This game is a free TPS set in the grim darkness of 40K universe. It plays like any classical PVP shooter game, nothing extraordinary. Is it P2W ? No. Is it good ? Hmm, it's OK under certain conditions. Is the game as good as it was supposed to be ? Definitely not. More to that later.

So why the thumbs up ? The game manages to recreate the bloody gothic warfare of the 40K and make players feel part of it. Would it be in any other universe, this game would be a thumb down.

VERDICT : PLAY ONLY IF FAN OF 40K UNIVERSE, OTHERWISE PASS.

Detailed review

Graphics : OK
Like most things in the game, it's nothing extraordinary. It's not good, it's not bad, it's right in the middle.
The art design is good regarding buildings and the environment, however the characters feel too cartonish to me, especially the eldars.
Expect a lot of explosions. If you do not like explosions everywhere, this game is not for you.

Gameplay : Bad-OK
It's not OK and it's not utterly bad either.
The shooting is OK, all basic gameplay features you can expect are there : cover, shoot from cover, aim...
Where it shines comes from the variety of classes and weapons : from the venerable boltgun to autocannons, meltaguns and plasma cannons, you have some choice and most don't play the same. I have a lot of fun of one-shotting people with plasma cannons.
The melee however, is very bad. It is basically a rock-paper-scissor game where you barely see your opponent among all the fireworks and all melee attacks force you to dash forward in a retarded way. So nope. Terrible melee system.
Overall, you do not play eternal crusade for its gameplay, some games are better in that aspect.

Vehicles are poorly done. Controls are average, but weapons lack the punch expected from war machines. Transports allow players to respawn in them, which make them primary objectives. A big part of the success of a game depends on your ability to destroy enemy transports.

Another problem comes from the net code. if you are far from the servers (Frankfurt in Europe and I don't remember where the server is in USA), then do not bother. This game requires timing and if you lag it is going to be a nightmare.
Still better than Ubisoft networking.

The customisation is Okayish and enjoyable, you are limited in what you can bring and it forces you to make some hard choice. Do I bring melta bomb or keep this better armor ? But it is still poor for some classes, so I can't rate this any higher than OK.

Sounds : OK
Nothing extraordinary either. Music is (sometimes) great, but you don't really notice particularly good sounds effects. There are some bugs regarding sound effects though, so sometimes you hear things that happen far from you, and sometimes you do not hear a gun shooting at 2cm.

Story : There is none.

P2W aspect : Excellent
99% of items can be acquired with in game money, while paying may grant you some minor specific effects for weapons(for example 5 burn damage over time for 100 customisation points, which is not worth it at all). Jump classes are reserved for buyers, but they are not a must-have class considering how clunky melee is (it can be for eldars though since iti s ranged, but overall you do not miss something completely necessary).
There is no P2W aspect at all.
Buying the game gives you x3 progression which allows you to unlock the stuff of all classes easily. If you want to keep the game free, then specialize yourself in 1-2 classes and you should be just fine.
Buyer have access to cosmetics options and (later on) elite classes, but the latter does not seem to be unique and is just a class reskin with specific loadout.

Special flavor : 40K universe.
Basically, this is why you play this game. You want to blast the incoming loyalist scum with your autocannon on the walls of a captured fortress ? You want to use camouflage to cut down the unexpecting space marine passing by ? You want to rush forward with your stormshield, crushing orks along your way ? Well this is (at my knowledge) the only game that does that.

Note regarding founders and why it went bad : so a lot of players backed this game because it was planned as a planetside in a 40K universe. Technology sucked so they couldn't make it and released that small, skirmish game instead, plus made it free to play. SInce founders were given a refund after the decision was made to not go planetside way I do not consider this as a breaking issue, but I understand people feel that way (especially if you have given lots of money). I am still happy they made this game and not cancelled it.

So, for conclusion, I would definitely recommend you to play this game if you like the 40K universe. If not then give it a try (it's a free !) but be aware that it as a lot of issues.

