Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate (Classic)
Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate (Classic)
Game
Game2026
Final Liberation: Warhammer Epic 40,000 (Classic)
Developer Holistic Design Inc
Final Liberation is a turn-based tactics video game released for Microsoft Windows in 1997, and re-released on GOG.com in 2015 and Steam in 2026. The game is best known as the first video game based on Epic, a table-top wargame set in the fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe. The game borrows heavily in terms of rules and style from the table-top game in an attempt to recreate the table-top experience on a computer… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
107 reactions from 2 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky) · newest Oct 18, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
87
LovedLoved
67 positive · 10 negative
95% range 78–93%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 67 | 10 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 14 | 0 | 16 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
70 of 80 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
87% recommend · 65 yes, 10 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 75 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (82 of 93 positive).
Players praise the game's FMV cutscenes and Commissar Holt as iconic Warhammer content. [1][2][3] Many note the game holds up well with deep strategy and a rewarding campaign. [4][2][5] Some report technical issues like crashes and lack of modern features. [6][7][8]
Liked
Representative posts
- [6]
Crashes during enemy's movement phase, campaign lags wildly I don't think they bothered porting this one to modern systems, so don't bother playing
- [1]
I've played around 40 hours on the GOG copy before buying this, finished the campaign on normal. this is the gold standard for Warhammer 40,000 strategy games. Nothing comes as close to comparison for this game, the story and gameplay is pure cheese. not to mention all the awesome costumes in the FMV cutscenes. also the splash screen saying this doesn't reflect current lore... disregard that. commissar holt is more …
- [3]
Okay, useful info first, nostalgia later. A modern player probably won't like this - by today's standards it's not pretty, and it's repetitive. But if you're a Warhammer fan, I still recommend to at least watch the live-action cutscenes from this game on YouTube - in my opinion, this is as Warhammer as it gets, especially considering that this was filmed in 1997. I am not a modern player. I was thirteen when this …
- [16]
Remember when 40k used to be fun? Remember when most 40k video games were not just shovelwear slop? Remember when GW had more boxed games? Well good news because this Epic based boomer TBS is excellent. I've been looking for this game for years after playing it in the late 90s / early 2000s at a friend's house. Nostalgia bait? Maybe, but it sure is tasty bait. I'd eye'd this up on GOG a few times, but this takes …
- [2]
With full compatibility this 1997 title hold up surprisingly well. A deep, nonlinear campaign that rewards careful planning takes centre stage. And of course the FMV cutscenes. The cheesy, cheesy cutscenes. Except Commissar Holt who absolutely needs to be worked into the tabletop game. Choose your next purchase with exceptional care.
Summarised from 26 of the 75 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Players who liked Final Liberation: Warhammer Epic 40,000 (Classic) talk about excellent FMV cutscenes with cheesy charm; those who didn't talk about crashes during gameplay or cutscenes. Which matters more to you?
Critics, per Wikipedia
PC Gamer US's T. Liam McDonald wrote, "Final Liberation is a fun, tactically challenging game that faithfully captures the Warhammer system for the first time on PC." Although he criticized its graphics, he concluded that "computer gaming finally has a game worthy of the Warhammer name." In Computer Gaming World, Tim Carter echoed McDonald's criticism of the graphics, calling Final Liberation "perhaps the ugliest game I have seen in ages." However, he enjoyed the game, and summarized, "Other than better graphics, what more could you ask for?" Phil Thé of Computer Games Strategy Plus felt that the game contained "quirks and idiosyncrasies", criticizing its artificial intelligence, interface…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 107 · most liked firstI've played around 40 hours on the GOG copy before buying this, finished the campaign on normal. this is the gold standard for Warhammer 40,000 strategy games. Nothing comes as close to comparison for this game, the story and gameplay is pure cheese. not to mention all the awesome costumes in the FMV cutscenes. also the splash screen saying this doesn't reflect current lore... disregard that. commissar holt is more than canon, him and Yarrick and Cain all hang out and are friends. 'nuff said.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's funny to think that when I first played this game on a PC Gamer demo disk 30yrs ago that my parents PC could barely handle it. I got to play one level, it crashed over and over again and that was enough to make me obsessed. Now I get to fully play it as an adult. This game is stupidly difficult. But once you understand the rock-paper-scissors dynamic of the units and that artillery should be pounding everything all the time it gets much more manageable. It's fascinating to see how…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Epic 40,000: Final Liberation. This game is a wonderful introduction to epic scale warhammer, and is overall a fantastic game that holds up exceptionally well today. I dare to say that if this is ever refreshed, hardly anything aside from graphics should be changed - if even that! The campaign flows well, if you use your head of course. Certain situations can be challenging and punishing, but it is always a situation you can overcome if you play smart. This game is what cemented my decision…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →this is peak ork imo (screenshot from 1990s strategy game FINAL LIBERATION)
positive · AI labelView post →With full compatibility this 1997 title hold up surprisingly well. A deep, nonlinear campaign that rewards careful planning takes centre stage. And of course the FMV cutscenes. The cheesy, cheesy cutscenes. Except Commissar Holt who absolutely needs to be worked into the tabletop game. Choose your next purchase with exceptional care.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I’m playing Final Liberation: Warhammer Epic 40,000 for the first time! Also hanging out with me is will be game designer Andrew Greenberg @hdiandrew.bsky.social , who worked on the Warhammer title, for an insightful and fun conversation. In 15 minutes at twitch.tv/gogcom!
