I was midway through Creative Assembly’s podcast when Roger Collum dropped a line that hooked the room: “It is very lore-appropriate.” The sentence landed like a promise and then retreated—no firm launch date, just the scent of something bigger. For a moment I felt the game’s map shift under my feet.
On the latest Creative Assembly podcast, Roger Collum admitted the team wants space battles — and that wish hits both expectation and reality
I listened live to the developer talk and you can too in the embed below.
Roger Collum, Total War vice president, didn’t hedge about desire: he and the teams “want” space battles in Total War: Warhammer 40K. That’s not empty hype—Collum framed it as lore-appropriate and promised it will happen “eventually.”
Will Total War: Warhammer 40K include space battles?
Short answer: yes, in principle. Collum confirmed space combat is on the roadmap, but he stopped short of a launch pledge. Creative Assembly’s position echoes the franchise’s history: Warhammer 40,000 is built around interstellar conflict, and Games Workshop historically sells separate licenses for planetary and space‑only titles (hence games like Battlefleet Gothic – Armada). Getting both on the table is a win for players and a headache for design.
I dug through dozens of Warhammer books and still felt the setting’s size — which is why CA can’t promise everything at launch
Collum even said that reading 40 books “is barely scratching the surface.” That’s a confession and a framing device: the IP is huge, so choices have to be made.
You should expect some omissions early. Creative Assembly has precedent: the original Total War: Warhammer grew into a trilogy through sequels and expansions. Collum hinted the same model could apply here—space battles might arrive via a paid expansion, a major free update, or a future entry in a multi-game arc.
Will space battles be in Total War: Warhammer 40K at launch?
Collum’s line was blunt: “Will it be there for launch? Maybe not.” If space combat arrives later, the combat rhythm of the game shifts dramatically. Imagine learning one system and then integrating an entirely different domain of warfare—it’s like adding a new continent to a world map: gameplay, units, and tactics all have to be rethought.
You can already play space-only 40K games — and that market reality shaped how CA might approach licensing and design
Battlefleet Gothic – Armada exists, and the split-license world from Games Workshop forced developers to choose a focus for past projects.
If Creative Assembly managed to secure permissions for both planetary and ship-to-ship warfare, they’ve gained flexibility—but not a simple task. Space battles would mean designing ships, orbital mechanics, and an entirely different user experience for consoles and PC storefronts like Steam. It’s also a business choice: post-launch expansions are a proven revenue path for strategy franchises under publishers such as Sega.
As a player, I want to see suns fracture and worlds burn up close—watching the galaxy from a troop transport won’t cut it for long. But I also respect the studio’s honesty about scope. If CA stages the feature over time, you’ll get polished systems rather than rushed novelty. The trade-off is patience versus the thrill of having everything on day one.
I’ll keep listening to CA’s podcasts and you should too if you care about how Total War: Warhammer 40K shapes up—are you ready to wait for a fuller galaxy, or do you want everything at launch?