The “Dawn of War” video game franchise is one that has been running for more than a decade, but the recent game installments have been rather disappointing for many fans. Hopeful is what “Dawn of War III” brings for the future of this franchise. It has many aspects from the original “Dawn of War” real-time strategy games that are brought back into the fold of the gameplay as well as some of the new mechanic ideas brought in by the previous game. 

“Dawn of War III” combines what veteran players of the “Dawn of War” games loved with mechanics combined from both previous game installments to create a new fresh hybrid real-time strategy game. The strength of this game lies with its new take on the real-time strategy platform that for so long has stayed rigid and in recent years has been dwindling. The new hybrid style really makes for some fun gameplay.

Held in the same Warhammer 40K universe as the previous games, this game holds a standard campaign as did the previous titles. The campaign is exciting, holding a true sense for the game’s lore but gets rather repetitive with unit control and stylistic play. The single-player aspect of the game is decent but not genre defining or something that really stands out. 

The key of a real-time strategy game doesn’t lie within the single player though, the multiplayer is where it counts. Having a good multiplayer format will dictate the longevity of this game in the years to come as it allows for replayability. In this aspect, it does decently. The mechanics are new with unit and building controls from previous installments coming together that make the multiplayer fun for and exciting for players. 

The lack of maps the player can choose from is pretty horrendous, almost guaranteeing they are going to come out with downloadable content content and expansions for the game. This is a little disappointing as it makes the multiplayer as it is right now lacking diversity. 

One of the key downfalls of this game, that is almost a standard in new games, is hotkey reassignment. This game for whatever reason doesn’t allow this and is almost unforgivable. You can only use the default keys to use abilities which in similar games such as “Starcraft 2.” For a 2017 game release, this is unacceptable and needs to be implemented for the future of this games multiplayer content. 

The actual gameplay mechanics are designed well and the new graphics make playing visually pleasing as well as controlling well. 

Overall, this game is a nice return for the franchise. Though far from perfect, it nicely combines aspects from both previous installments and with new expansions, and could very well end up being a classic played at LAN parties like the real-time strategy games of old. 

With new expansions and downloadable content to fix no hotkey customization and map diversity for the multiplayer, the game’s score would be improved.