTuber prdalien0 (via Eurogamer), seemingly revealing some new details about what to expect from Saber Interactive’s surprising follow-up to Relic’s surprisingly solid 2011 hack ’n’ slash ‘n’ shoot takes on Games Workshop’s sci-fi miniatures game.

The headline reveal is that there’ll be a player-on-player multiplayer mode, similar to the team-based battles of the original, which pitted eight Space Marines across three different classes – Tactical, Devastator and Assault – against eight Chaos Space Marines with their own comparable specialisations. A wave-based co-op mode was added in a later piece of free DLC.

Space Marine 2’s multiplayer will likewise be Space Marine on Space Marine – rather than allowing players to take control of the alien Tyranids and other species – and will be built around a set of different player classes. Going by the leaked book, you’ll be able to pick from a variety of Space Marine and Chaos Space Marine chapters – including the likes of the World Eaters, Death Guard and Black Legion – as well as customizing your banner and forming a clan in the mode.

The apparent reveal of the PvP multiplayer joined teases of other elements of Space Marine 2, including a hub area for upgrading protagonist Lieutenant Titus and picking missions during its single-player and co-op campaign, plus some brief glimpses at the Tyranid and Chaos Space Marine enemies and bosses you’ll encounter – and the various weapons and vehicles you’ll be able to use to turn them into space jam (not that one).

Space Marine 2 will be out this September, having been pushed out of its original 2023 window. As someone who has very fond memories of the first – despite not being all that fussed about 40k as a whole – I’m ready to return to its world and joyously bloody chainsword-bolter action over a decade on.