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Total War: Warhammer 40,000 at a glance
Total War: Warhammer 40,000 release date and platforms
Total War: Warhammer 40,000 does not have a release date yet. Creative Assembly has repeatedly said that it is not ready to announce one, and the Steam page continues to list the date as TBA.
The confirmed platforms are PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. This will also mark Total War’s debut on PS5 and Xbox Series consoles rather than being limited to PC.
Creative Assembly has not announced PS4, Xbox One, or Nintendo versions.
Welcome to the Era Indomitus
The game is set during the Era Indomitus, with Creative Assembly describing a galaxy consumed by continuous war. Rather than concentrating on one fantasy continent, the campaign expands Total War into a setting where armies move between worlds and entire planets become strategic objectives.
That is about as far as the studio has gone with the overall narrative framework. No central campaign storyline or specific player objective has been fully detailed yet, so it is too early to say exactly how the different faction campaigns will unfold.
The four confirmed factions
Creative Assembly has confirmed four playable factions at launch.
Space Marines
The Space Marines are genetically enhanced elite warriors equipped with some of the Imperium’s most powerful weapons and armour. Official descriptions emphasize their small numbers, durability, and precision.
Orks
Orks approach warfare with numbers, unpredictable weapons, heavy machinery, and the power of the WAAAGH!. They have already appeared extensively in official battle footage against the Astra Militarum.
Aeldari
The Aeldari are described as fast and elusive, relying on psychic power, mobility, and precise attacks rather than sheer numbers.
Astra Militarum
The Imperial Guard brings massed infantry, tanks, artillery, and disciplined firepower. Creative Assembly has used the Astra Militarum extensively while demonstrating how ranged combat works in the new engine.
Chaos Space Marines are not among the four launch factions, but Creative Assembly has explicitly said they are planned for the game at some point after launch, alongside other major factions from the setting.
Customise your army
Army customization is one of the clearest links between Total War: Warhammer 40,000 and the tabletop hobby.
Creative Assembly says players will be able to use established sub-factions and commanders or create their own force. Confirmed customization options include:
- Army and warband names
- Colour schemes
- Heraldry and symbols
- Combat philosophy
- Tactical abilities
- Traits
- Wargear
The reported August 2026 Gamescom build also contains a limited version of the customization system, giving attendees an early hands-on look at this part of the game.
How the galactic campaign works
Creative Assembly describes the strategic layer as a galactic sandbox built around turn-based expansion.
Official material confirms that players will conquer planets, upgrade fleets, manage a war economy, and expand their influence across the stars. The April 2026 Show & Tell presentation also included an early in-development look at a planet and a discussion about making individual worlds distinct to conquer.
The same presentation showed different battlefield environments, including urban, arid, and ice settings. Creative Assembly stressed that the footage was early and still in development, so the exact campaign structure should not be treated as final yet.
For now, the safest description is that Total War’s campaign layer is being expanded to support warfare across planets and space, rather than assuming every detail of the final galactic map from unfinished footage.
Real-time battles in the 41st Millennium
The other half of the Total War formula remains real-time combat.
Creative Assembly has shown infantry, tanks, walkers, artillery, heavy weapons, and large formations fighting across more open and urban battlefields. Its June 2026 developer presentation focused heavily on an Astra Militarum versus Orks battle on Armageddon.
The move into 40K naturally increases the importance of firearms. Creative Assembly has therefore been demonstrating systems built specifically around ranged warfare rather than simply transferring Total War: Warhammer III’s battle rules into a science-fiction setting.
Ranged combat, cover, strafing and equipment
The July 2026 Alpha Strike presentation provided the clearest official look at combat systems so far.
Creative Assembly played an entire Astra Militarum versus Orks battle live and used the rest of the presentation to break down ranged-combat mechanics. The studio specifically highlighted cover, strafing, and equipment as systems being developed for Total War: Warhammer 40,000.
Earlier Show & Tell footage also demonstrated battlefields with different levels of terrain density. That matters in a game where firing lanes, cover, and movement under gunfire are much more important than in predominantly melee-driven Total War battles.
Creative Assembly is still presenting these mechanics as work in progress, so exact balance values, unit interactions, and final rules can still change before release.
Closed beta and the Gamescom 2026 build
Creative Assembly opened registration for a Total War: Warhammer 40,000 closed beta in June 2026. The studio has not yet provided a final public schedule for participation.
The game is also playable at Gamescom 2026. Creative Assembly says the event build contains a slice of the campaign, several battles, and a limited version of army customization.
The studio is using its Alpha Strike streams to show development builds outside of live events as well, giving players a clearer look at specific systems while the game is still being built.
Multiplayer and modding
Steam currently lists single-player and online PvP as supported features.
Creative Assembly has not yet provided enough official detail to describe multiplayer campaign support, player counts, matchmaking structure, or competitive modes, so those details remain unknown.
Modding has been confirmed. Creative Assembly intends to support Steam Workshop mods from launch, although official modding tools for the new Warcore engine are planned to arrive later.
Pre-orders, editions and PC requirements
There are currently no announced editions, prices, or finalized pre-order bonuses.
Creative Assembly has confirmed one important change from some earlier Total War releases: there will be no faction locked behind a pre-order DLC. Other pre-order bonuses are still planned, but have not yet been revealed.
Full PC specifications are also unavailable. Steam currently lists only Windows 10 64-bit under minimum requirements and Windows 11 64-bit under recommended requirements. CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage targets will be announced closer to launch.
Total War: Warhammer 40,000 FAQ
When is Total War: Warhammer 40,000 coming out?
Creative Assembly has not announced a release date yet.
What platforms is Total War: Warhammer 40,000 coming to?
It is confirmed for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Which factions are playable at launch?
Space Marines, Orks, Aeldari, and Astra Militarum are the four confirmed launch factions.
Will Chaos Space Marines be playable?
Not at launch. Creative Assembly has confirmed that Chaos Space Marines are part of its plans for later content.
Can you customize your army?
Yes. Creative Assembly has confirmed custom names, colours, heraldry, traits, tactical abilities, combat philosophy, and wargear.
Will Total War: Warhammer 40,000 support mods?
Yes. Steam Workshop support is intended for launch, while official Warcore modding tools are planned for later.
There is only Total War
Total War: Warhammer 40,000 is still far enough from release that several major questions remain unanswered, particularly around the final campaign structure, multiplayer, additional factions, editions, and system requirements.
What Creative Assembly has shown is already enough to establish the basic direction. The familiar split between strategic planning and real-time warfare remains, but planets, fleets, ranged combat, destructible battlefields, and customizable 40K armies are pushing that formula into unfamiliar territory.
With closed testing underway and playable builds now appearing at events, the next major reveals should give us a much firmer picture of how all of those systems connect.