During the Warhammer Skulls showcase last month, Sega announced that its classic 2011 action game, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine, would finally get a remaster for modern platforms. This new version of the game, dubbed the Master Crafted Edition, was said to feature several major improvements over its predecessor. It would have higher fidelity, sharper textures, 4K resolution support, upgraded character models, remastered audio, an all-new UI, and a modernized control scheme. The Master Crafted Edition, Sega confirmed, would also include all DLC packs from the original Warhammer 40K: Space Marine at no extra cost.
The Space Marine remaster was launched exclusively on Xbox Series X/S and PC earlier this week, but the reception to it has not been very positive. On Steam, the user reviews for the Space Marine remaster are currently sitting at a mostly negative score of 27%, making it the lowest-rated release from Sega so far this year. Due to these bad scores, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine - Master Crafted Edition has failed to attract a large player base on the storefront. The remaster has had an all-time peak of just 128 concurrent players, which is less than the number of people who are currently playing the original version of Warhammer 40K: Space Marine on Steam.
Space Marine Remaster Has Bad News for PS5 Gamers
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is getting a remaster 14 years following its release, but its announcement includes some bad news for PS5 gamers.
The Warhammer 40K: Space Marine Remaster Has Gotten Off to a Dismal Start on Steam
The Original Warhammer 40K: Space Marine is a Solid, if Basic, Third-Person Shooter
The poor launch of Warhammer 40K: Space Marine - Master Crafted Edition has sullied the name of what is otherwise a perfectly competent game. Space Marine isn't a genre-defining masterpiece, by any means, but it is still a decent Gears of War-like third-person shooter, which isn't easy to come by in today's day and age. The Master Crafted Edition hasn't messed with the core of the game, per se, but the changes it's made aren't good enough to justify the price tag attached to it.
The Space Marine Remaster Doesn't Make Enough Improvements to Justify Its Cost
On both Steam and Xbox, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine - Master Crafted Edition costs an astounding $40. Although the game is available at no extra cost to Xbox Game Pass subscribers on Xbox Series X/S and the Microsoft Store, Steam players have no choice but to cough up the extra money for the remaster if they want to play it. As if that wasn't bad enough, Sega hasn't provided any upgrade path for the Master Crafted Edition on Steam. Those who already own the original version of the game on the platform will still have to pay $40 for the remaster.
Like most of the user reviews on Steam have pointed out, the graphics of the Master Crafted Edition are barely any better than those of the original Space Marine port that's currently available on Steam. In fact, in some people's opinion, the game actually looks slightly worse. That isn't the only noticeable problem that the Master Crafted Edition suffers from, though. Not only does the remaster lack dedicated server support, its crossplay functionality is disabled by default, and the new UI it has doesn't look as visually appealing as the original one does.
The Space Marine Remaster Has Failed to Capitalize on the Success of Space Marine 2
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine - Master Crafted Edition isn't the worst remaster ever made. However, one could say that Sega fumbled the bag with this Space Marine remaster at the worst possible time, since it failed to take advantage of the success of Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2, which was launched late last year. The Master Crafted Edition seemed like an easy win for Sega, but because its launch ended in failure, it stalled the momentum that the Space Marine brand had started to build. Due to the poor performance of this Space Marine remaster, gamers may approach re-releases of other Warhammer 40K games more cautiously in the future, especially those made by Sega.
- Released
- June 10, 2025
- ESRB
- M For Mature: Intense Violence, Blood and Gore
- Developer(s)
- SneakyBox, Relic Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Sega
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
