CHAOS is the way to HAPPINESS!
Gameplay- Excellent balance which keeps me on my toes as i use all the new cool tactics and weaponery made available to me. Loot fanatics wont be disappointed with all the choices in killing toys and armor at their disposal. They all compliment certain play styles which adds to the replay value immensely. Of course if your valiant heroes pick up an item off the battlefield corrupted by Chaos there will be a price to pay as the ingame meter shall start warning you of your descent to the..dark side for using such cursed weaponery and armor. All is not lost though for there are ways of resisting and purging the taint from your spirit.
Your units feel even more alive and interactive with the CHAOS RISING expansion as they speak of what is going around you on and off the battlefield.
The forces of Chaos are truly terrifying and brutal in their entrance into the DAWN OF WAR 2 reality. Cultist are now fearsome in visual presence and vocal expression who are excellent frontline units that can take and deliever plenty of punishment.
Graphics- The forces of Chaos look truly evil appearing as something out of a futuristic satanic inquisition. The Chaos Lord is like some great horned god of old. Cultist no longer seem demoralised masochastic slaves but instead show their strength in joyful slaughtering despoiling psychosis with a more serious side further enhanced by their much more powerful creepy body frames compared to the devious humorous but still fun demeanor of their counterparts in the original DAWN OF WAR.
Sound- I use headphones so for me the audio sounded very full and powerful. Combat effects are devastating with explosive effect and unit vocals bring out the heart inspiring heroic and mind searing horror of the forces at play in this gruesome world of unending carnage. Music is stunning and its because of games like RELIC's CHAOS RISING and BETHESDA's rpgs that my appreciation of classical music never fades but only grows stronger over time.
WARHAMMER 40k DAWN OF WAR II CHAOS RISING is a huge magically well done work full of top notch quality professional game design that delievers the goods in gameplay execution and graphical stimulation plus much much more. RELIC is also providing 200%+ support for their product already releasing one small hot fix patch for some reported crashing on some systems. I never had this problem but its great to see RELIC on target with keeping their work the best it can be. It was also great before CHAOS RISING for RELIC to include limited use of the forces of Chaos in the pre-release patch so fans could get a taste of the expansion without even owning it yet. Very nice there :)
WARHAMMER 40k DAWN OF WAR II CHAOS RISING buy it and ye shall know the unbound gaming joy which is RELIC!!!