The publisher of smash hit action game Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has said it has no issue with modding in the game’s co-op PvE mode, but it has admitted to secretly clamping down on modding in PvP with the release of its latest patch.
Publisher Focus Entertainment and developer Saber Interactive this week released Update 4.0 for the massive-selling third-person action game set within Games Workshop’s grimdark science fiction universe. Officially, it adds a new PvE map, a new Tyranid enemy type, and a new Lethal difficulty mode. But there’s one thing Focus failed to mention: an update to the encryption Space Marine 2 uses on its game files designed to block modding in the game’s PvP mode, dubbed Eternal War.
Eternal War has had a cheating problem ever since Space Marine 2’s explosive launch in September. Normally, Space Marine classes are restricted to using certain weapons in the PvP. The Heavy, for example, is under normal circumstances restricted to the Heavy Bolter and Heavy Plasma Incinerator weapons. But cheaters have changed the game so that they have access to weapons and abilities their class shouldn’t have, ruining the balance of PvP.
While Space Marine 2’s Update 4.0 patch notes failed to mention any attempt to combat PvP modding, IGN has confirmed with the game’s modding community and with Focus Entertainment itself that the patch has changed the game under the hood to do so.
Tom, aka ‘Warhammer Workshop,’ is perhaps the community’s leading Space Marine 2 mod maker. Tom operates a Space Marine 2 modding Discord home to over 2,000 members, and has an extensive profile on Nexus Mods. According to Tom, with Update 4.0 Saber updated the encryption used on the game files to make it much harder for modders to break through.
Speaking to IGN, Sylvain Le Roux, senior brand manager at Focus Entertainment, confirmed Update 4.0 had made this change.
“Modding was possible in PvP for those really looking to do it, but has never been a major issue,” Le Roux insisted, stressing it was limited to PvP on PC where it did occur. “So far, we’ve received very, very few reports of it in relation to the huge number of games played, which is not to say that it wasn’t annoying of course.
“That being said, we’ve removed this possibility with today’s Patch 4. Modding in PvP is no longer possible. For players who may have encountered other cheating this way, our recommendation is to use the report and block features built in the game to avoid playing against them in future games.”
Cheating in Space Marine 2’s PvP mode seems particularly pointless when you consider it does not have ranked play, nor a competitive scene, nor a rewards system attached to PvP only. It is a relatively bare-bones offering that pits loyalist marines against traitor marines in quickfire matches for little more than bragging rights. Call of Duty Ranked Multiplayer it is not.
“Besides winning a few matches and likely getting reported by the whole lobby or even banned, there is no actual benefit to modding to gain an unfair advantage,” Le Roux stressed, “no monetary benefit, no exclusive in-game items, no special status, no invitation to tournaments.”
Unfortunately, it seems that while Update 4.0 may have made it harder for people to use mods to cheat in PvP, it has had the knock-on effect of making it harder to mod Space Marine 2’s PvE mode, Operations.
Operations mode sees a squad of three players battle through carefully designed maps as they face off against the Tyranid horde or the Thousand Sons Chaos Marines, usually with a spectacular boss fight or raid-like mechanic thrown in at the end. Controversially, Saber has deliberately tuned Operations to prevent two of the same class of Space Marine 2 being used. IGN has reported on the upshot of this design decision: awkward pre-mission standoffs as players wait for the other to switch class first.
Space Marine 2’s modding community has already released some quality of life mods like Instant Armour Unlocker, Operations Arsenal Unlocker, and Holstered Weapons. Tom’s most popular mod by far is the Unlock All Armours mod, which saves people from having to grind Operations just to unlock new helmets or armor sets.
“While the grind can be enjoyable, I completely understand that people with busy lives — jobs, families, and limited free time — might appreciate that shortcut,” Tom said. “The great thing is, it’s not permanent. Once you remove the mod, everything locks up again, so there’s still that long-term goal if you want it.
“Ultimately, people just want to bring their tabletop fantasy to life by customizing their character, whether that’s perfecting their appearance or creating more lore-accurate loadouts.”
Modders are also diving into the more exciting things, like Operations and Campaign replacers, where you can play as Deathwatch or Chaos Marines. Indeed, right now Tom is working on a mod that replaces the Thousand Sons enemies with Tyranids (“because honestly, chainsawing a Termagant in half is far more satisfying than taking down a walking dust-bucket!”). Other ambitious ideas in the works include playable Dreadnoughts and the Imperial Guard, but those are still a bit down the road.
Remarkably, the changes Space Marine 2 mods make to the Space Marines themselves, whether it’s a purely aesthetic customization not normally possible or certain classes using weapons and equipment they’re not supposed to, can be seen online by other players in public PvE sessions. While Space Marine 2 uses dedicated servers, a lot of the game elements are client-side controlled. So if you’re playing with random players, there’s a chance you might see things like Bulwarks wielding Thunder Hammers.
