Creative Assembly has confirmed that Total War: Warhammer 40k is in development, and we couldn't be more excited! Here's everything revealed about the game so far - and the questions that we still want to see answered.
We're Warhammer 40k fanatics here at Wargamer (particularly editor Alex and staff writer Tim) and Total War Warhammer 40k is a dream come true for us - done right, it could easily be one of the best Warhammer 40k games ever made. If you're a Total War Warhammer 3 fan who hasn't bumped into 40k before, we have full guides to the many Warhammer 40k factions that make up the setting, as well as the other great Warhammer 40k games you can already find on PC and console.
Here's everything revealed so far for Total War: Warhammer 40k:
Total War: Warhammer 40k release date
Creative Assembly hasn't announced a Total War: Warhammer 40k release date. 2026 is the earliest it could be.
Creative Assembly revealed Total War: Warhammer 40k during the Game Awards on December 11 - read our full Total War Warhammer 40k reveal story for details.
We predict Total War: Warhammer 40k will release in 2026, with a Spring release conceivable at the very earliest.
Its already two years since Total War: Pharaoh was released, and CA tends to release games on a one to two year cycle. CA also revealed Medieval Total War III on December 4 during its 25th anniversary showcase, but emphasised that it was "in early development" - and the announcement trailer didn't have any in engine footage to show. Of the two titles, we think TW40k is coming first.
Total War: Warhammer 40k gameplay
On the face of it, Warhammer 40k's setting is completely alien to all the structural norms of the established Total War formula - so we're forced to consider the question: how will Total War: Warhammer 40k gameplay even work?
Total War: Warhammer 40k campaign mode
Total War: Warhammer 40k campaigns will be a "galactic sandbox", fought across multiple worlds. Players will capture planets, manage a "war economy", and have fleets to upgrade.
Your armies will be deployed to fight real-time battles for control of "planetary installations and regions" - which suggests that planets will have more than one location of interest that you will need to conquer. How you relate to the areas you're fighting for will differ a bit from old games - while you can "conquer and develop strongholds", you can also "bombard enemies from orbit", and render entire planets uninhabitable via Exterminatus.
Many details remain to be revealed. How are fleets built and upgraded? How granular is the economy, and how does it differ between factions? Do all troop movements occur between orbit and planet? Can an army be left stranded without fleet support, as happens in many 40k stories?
Total War: Warhammer 40k battles
Total War: Warhammer 40k battles will play out in real time, and early gameplay footage suggests the scale of engagements is similar to the rest of the Total War franchise.
The largest unit revealed so far is an Ork Stompa, a ramshackle war walker the size of a house. It's far from the largest such vehicle in the 40k universe - we're very eager to see if Titans make an appearance.
Creative Assembly promises "distinct biomes" and "battlefield types" for battles to reflect the diversity of planetary environments. There will also be an emphasis on "dynamic destruction" of the battlefield. During its 25th Anniversary showcase, CA discussed the inclusion of Havok physics in the latest version of its game engine - now called Warcore - to facilitate mid-game building destruction. This will let you shred cover, create new avenues of attack, and apparently, the battle AI has been overhauled to make use of this.
As well as the massive ordnance wielded by some of the larger units in the 40k universe, "strategic abilities" will give players a chance to shape the terrain (and inflict massive casualties). CA already gives the examples of "haphazard artillery bombardments" and "aerial strafing runs", while the trailer shows an orbital laser strike from the ventral lance battery on an Imperial voidship hitting an Ork force.
You'll also be able to call in reinforcements mid-battle. Presumably where these come from will differ between factions - Space Marines make dramatic orbital insertions via drop pod or thunderhawk gunship, but Astra Militarum tank regiments tend to enter the fight the old fashioned way.
Total War: Warhammer 40k factions
Total Warhammer 40k will launch with four playable factions, the Space Marines, Astra Militarum, Aeldari, and Orks.
Total War: Warhammer 40k will also feature cosmetic customisation, allowing you to repaint your army and give it new titles, names, and iconography. We await the legions of anime-art Space Marines with trepidation.
Additionally, each faction's combat philosophy can be tailored, which will affect both the campaign and battles, granting access to "devastating tactical abilities, signature traits, and arcane wargear".
Total War: Warhammer 40k platforms
Total War: Warhammer 40k will launch on PC, XBOX Series X|S, and Playstation 5.
Creative Assembly hasn't yet stated whether the game will launch simultaneously on all platforms. Since CA is a native PC developer, we don't envision any period of exclusivity to one console - if anything, a PC launch prior to console conversions seems most likely.
Total War: Warhammer 40k system requirements
The Total War: Warhammer 40k system requirements are impossible to predict without knowing what year the game will release in and what features it will have.
But we can make some speculations based on how the tech requirements for games built in the Total War 3 engine have ramped up over the years. These are the recommended system specs listed on the games Steam pages:
| Year | Game | CPU | GPU | RAM |
| 2016 | Total War: Warhammer | Intel® Core™ i5-4570 3.20GHz | Nvidia GTX 760 2048MB @1080P / AMD R9 270X 2048MB | 8GB |
| 2017 | Total War: Warhammer 2 | Intel i5/Ryzen 5 series | Nvidia GTX 1660 Ti / AMD RX 5600-XT | 8GB |
| 2018 | Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia | Intel® Core™ i5-4570 3.20GHz | Nvidia GTX 770 4GB / AMD R9 290X 4GB @1080p | 8GB |
| 2019 | Total War: Three Kingdoms | Intel i5-6600 / Ryzen 5Intel | Nvidia GTX 970 / AMD R9 Fury X 4GB VRAM | 8GB |
| 2020 | Total War Saga: Troy | Intel i5-6600 / Ryzen 5 2600X 2600X | Nvidia GTX 970 / AMD R9 270X 2 GB | 8GB |
| 2022 | Total War Warhammer 3 | Intel i5/Ryzen 5 series | Nvidia GTX 1660 Ti / AMD RX 5600-XT | 8GB |
| 2023 | Total War: Pharaoh | Intel i5-6600 / Ryzen 5 2600X 2600X | Nvidia GTX1660 Ti / AMD RX 480 | 8GB |
The recommended system requirements for Total War games built in the Total War engine (Warscape edition) has changed very little since Total War Warhammer released in 2016 - though a more powerful machine makes the games run a lot more smoothly and look a lot better. It's hard to say if the new Warcore edition will be substantially more demanding.
Fundamentally, the core of Total War is about rendering a lot of units onscreen at once, and Creative Assembly reckons that an Intel i5 or Ryzen 5 series CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a three-generation-old graphics card is enough to play the games at 1080p. But Warcore will also be doing physics rendering via Havok, so we expect the CPU demands to rise accordingly.
Still, Creative Assembly will want a very broad selection of gamers to be able to play the game. If any minimum specs rise, expect them to be in the CPU first.
Excited for Total War: Warhammer 40k? Come and join us in the Wargamer Discord community! To keep up to date with a roundup of Wargamer's best articles each week, make sure you subscribe to our newsletter.