“The Emperor protects” is a common phrase said in the world of Warhammer 40K by the Imperium, usually right before they die. Funny enough, it’s something I found myself saying repeatedly while playing Warhammer 40,000: Darktide free update Secrets of the Machine God because of the sheer number of enemies I was pitted against.
For those unaware, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is one of many games set in the 40,000 universe. But instead of following the Space Marines, who often serve as the poster boy for the franchise, you play a member of the Imperial Guard made of regular people such as you and I. But the catch is you play as someone who’s committed treason and is admitting to redeem themselves in the eyes of the Imperium. To redeem themselves, they’re sent on covert suicide missions to prove their loyalty once again.
Secrets of the Machine God introduces various new content to Darktide, but the meat of the free DLC is the new mission, Clandestium Gloriana, which has the Rejects visit Tertium to meet a new character named Swagger, whose origins are unknown. Upon meeting him, you’re tasked with rebooting an old Adeptus Mechanicus Foundryplex on a snowy planet.
The level plays out similarly to most of the missions in Darktide. Players are dropped in a secure spot and have to shoot and slash their way to the exit. With that being said, it’s still extremely enjoyable. As you play through the mission, you’re given little nuggets of lore about the people you’re working with and how others perceive them. But the story beats can be easy to miss if you’re not paying close attention to what they’re discussing.
The snow and how it was implemented into the game made this level particularly enjoyable. Without giving too much away, there are plenty of moments where you’ll need to interact with parts of the snow to proceed forward, all while fighting through hordes of enemies. Plus, seeing Swagger appear and talk smack to me throughout the mission was an excellent way to keep things engaging and fun. He’s a character they purposefully made vague, and I hope to see more of him in the future.
Something also worth mentioning is that gameplay changes a bit every time you replay the mission. For instance, in one of my run-throughs, I was immediately greeted by a horde of enemies the second I jumped into combat. While in another, instead of fighting off a horde, I was going toe-to-toe with a mini-boss. And to help shake things up, the final wave before completing the mission will always switch up a bit. This made replayability more enjoyable because even though I was running through the same motions, it was changing up just enough.
In addition to Clandestium Gloriana, Secrets of the Machine God introduces four new weapons for players, which include two-handed pickaxes for Ogryns, Shockmauls, a double barrel shotgun, and my personal favorite, the iconic Bolt Pistol.
A significant reason why I loved using the Bolt Pistol was because of how true Fatshark stayed to the lore. In the 40K universe, when an enemy is shot within a certain distance of the Bolt Pistol, the bullet will travel throughout its body and explode. That’s precisely what would happen when you would use it in-game. A nice cherry on top, too, is that this is a gun usually used with Space Marines, and it was fun to see how large the pistol is compared to an average human.
Even though a bunch of shiny new things are being introduced to Darktide, I fear it isn’t enough. Because there’s only so many times someone can replay the same level repeatedly without getting bored of it. Sure, the new guns add a new flair to the game, but that can only take you so far.
As a fan of the Warhammer 40K universe, I enjoyed playing Secrets of the Machine God. It adds a lot of layers to the massive story already being told and does some new things to shake things up a bit. The fact that it’s free makes up for the lack of content introduced in Darktide. It’s definitely worth checking out if you already own the game and are looking for a reason to come back and serve the Emperor.