neutral · AI labelView post →Common complaint I see is that the game is slow. Above the zoom buttons on your screen, there is a nondescript slider which adjusts the animation speed and is on Slowest by default. You're welcome. Now, I actually haven't played this game before '26 and I came here looking to scratch the Wh40k Armageddon itch - love that game, but it scales into stupid huge proportions pretty quick. Dawn of War, on the other hand, feels a little too small no matter the mods. This thing right here - this is…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →You should buy it for the soundtrack alone.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Okay, useful info first, nostalgia later. A modern player probably won't like this - by today's standards it's not pretty, and it's repetitive. But if you're a Warhammer fan, I still recommend to at least watch the live-action cutscenes from this game on YouTube - in my opinion, this is as Warhammer as it gets, especially considering that this was filmed in 1997. I am not a modern player. I was thirteen when this came out and it was the first Warhammer game I've ever played. And I still think…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Crashes during enemy's movement phase, campaign lags wildly I don't think they bothered porting this one to modern systems, so don't bother playing
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Finally achievement support and modern OS support for my favourite TBS game of all time! Kudo's GW!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Epic 40k got done dirty but at least we had this gem of a game come out of it before it was ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great music, but no option to turn off anti aliasing and what seems to be a complete lack of manual (they appear to have instead only supplied the errata document) makes this a pretty poor remaster
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lots of guesses, a few people nailed it. The inspiration was Final Liberation PC game from 97, my first exposure to 40k. Also Ian Wood did some excellent digging, seems the team at SSI used a combination of old Epic 40k references for schemes. Man I need to play Final Lib again!
positive · AI labelView post →Exactly as I remember it. Have the original CD for this still too
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Final Liberation: Warhammer Epic 40,000 (Classic) — Reflective Impressions Going into this, I had to remind myself what this game represents. This isn’t just another Warhammer title—it’s one of the earliest attempts to bring the 40k universe into video game form. And with that in mind, it honestly ends up being a lot better than I expected. The first thing that stood out to me was the soundtrack. It’s actually really good—catchy, memorable, and it does a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game that got me into warhammer, does rely on RNG but with careful planning you can minimize this. Sad that the game did not get any more content but maybe if Total war is successful we can get a new Epic game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Didn't work. Crashed on end of level one cutscene, couldn't get it to progress to level 2.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →-UPDATE As we are getting closer to the mid way point of the game, we would like to start giving teases of the upcoming game. While it's still a good while away, we want to start growing hype for it!! For now, all we can say is that the game is super similar to Final Liberation! #gamedev #update
neutral · AI labelView post →Its a classic for a reason.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Crashes randomly just like the original! That's what I call a faithful adaptation. Total classic though.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I played Final Liberation in the late 90s and remember it fondly. The fact is, if you like 4X games, then you will enjoy this 3X. You will expand (i.e., earn points and purchase units), explore (i.e., select one of several pathways on the globe to engage the orc horde, defeat greater and more robust opponents, until you finally face-off the War-Boss), and exterminate (i.e., there are many, many battles, and the Space Marine of the 90s were not comparable to the 11th edition Adeptus Astartes...…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →not only still holds up, but even better than i remembered acted fmv's after most battles not super difficult but a fun sandbox to try things out and not get punished absolutely worth $5
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Remember when 40k used to be fun? Remember when most 40k video games were not just shovelwear slop? Remember when GW had more boxed games? Well good news because this Epic based boomer TBS is excellent. I've been looking for this game for years after playing it in the late 90s / early 2000s at a friend's house. Nostalgia bait? Maybe, but it sure is tasty bait. I'd eye'd this up on GOG a few times, but this takes away the need to make it run well on modern hardware. It runs near flawlessly,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →No shade towards the composers for more modern games but Final Liberation was where 40k video game music peaked www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2Gp...
