Warhammer 40,000: Regicide combines chess with the famous Warhammer franchise. And that is basically it. If you are interested in both then you will love it, but if your interest in either is wavering then there probably isn’t much for you here.

A bloody game of chess

Warhammer 40,000: Regicide gets the basic rules of chess and modifies them to allow units to fight with a greater variety of techniques. The Space Marines are pawns, Terminators are rooks, and so on through the ranks. Each unit type has its own special skills and brutal executions that fans of the bloody Warhammer 40K fiction are bound to enjoy.

Despite being modified chess, Warhammer 40K is packed with content. This includes story elements written by Ross Watson - an official author of the franchise - and extra modes ranging from single-player Skirmish to an online-multiplayer Hotseat Campaign.

The problem with Warhammer 40,000: Regicide is, that if you are not a fan of chess, it gets repetitive. Perhaps the game could have benefited from a greater variety of maps and modes. Maybe some extra factions would have helped too, swapping out the Orks and Space Marines for other races from the fiction.

Violence is beautiful

The graphics are violently beautiful. The models of the units are wonderfully detailed, as are the maps. This makes the executions even more macabre, with graphic animations and amazingly morbid camera angles.

The audio is surprisingly detailed for what is really just a game of chess, with impeccable music and voice work. But this all just tops off a game with a clear focus on its presentation.

Checkmate

Like the brutality of Warhammer 40,000? Like chess? Then go ahead and commit Regicide. Just do not expect a big strategy campaign.