Space Hulk (video Game) - Reception

Reception

The atmosphere experienced while playing Space Hulk was noted by reviewers. The game's similarities with science-fiction film Aliens (1986) did not escape their attention. Aside from the concept of pitting heavily armed soldiers against aliens that looked like H. R. Giger's "exo-skeletal nightmares", Space Hulk's Terminator View Screen was reminiscent of a sequence in the film where a marine lieutenant monitored and ordered his troops as they executed a mission in a dark, dank environment.

Handling slow, cumbersome Marines against fast, deadly Genestealers proved to be intense sessions of panic and fear for the game's critics. They were stressed from monitoring several Marines at the same time while Genestealers probed the flanks and sent decoys to lure Marines to their deaths. Despite playing in a well-lit, noisy office, David Upchurch of The One said the game " the pants off" him. Similarly, CU Amiga's Tony Dillon believed the game was not for those with "a weak heart". In his review for Compute!, Scott May declared the game "a bug blaster's nightmare come true." The game further evoked a sense of esprit de corps with its monastic-style briefings, according to Amiga User International. However, video game journalist Alec Meer remembered the briefings as "one of videogame history's greatest atmosphere-spoilers" for their flat deliveries.

Besides its atmosphere, Space Hulk's game mechanics received close attention. Lester Smith of Dragon said the video game was an excellent adaptation of its original tabletop form. He praised Electronic Arts for conveying the "bug-hunting experience on its own merits, using the computer's strength", rather than attempting to imitate those aspects of the board game. Upchurch, along with Rik Skews of Computer and Video Games, agreed, pointing out that the electronic version was better off with the concept of Freeze Time than implementing a recreation of dice rolls and sequence of turns found in the board game. A few reviewers disagreed. Dee and Jay of Dragon wanted a "computer game that was faithful to the elements of the board game", and said the video game's design proved too difficult for them; they found controlling five or more Marines in real-time against Genestealers impossible. Similarly, Amiga Force's Mark Smith and Ian Osborne were flustered by having to command several Marines at the same time while they came under sudden attacks from several directions. The Marines' slow speed were another frustration. Offering another insight, Meer opined the Marines' slow response was integral to the game's atmosphere: made slow and cumbersome by the game's design and interface, the Marines' battles against fast and deadly foes became nerve-wrecking affairs for the player. Likewise, May found the multitasking nature of the game crucial to its intensity. Rob Mead offered an opinion not from a player of the board game in his article for Amiga Format. He rated the video game "very good but not brilliant", and suggested it would appeal more to aficionados of the board game because such players tend to appreciate attention to detail, planning, and tactics.

Amiga reviewers had a common grouse: the frequent disk swaps required were tedious. Regardless, the game's tense atmosphere—generated by the combination of game mechanics, use of sounds, and artificial intelligence—provided memorable moments to many reviewers. As one of them—Simon Clays of Amiga Computing—put it, Space Hulk was "a very difficult strategy-cum-3D dungeon-esque title with plenty of action and gripping play." May said the game offered "demented" violence but was "irresistibly exhiliarating when the action erupts in nonstop, heartpounding carnage." A decade after the game's release, several reviewers mentioned Space Hulk as a Warhammer 40,000 video game worthy of praise. Meer reflected on replaying the game fifteen years after its release, "The panic and terror of facing 90 degrees away from your enemy, and knowing that you can't do a damn thing about it before your lower intestine spills onto your feet, is still something pretty special."