Warhammer 40,000 - Spin-offs and Related Fiction

Spin-offs and Related Fiction

Games Workshop has expanded the Warhammer 40,000 universe over the years to include several spinoff games and fictional works. This expansion began in 1987, when Games Workshop asked Scott Rohan to write the first series of "literary tie-ins". This eventually led to the creation of Black Library, the publishing arm of Games Workshop, in 1997. The books published relate centrally to the backstory in the Warhammer universe. Black Library also publishes Warhammer 40,000 graphic novels.

Several popular miniature game spin-offs were also created, including Space Hulk, Battlefleet Gothic, Epic 40,000, Inquisitor, Gorkamorka and Necromunda. A collectible card game, Dark Millennium, was launched in October 2005 by Games Workshop subsidiary, Sabertooth Games. The story behind the card game begins at the end of the Horus Heresy arc in the game storyline and contains four factions: the Imperium, Orks, Eldar and Chaos .

During the 1990s, Games Workshop partnered with Strategic Simulations (SSI) to produce squad-based tactical games such as Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate as well as turn-based operational simulations like Warhammer 40,000: Rites of War. Space Crusade, one of the earliest video games of the series was praised for being "a faithful conversion of the boardgame, with a board that could be viewed in 2D or isometric projection views (Barker, 1992)."

Games Workshop licensed Warhammer 40,000 to THQ in 2001 and produced a first-person shooter titled Fire Warrior. The game received generally mediocre reviews, including a 6.0 out of 10.0 from IGN. The later releases from THQ were real-time strategy games: Dawn of War, Dawn of War: Winter Assault, Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, and Dawn of War: Soulstorm. Developed by RTS veterans Relic Entertainment who had previously created the award-winning Homeworld and Impossible Creatures, these were considerably more popular and well received, with Dawn of War netting a 4.5 out of 5 from GameSpy. (who is the host for online part of the game). The sequel to Dawn of War, Dawn of War II was released in February 2009, and its first expansion Chaos Rising in March 2010 and second expansion Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II - Retribution in March 2011.

Another game entitled Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, developed by Relic Entertainment, was announced on May 28, 2009. It is a 3rd Person Action/Shooter for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC, and was released on September 6, 2011.

Although there were plans to create a full-fledged Warhammer 40,000 "pen and paper" role-playing game from the beginning, these did not come to fruition for many years, and a group of Italian fans started to create an "unofficial" adaptation of the "Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay" rules to play in the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

An official Warhammer 40,000 role-playing game was published only in 2008, with the release of Dark Heresy by Black Industries, a GW subsidiary.

Presently Games Workshop licenses a number of Warhammer 40K themed products to Fantasy Flight Games. Fantasy Flight Games specializes in board, card and role-play games. Included in the licensed product are:

• Horus Heresy a board game focusing on the final battle of the Horus Heresy the battle for the Emperor's Palace; this game is a re-imagining of a game by the same name created by Jervis Johnson in the 1990s.
• Space Hulk: Death Angel - a game with a merge of board and card game mechanics, based on the popular "Space Hulk" board game, featuring Space Marines against Genestealers.
• Dark Heresy - a pen and paper role-playing game where players may assume the role of inquisitorial acolytes, or assume a different and equally small-scale scenario following the game's rules.
• Rogue Trader - a pen and paper role-playing game sharing many of its core mechanics with Dark Heresy, where players assume the roles of Explorers, whose rank and escalated privileges allow for travelling outside of Imperium's borders. Due to extensive expansions upon Rogue Trader, campaigns can be largely different and alternated by game masters. Its most significant difference from any of the other Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay is that it contains rules for spaceship-based combat.
• Deathwatch - a pen and paper role-playing game, also sharing many of its core mechanics with Dark Heresy and Rogue Trader, it allows players to role-play Space Marines, whom are the elite combat units of the Imperium of Man. In light of this, its ruleset emphasizes combat more than Dark Heresy or Rogue Trader
• Black Crusade - a pen and player role-playing game, also sharing many of its core mechanics with Dark Heresy, Rogue Trader, and Deathwatch, Black Crusade allows players to role-play Chaos-corrupted characters. This installment will be concluded with supplements. It is notably different in that it allows much more free-form character development, with experience costs being determined by affiliation with a Chaos God.
• Only War - The newest installment of FFG's pen and paper Warhammer 40,000 role-play (currently undergoing beta-testing), Only War puts players in the boots of the Imperial Guard, the foot soldiers of the Imperium of Man.