Best of the Dawn of War 2 series, but with the same strengths and flaws
The big draw here is the gameplay. It's violent, over-the-top, and addictively fun. The graphics are gorgeous, with good animations and realistic scenary. Also, the sound work is quite well done, with solid voice acting, effects, and music. The innovation that DoW2 introduces to the RTS genre is the roleplaying elements, in which you get to level-up your units during fights and customize your commander's gear. This works especially well in the campaign, where you have a lot of choices regarding units, wargear, and how you deploy them during missions. Although the campaign allows you to recruit units during missions, the skirmish mode is still about fairly small engagements centering around a handful of squads. Nonetheless, it's great fun and will have some lasting appeal to RTS fans and for those who like the W40K world.
At this price, Retribution is a good buy, especially for newcomers. However, the game still has many of the same problems as the previous one. The skirmish AI is still shotty, even after 2 expansions. The Eldar and Imperial Guard are especially bad, rarely producing vehicles. Also, Relic has provided very little modding support, and I would be surprised if another patch is forthcoming. Furthermore, I'm not a fan of Steam, which this game depends on for DRM and online "services." With all of this in mind, there is still some fun to be had with this game. Definitely, the best in the series, though the first Dawn of War game is still the superior product.