5 Best Warhammer Games Coming Up (and 2 You Can Skip)

It feels like there's a new Warhammer game announcement almost every month. From huge upcoming sequels to brand-new franchises, there's a ton for fans to look forward to. Whether you love the depraved machinations of the Drukhari or just want to kill some Chaos demons as a Space Marine, it can be somewhat difficult to sift through all the upcoming titles, even for the biggest fan. Luckily, I've done the hard work for you and listed out five Warhammer games to be on the lookout for and two you may want to pass on.

PLAY - Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin

Image: Frontier Developments

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin is an upcoming real-time-strategy (RTS) game developed and published by Frontier Developments. The game will feature four unique factions, including the Stormcast Eternals and Orruk Kruleboyz, both of which will be available to play during the game's open beta.

It's been a while since there's been a decent PvP-focused release, and I'm hoping that Realms of Ruin will live up to early gameplay footage. The game’s developers regularly update the community on what they are working on, and so far, it seems like there’s a lot of attention to detail.

While an exact release date has yet to be set, an open beta will be available for Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin from July 7-10, 2023. Interested gamers can register for the open beta on the official website. 

PLAY - Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks

It's been too long since we've been graced with vehicular combat in a major gaming release, but Caged Element Inc. is looking to change that with their upcoming game, Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks. To say that the trailer got me excited would be an understatement, as the Carmageddon was one of my favorites as a kid.

Speed Freeks hopes to modernize the car-combat concept, placing you in the role of a high-Orktane (their words, not mine), Speed Freek, as you rip around in different cars, motorcycles, and tanks while equipped with a devastating armory of weaponry.

With various game modes, cross-play PvP, and 7 different vehicles ranging from "trukks" to buggies, this looks to be an amazing amalgamation of Mario Kart meets Twisted Metal. Set to release sometime in 2023, the game just completed an Alpha Playtest on Steam.

PLAY - Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II

Image: Saber Interactive

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II is the highly-anticipated sequel to the iconic Space Marine. A third-person shooter developed by Saber Interactive and published by Focus Entertainment, players will assume the role of a hardened Space Marine in service to the Imperium.

Those familiar with the original Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, released back in 2011, should expect much of the same, but on a much grander scale with modern gaming mechanics, updated graphics with amazing fidelity, and a new story that will continue the epic saga. With what looks like destructible environments and wide open areas to explore, Space Marine II may be up for contention for one of the best games of 2023.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has a planned release for the winter of 2023 for PC, PS5, and Xbox X|S.

PLAY - Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Image: Owlcat Games

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader has the potential to be a great new strategy and exploration game set in the Warhammer universe. After all, the upcoming title is being developed by Owlcat Games, the same company that brought us the highly-rated Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous.

With a turn-based combat system and recognizable recruitable NPCs like Psykers, Xenos, and Space Marines, players can explore the Koronus Expanse as a Rogue Trader, discovering new planets and extracting valuable resources. While no firm release date has been announced for Rogue Trader, the developers held a beta earlier this month, and a release announcement is expected sometime soon.

PLAY - Total War Battles: WARHAMMER

Image: Creative Assembly

This is a strange one since, usually, a mobile game would never make it on my list of "games to lookout for," but Total War Battles: WARHAMMER is the rare exception. The reason for this? The developers of the game, Creative Assembly, are the same team responsible for one of my personal favorites, the Total War: Warhammer series of games.

While the game has been in development for some time and seems to have potentially stalled out altogether, it still looks like a great mobile title. Essentially, the creators, NetEase and Creative Assembly simplified the mechanics of the Total War: Warhammer games and made it so that players could easily play on their phones.

Early combat footage and an overview map looked promising, but we haven't had many updates on the title for quite some time now. However -- if it does come out, it's one that I’ll be sure to download. You can learn more about the game on the official Total War Battles: WARHAMMER website.

SKIP - Warhammer 40,000: Warpforge

Image: Everguild Ltd.

Ugh, another digital card game. It's not that I dislike card games, deck builders, or CCGs -- in fact, I like them, especially when they do something unique, as in the case of the indie Slay the Spire. That being said, now that MARVEL SNAP exists, is there really a point for another iteration on the same thing?

Superfans of the Warhammer universe, especially those that like to play card games, may want to check out Warpforge set to release later this year, especially since it'll be free-to-play. Some of the voice lines and cards are pretty cool looking -- but the game doesn’t look to do anything completely new, and some of the card animations give me 90s vibes, but not in a good way.

Still, with so many options, including digital card games that have been doing this for decades (cough, MTG), I can't see myself missing this one if I don't get to play it.

SKIP - Any Paid DLC for Warhammer 40,000 Darktide

Image: Fatshark

I'm sad to say it since I really enjoyed Darktide when it was initially released. The first-person horde shooter developed and published by Fatshark didn’t have the best launch, but I gave them a lot of space, hoping they would add more content to the game post-launch.

Fast-forward over six months later, and yes, they’ve made regular updates, but there were a few missteps with mechanics updates, leading to unfortunate Mixed reviews on Steam. While the base game has a lot of fun to be had -- including unique builds for different classes, including my personal favorite, the Psyker, the game just feels unfinished and is painfully repetitive at times, even with these latest free DLCs.