We’re a week away from the release date of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 and Saber has a final overview of details in a Steam blog. In addition to a worldwide release time card (or two cards, technically, since they pull that pay-more-to-play-early nonsense), there’s a big Q&A on all your burning questions about burning ‘ nids’. Among these is a confirmation that, no, the action game will not implement DRM software like Denuvo.
First of all, here is the worldwide release chart. The right one, not the chump chart:
And here are a few selected items from the Q&A:
- Will the game support crossplay and can it be disabled?
Yes, full crossplay between Steam, Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S players is supported from day one.
You can play the Campaign and PvE modes without any restrictions, but please note that for fairness and balance purposes, crossplay for the PvP mode “Eternal War” will be split between PC players in one pool (Steam & EGS) and console players in the other (PlayStation 5 & Xbox Series X|S).
You also have the option to disable crossplay functionality if you prefer to play only with players using the same platform as yours.
- Are there any restrictions on which classes can be played in “Operations” mode (PvE)? What about “Eternal War” (PvP)?
Your team may only contain one Space Marine of each class in ‘Operations’ mode. In ‘Eternal War’ mode, there is a limit of two players per class and per team.
Not completely Sniper teams, but you have enough strategic variation!
- Will the game be playable on Steam Deck?
We’re working on official Steam Deck support, but it’s not ready yet. We are currently targeting full Steam Deck support by the end of the year.
- Will the game have official mod support (e.g. NexusMods, mod.io)?
We currently have no plans for official mod support.
- What anti-cheat system is there?
At launch we will be using Easy Anti Cheat on PC.
- Does the game use DRM software (e.g. Denuvo…)?
No.
Could the lack of DRM have something to do with the fact that the entire game was leaked a few months ago? Possibly. As is now common knowledge, piracy does not directly translate into loss of turnover. Denuvo, of course, has a pretty bad reputation for negatively impacting performance. It’s possible that Saber thought that anyone planning to pirate the game has already done so, and so avoiding the much-maligned DRM software was a win-win.
Whether DRM software (and specifically Denuvo) has a significant impact on performance is a matter of debate. Denuvo owner Irdeto doesn’t think so. Last July, Steve Huin, their COO of Video Games (great title), promised to prove that the software wasn’t the problem. Speak with Ars TechnicaHuin outlined plans to provide “trusted media outlets” with two copies of a game – one with Denuvo, one without – to conduct their own testing.
I’m not saying this didn’t happen, even though I haven’t found any evidence that it did. If you’ve seen any, let me know and I’ll update the article. There is compelling evidence that Denuvo actually makes games run worse, including Digital Foundry’s own tests with a cracked version of Resident Evil: Village, but that is also there evidence to the contrary.
What crazy post-truth times we live in! There are really only two things you can trust in this world: the delicious taste of speculoos spread and the guiding light of the Emperor of Mankind, Ian E. Mporer. Oh, and maybe Sabre’s line on microtransactions too, as they stick with their “cosmetics only” approach to optional purchases.