Warhammer 40,000: Darktide’s latest patch feels like the game’s 2.0

polygon.com:

The meat and potatoes of Warhammer 40,000: Darktide have always been solid. It’s a blast to delve into the Hive City of Tertium as a psyker, veteran, zealot, or ogryn. The game’s combat is brutal, visceral, and deeply satisfying; the soundtrack is an absolute banger and I love the chats between each character class. But the game struggled to maintain post-launch momentum due to the systems outside of each match, like weapons upgrades, character progression, and late-game variety.

Darktide’s most recent patch, which was released Oct. 3, could change all of that. I’ve been digging through the depths of Tertium, giving each class a spin, and I’m impressed with how much more dynamic each character feels. The four classes each have new major tools – for instance, the psyker can be a long-ranged glass cannon who pops special enemies with a brain burst, a protective friend who throws up shields around their allies, or a Sith Lord with all sorts of deadly projectiles who shreds groups of foes.

In order to compensate after putting all these exciting new tools in players’ hands, Fatshark has buffed up the enemies too. Snipers, Trappers, and Chaos Ogryn have always felt like a threat, and they’re even meaner now. Even humble bad guys who previously served as road bumps now have a little more kick to them, like the Scab Shotgunner. The end result is that matches feel more fraught and dangerous — especially on higher difficulties. The maps and music are the same, but the strategy has more nuance; the game now feels like Darktide 2.0.

Here’s how the changes work in practice: Each character has a grenade, a class ability, and an aura. As an example, the ogryn gets to choose between throwing a rock, throwing a box of small grenades, or