Hands-On Impressions with Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000 Demo at Gamescom 2026!

War Never Changes

Early access to the game was provided to us by SEGA, thank you very much!

Strategy games always have a warm place in my heart, and every year before Gamescom when Sega offers me the chance to come play one of their new Total War games, I agree with great excitement. The Total War game series is one of the best strategy series out there, and even though the most recent titles have been less impressive, the next game is set to combine the mechanics and foundation of Total War with the insane WARHAMMER universe. As part of the current Gamescom exhibition, I got the opportunity to see how these two manage to blend together.

All in all, I played about half an hour of Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000 and I think the bottom line is pretty simple. If you love Total War games and you're open to a theme that's not historical (like the previous WARHAMMER games that came out), you'll love this game. If you're a WARHAMMER fan and have always wanted to command massive battles, you'll feel right at home with this title. But if you don't fall into either of these categories, it's possible that Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000 isn't the game for you, or at least not the one that will bring you into the fan club of either of these groups.

Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000 proudly presents a new game engine that also provides many of the game's building blocks. With the new engine, the team has managed to create much larger battles with more units than before and impressive graphical detail if you want to zoom in to the maximum level. Another big piece of news with the new game is the fact that it will launch on consoles for the first time in Total War history. The demo I played included three missions, each giving a taste of the game. The first mission was essentially the Tutorial that will teach new players how the game works, with its goal being to be the most accessible game in the series to date. A welcome addition to a game packed with different mechanics and elements, each complex in its own way.

The second mission gave a short and not particularly impressive taste of the campaign mode which will be turn-based, and then came the main course which is real-time battles that will take up most of our playtime. At launch, the game will include 4 different Factions, with the development team promising that additional factions will be added later, likely as paid expansion packs. In the demo, I played the most classic battle as the Space Marines fighting against an army of Orks. I have to admit I was surprised by how difficult and challenging the battles are and how much thought you need to invest in every decision about which unit to position where, when and where to provide fire support, alongside proper use of cover and shields. An element I particularly loved is the different combat doctrines system that can be applied so that unit behavior in every situation matches that doctrine, and I'll explain. If, for example, we choose to apply an offensive doctrine and an enemy runs at us, we'll run at them and attack back rather than entrench ourselves like with the defensive doctrine.

Another system that unfortunately I only learned to use near the end of my playtime is the morale system of fighters on the field, which affects their performance. You can conduct an aerial bombardment that might not necessarily kill many units but can significantly damage their morale, making them much weaker. Similarly, flanking maneuvers you execute will affect morale and help you eliminate enemies much more effectively. These are things that, when done correctly, help a lot especially in the massive battles the game throws you into. All of this together makes Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000 much more attractive to new players on one hand who are looking for easy entry, and for experienced players looking for depth and challenge on the other hand, but as I said, it's not for everyone.