positive · AI labelView post →Nothing short of amazing. This is the way Epic Warhammer 40K should be!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Welp,.. AI hits on 30%, you don't hit on 40% This is all you need to know really.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is several generations older then me mind you, and I already like it from seeing the cutscenes and music few years back. That and a certain Commissar slapping a governor for stories of his ineptitude.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is one of the classic OG grand strategy games not just for Warhammer, but for PC in general. With a combination of a turn based world overview map, and turn based battle maps, this game provides a surprising amount of depth. Take control of the Imperial Guard and move through sectors of the planet, liberating space ports and hive cities from the Ork menace. Use control points from the regions you've captured as resource points to repair damaged and lost units for your companies, or…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"Choose your next words with exceptional care." Soundtrack is pretty great for that vintage 90s feel, live action cutscenes seem to have no issue in this version or atleast none encountered so far, Orks still seemingly and unforgivingly having better accuracy than my Guardsmen after all these years. Useful tip, press V when in the campaign map menu to better see the regions you have control over and where you can attack.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Despite this game’s old graphics and mediocre UI, it is very fun and plays much like a tabletop wargame, though the ones and zeros behind the hit conditions and statistics are hidden for the sake of smoother casual gameplay. I’d recommend this game to anyone looking for a good turn-based strategy game that isn’t overly complex or reliant on math.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I loved Final Liberation when it first came out, and I still love it now - having played this version of Epic 40k on the tabletop, and having find memories of painting hordes of these tiny figures to pay my rent while at uni, this game will always have a place in my heart. The great cinematics - and sounds of hordes of orks and imperial troops dying to massed gunfire of titans and gargants that tower over them is rife. It's a shame the other races never properly made it into the game. There was…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I can see why I as a 13-year old boy loved this game so very much! It was always a fond memory that I never thought would return. So when I saw this port I was super hyped. Though, nearly 30 years later, the game just doesn't hold up to modern standards. It's incredibly boring, actually very much like playing the board game Risk, with very little to offer, other than: move your troops and shoot. If you hit, you kill the enemy. If you miss, it's their turn to shoot you. Also, it's just a port,…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →FMVs are cool but the gameplay is unfortunately really really bad. Every unit on both teams automatically has overwatch at all times so anytime you barely get within range of the enemy their entire army overwatches whatever unit you send forward so its better to just get all your troops to the middle of the field and not move them and skip your turn and the enemy walk into your overwatch but then they just entrench themselves so you're both just skipping your turns and then the game just…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was the first warhammer game I played, got me into the hobby so to say. This remaster is bringing back that nostalgic game from the 90s (including its flaws). There were some small bugs and crashes, but nothing too major for me. The FMV cutscenes are poor quality (resolution issue? I honestly have no clue) Would still love a remake to update it towards the 2026 era of the setting (new models, new units, EXTRA RACES?) but that probably wont happen.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Back from a time when gameplay and graphics were both given equal footing, this absolute classic returns. Whilst the units may be a little less smooth to modern eyes, this is more than made up for the replayability as you try different unit combos lollopping across the campaign map. The only shame is that the obviously planned expansions never game to fruition. Hopefully some enterprising souls can come up with a way of doing this.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The crazy 90s cinematics alone are worth buying this game. Commissar Holt should've gotten a model and a data sheet as reward for his performance in this game. I played this many years ago and pined for a workable version of it to replay. I have now completed playing it through and I enjoyed the flavor of this, but it is a tedious game, too. Imagine random ork boyz popping your chimera with some desultory bolter fire, but two to three batteries of basilisks required to wipe the same squad of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →*Final Liberation: Warhammer Epic 40,000 (Classic)*, developed by Holistic Design Inc and published by SNEG, is a large-scale turn-based strategy game that captures the essence of tabletop wargaming with a level of dedication rarely seen in modern adaptations. Originally released in the late 1990s, it reflects a design philosophy rooted in complexity, patience, and simulation, offering battles that emphasize planning and coordination over speed or accessibility. Even in its current form, it…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →all 3 of these games worth it for cheap (have been on GOG for ages) Rites of War is literally Panzer General 2 with 2nd Edition 40k units pasted over the top of it Final Liberation is a faithful Epic 40k game (underrated smaller models/broader strategy system) with genuinely funny Bad FMV
positive · AI labelView post →One of our older #videogames, #Warhammer #40K: Final Liberation, is having a bit of a resurgence right now. It was the first Warhammer computer strategy game. I had a fun interview with Tactical Tortoise and its #gamedev. He had a lot of good insights about the game itself youtu.be/FX3meDz11io?...