“As for Operations, it’s a bit of a grey area,” Tom said. “From my perspective as a game designer, all weapons have their roles — none are strictly stronger than the others, just better suited to different tasks, whether that’s taking down hordes or priority targets. The only time things get a bit overpowered is with heavy weapons on non-default classes, which is why those are locked to the Heavy.
“Other weapons might seem strong, but they’re balanced by the fact that other classes don’t get the same perks. For example, a sniper’s perks really benefit the las-fusil, but the tactical class won’t see as much of an advantage. So sure, you could equip it on the tactical, but you wouldn’t get the full benefits of your class perks.”
Le Roux downplayed the pervasiveness of modding in Space Marine 2 relative to its huge playerbase (4.5 million players and counting), but confirmed Focus Entertainment’s stance on PvE modding specifically, saying it has no problem with it at all.
“Modding in PvE missions does not represent an issue to us,” Le Roux clarified. “This is a cooperative, unranked game mode. If players wish to go through the trouble of modding the game and re-doing it every couple of weeks when our patches break their mods, just to have a Thunder Hammer on a Bulwark for a PvE mission with their friends, that is their choice.
“It is true that balance may be affected but this is a non-competitive environment where balance doesn’t carry the same importance. Sure, this may make the game easier for them, but the cosmetics unlocks are tied to completing missions regardless of difficulty. They could achieve the same results by playing on very easy with maxed out characters and weapons.”
Tom initially thought this PvP crackdown had inadvertently killed online mods for PvE for good, but has told IGN the community has managed to get them up and running again. “We’ll have to wait and see for how long though,” Tom added.
“The sad thing is that this will likely do little to actually stop people from hacking the PvP, but it buys Saber a little time against the most egregious hackers, while the majority of their PvP player base is active,” Tom continued.
“I hold zero ill will towards Saber — as a fellow game developer, I completely understand the reasoning and rationale behind what they’ve done.”
You can see why Space Marine 2 modding would be popular; the tabletop game upon which it is based revolves around player customization of the models, with Games Workshop encouraging the community to experiment and even make up their own chapters while sticking to the overall rules. Fans really love to play dress up with their Space Marines, and if a mod can make that quicker and easier and even more extensive that Space Marine 2 currently provides, it will prove popular.
“For me, modding is a lot like converting miniatures,” Tom said. “I’ve got far too many plastic armies (as any Warhammer fan does), but what I enjoy most is making each model unique — a true labor of love. Modding games feels the same. It’s about tweaking things, pushing boundaries, and adding that personal touch. And like Warhammer, it’s all done out of a love for the game and its universe.”
Then there’s the issue of satisfying the relentless hunger from the Space Marine 2 player base for new content. Players want new classes, new maps, new weapons, new armor pieces, new equipment, new enemy types, and, generally, a lot more stuff, and they want it now. They want their favorite chapter in the game, story DLC, new enemy factions, and more to do on the Battle Barge. Saber will be aware of all this, of course, but the reality of video game development means it will, like the Space Marines themselves, need to pick their battles carefully.
We’ve seen other studios struggle to cope with satisfying this sort of demand before, especially in the face of unexpected success. Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead, for example, has had trouble keeping its massive playerbase going after 12 million sales in 12 weeks. After 4.5 million sales in just over a month, Saber may run into the same problem. It might already be there.
Mods, then, may fill the gap. “For whatever reason, Warhammer games tend to get far more modding attention than most,” Tom said. “If I had to guess, it’s because of the sheer depth of lore and history behind everything, so there’s so much more that people want to see than any single studio can reasonably produce.
“And modeling is very much about taking something and making it your own (at least to a lot of people).”
One of the question marks hanging over Space Marine 2 modding is its potential impact on revenue made from the sale of premium customization items. While Focus is taking a hands-off approach now, it may change its tune if hundreds of thousands of people mod their game to unlock skins that would otherwise cost money to buy. The upcoming Dark Angels Champion Pack for the Bulwark class is a case in point. Focus will no doubt be hoping it generates significant recurring income, but why buy it if you can mod the game to own it and show it off online without spending a penny?
Tom said that while Update 4.0 is focused on PvP modding, it may also be about stopping players from unlocking DLC content early. So far this has yet to be achieved — or, at least — Tom hasn’t seen it done yet. “I think it boils down to, anyone with the competency to pull it off would realize why it would be a bad idea to release anything like that into the public, and be incentivised to keep it to themselves.”
So, what happens next? Space Marine 2 modders are now faced with having to reset their work to some degree with each update, but they are determined to continue. In the meantime, Tom would love for Saber and Focus to create a separate Steam branch that lifts the protections now put in place, in which players can freely mess around even if it means progression isn’t carried over into the main branch.
IGN put that suggestion to Le Roux, who recommended that if players want to see it happen, then they should call for it through official channels.
“With regards to us potentially making a separate branch that allows modding, we may only encourage players who wish for this to happen to submit their suggestion on our Focus Together platform and try to get traction among the community,” Le Roux said. “We may be looking to address this question in future Community Updates for a start.”
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.