14 DAY TRIAL // The Tiger Shark is hard to deploy but worth it. It takes a lot of research to unlock the unit, and it takes plenty of resources to create it. It is even harder to make sure that the Tau survive to see their big bomber on the battlefield. They rely on ranged attacks and careful use of drones. It takes planning and solid use of special abilities to keep them alive against the Space Marines. But it’s worth it to see how quickly an enemy line can crumple when faced with massive firepower and well-coordinated strikes.
Escalation Pack is another downloadable content pack for Warhammer 40,000: Gladius – Relics of War, developed by Proxy Studios and published by Slitherine Ltd. I played on the PC using Steam. This is part of a long-term plan to enhance the title with extra factions and units.
This DLC introduces the Space Marine Scouts, the Hive guards for the Tyranids, the Tau Tiger Shark bomber, a Forgefiend for Chaos, Skitarii snipers for the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Devil Dog tank for the Imperium, the Necron Ghost Ark, Hornets for the Eldars, and the Megatrakk Scrapjets for the Orks.
The extra tactical options are good but players who love a faction and have developed strategies for it might struggle to integrate them. There are no tweaks to the core mechanics of Gladius, which continues to mix city development and turn-based tactics well. The development should explore how it can innovate within this framework, other than by delivering extra units. The factions play differently and pose interesting challenges. Gladius should receive more variety in this department.
The Escalation Pack DLC adds some good-looking units to a game that is already very careful to bring the Warhammer 40,000 universe to life in loving detail. Don’t forget this is a strategy title, meaning one will spend most of the time zoomed out, considering complex plans rather than looking at how exactly Tyranid units’ attack. The sound design is carefully calibrated to match the setting and adds to the immersion.
Conclusion
Escalation is the kind of DLC that’s only important to fans who have exhausted all other content delivered for the title. If you have all the races and have mastered playing them all, then pick it up and see how the new toys fit into your strategy. Otherwise, play the core Gladius, lead the Space Marines to victory, and only then think what other faction would be fun to conquer the planet with.
Review code provided by the publisher.