neutral · AI labelView post →I did some QA on Panzer General 2, but not a ton. I was mostly on Dark Colony (an RTS) and Final Liberation (a 40K strategy game) at the time. Still have poster board box art from both, though I have yet to frame and hang the Dark Colony one. (And the 40K game changed name before release)
neutral · AI labelView post →Truly lives up to the name Epic 40k. This was absolute peak industrial sci-fi strategy.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you played the original and want some nostalgia, then by all means pick this up. It's a true port of the original... sadly with many of the same bugs and glitches and crashes. I loved this game as a kid, and enjoy it now, but if you're buying it to have an Epic 40k experience, I think it's pretty fair to say you'll feel rather let down that this game is nothing more than... functional. If Games Workshop licenced this game for a remake, I'd pick it up in a heart beat, but as is I don't…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A classic 90s turn based strategy game. This entry was the first computer based 40k game to feature some of the biggest and baddest units available to both the Imperium, and the Orks. Command armies of up to 20 groups/detachments of units, ranging from a platoon of 5 squads of basic Planet Guard, all the way up to the mighty Warlord class Titan. While this is definitely a product of its time, suffering from somewhat repetitive level design, extremely cheesy writing (which I personally love),…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →-far too slow -clunky everything ima refund ts
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great game, fun way to learn how Warhammer games work. This game is 100% canon
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As fun and campy as I remember!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Supporting the developer.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →On a related note would be the FMV cinematics for the 1997 Warhammer strategy game Final Liberation, which you can see here. www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWjJ...
neutral · AI labelView post →Aha, thank you for linking that; hadn't seen it before. It put me in mind of the live-action cutscenes from a 40K game I used to play a lot way back when: Final Liberation. www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWjJ...
positive · AI labelView post →It's dated video game CGI of miniatures rather than the actual thing, but may I suggest this collected-as-a-movie set of cutscenes from the old 40k video game Final Liberation? www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWjJ...
neutral · AI labelView post →the video game ‘Final Liberation’ recently cleaned up for Steam release etc is a very, very faithful adaptation though sadly only with the imperium and ork armies in it. Also some of the campest FMVs in gaming history
neutral · AI labelView post →Amazing blast from the past. I was shockingly bad at this as a kid in the 90's. So it was nice to avenge my childhood self finally with this game. I really enjoyed it, it was as frustrating as I remember but it's the reason I picked it up again. If you're a classic warhammer game enjoyer or played classic RTS game like the Close Combat franchise, then this might be for you. If you're a modern total war or RTS enjoyer... probably not. It will most likely evoke the rather cringy "Gah, the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →100% Very Good Game!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Game's alright. hate flyers though.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Highly underrated 40k game. Despite being nearly 30 years old, the gameplay still holds up very well. Lots of unit variety with imperial guard, space marines, and titan legions, all of which are depicted in the lovely 2nd edition 40k designs. Got a little over 20 hours of content for $6, so for that price it's an easy recommend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Finally. Warhammer as it was and not the woke trash that it is now. I played this straight through highschool and college. I have wanted to come back to this many times, but it just wasnt great on modern rigs. Now, it runs just as cheaty as it did 30 years ago. Seriously. The computer cheats, all the time. You can sit there spamming fire from 5 units into one of theirs, and not hit it once. Then they can wipe the floor with you with just infantry. At least it isnt like the slop tactical games…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A good Xeno is a dead Xeno. PRAISE THE EMPEROR!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Gerat classic Epic 40k gameplay. Way less buggy, only had one crash during the entire game, Make sure to save after every battle!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Well that's a trip down memory lane. I spent many hours on this game back in the day, and it is as fun now as it was back then.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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