The contagion of Nurgle has returned in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. Darktide is one of several upcoming Warhammer video games featured at Games Workshop’s Warhammer Skulls: Festival of Video Games and is now available for preorder. The Skulls festival comes barely a month after the PC release of Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters featuring Andy Serkis as Space Marines Grand Master Vardan Kai.
Set in Atoma Prime within the hive city of Tertium, a horrifying plague of the Chaos God Nurgle threatens to corrupt and consume all life in the city. With the forces of Nurgle overrunning the Imperial defenses, it falls to a gang of criminals conscripted by the Imperium to help rid Tertium of this contagion. As a 4-player co-op game, players will assume the role of one of the criminals who each possess unique skills that will aid them in their attempts to cleanse Tertium of the threat of Nurgle. If a Warhammer-themed, first-person co-op game sounds familiar, that’s because FatShark of Warhammer: Vermintide fame is developing Warhammer 40,000: Darktide.
Developer FatShark’s YouTube channel featured the “Rejects Will Rise” cinematic trailer for Warhammer 40,000: Darktide shown off during the Warhammer Skulls: Festival of Games event. The new trailer showed off four of the player characters fighting for their lives against the minions of Nurgle, one of which was a brand new Psyker character. The trailer also featured the return of Vermintide composer Jesper Kyd, whose stellar resume also includes compositions for Assassin’s Creed, Borderlands, and Darksiders 2. Lastly, the trailer revealed Darktide’s September 13th, 2022 release date and that the game is now available for preorder for PC on Steam and Windows Store, and Xbox Series X|S via the Xbox Store. Unfortunately, unlike the Warhammer 40K: Darktide Game Awards gameplay trailer shown in 2020, there was no new gameplay to be had.
Fatshark also confirmed that there are currently two preorder tiers available. Darktide’s regular tier includes the base game and two cosmetic items: the Atmoan Star Weapon Trinket and the Vanguard of the Imperium Portrait Frame. The more expensive Darktide Imperial Edition includes everything in the regular tier plus the Loyalist Pack. The Loyalist Pack is a hefty cosmetic pack that contains 4 unique class outfits, 8 weapon skin patterns, one headgear, and an Ogryn body tattoo. Imperial Edition preorders will also receive the Caducades Backpack cosmetic skin for player backpacks, the Mortis Veteran Portrait Frame, and 2500 Aquilas in in-game currency.
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is already shaping up to be Fatshark’s most refined experience. With the promise of more Darktide news for the future, it’s exciting to see what else Fatshark has in store for Warhammer fans. If their success with the Vermintide series for Warhammer: Age of Sigmar is any indication, fans of Warhammer 40K may be in for a real treat.
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is releasing September 13th, 2022 and is available for preorder now.
Sources: Fatshark/YouTube