This game is a free TPS set in the grim darkness of 40K universe. It plays like any classical PVP shooter game, nothing extraordinary. Is it P2W ? No. Is it good ? Hmm, it's OK under certain conditions. Is the game as good as it was supposed to be ? Definitely not. More to that later. So why the thumbs up ? The game manages to recreate the bloody gothic warfare of the 40K and make players feel part of it. Would it be in any other universe, this game would be a thumb down. [u]VERDICT : PLAY ONLY IF FAN OF 40K UNIVERSE, OTHERWISE PASS.[/u] Detailed review Graphics : OK Like most things in the game, it's nothing extraordinary. It's not good, it's not bad, it's right in the middle. The art design is good regarding buildings and the environment, however the characters feel too cartonish to me, especially the eldars. Expect a lot of explosions. If you do not like explosions everywhere, this game is not for you. Gameplay : Bad-OK It's not OK and it's not utterly bad either. The shooting is OK, all basic gameplay features you can expect are there : cover, shoot from cover, aim... Where it shines comes from the variety of classes and weapons : from the venerable boltgun to autocannons, meltaguns and plasma cannons, you have some choice and most don't play the same. I have a lot of fun of one-shotting people with plasma cannons. The melee however, is very bad. It is basically a rock-paper-scissor game where you barely see your opponent among all the fireworks and all melee attacks force you to dash forward in a retarded way. So nope. Terrible melee system. Overall, you do not play eternal crusade for its gameplay, some games are better in that aspect. Vehicles are poorly done. Controls are average, but weapons lack the punch expected from war machines. Transports allow players to respawn in them, which make them primary objectives. A big part of the success of a game depends on your ability to destroy enemy transports. Another problem comes from the net code. if you are far from the servers (Frankfurt in Europe and I don't remember where the server is in USA), then do not bother. This game requires timing and if you lag it is going to be a nightmare. Still better than Ubisoft networking. The customisation is Okayish and enjoyable, you are limited in what you can bring and it forces you to make some hard choice. Do I bring melta bomb or keep this better armor ? But it is still poor for some classes, so I can't rate this any higher than OK. Sounds : OK Nothing extraordinary either. Music is (sometimes) great, but you don't really notice particularly good sounds effects. There are some bugs regarding sound effects though, so sometimes you hear things that happen far from you, and sometimes you do not hear a gun shooting at 2cm. Story : There is none. P2W aspect : Excellent 99% of items can be acquired with in game money, while paying may grant you some minor specific effects for weapons(for example 5 burn damage over time for 100 customisation points, which is not worth it at all). Jump classes are reserved for buyers, but they are not a must-have class considering how clunky melee is (it can be for eldars though since iti s ranged, but overall you do not miss something completely necessary). There is no P2W aspect at all. Buying the game gives you x3 progression which allows you to unlock the stuff of all classes easily. If you want to keep the game free, then specialize yourself in 1-2 classes and you should be just fine. Buyer have access to cosmetics options and (later on) elite classes, but the latter does not seem to be unique and is just a class reskin with specific loadout. Special flavor : 40K universe. Basically, this is why you play this game. You want to blast the incoming loyalist scum with your autocannon on the walls of a captured fortress ? You want to use camouflage to cut down the unexpecting space marine passing by ? You want to rush forward with your stormshield, crushing orks along your way ? Well this is (at my knowledge) the only game that does that. Note regarding founders and why it went bad : so a lot of players backed this game because it was planned as a planetside in a 40K universe. Technology sucked so they couldn't make it and released that small, skirmish game instead, plus made it free to play. SInce founders were given a refund after the decision was made to not go planetside way I do not consider this as a breaking issue, but I understand people feel that way (especially if you have given lots of money). I am still happy they made this game and not cancelled it. So, for conclusion, I would definitely recommend you to play this game if you like the 40K universe. If not then give it a try (it's a free !) but be aware that it as a lot of issues.