I've played the Warhammer 40k Dark Heresy alpha and it's basically grimdark Disco Elysium

I wondered how Owlcat Games would follow-up its hit CRPG Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader, but I didn't expect another adventure in the 41st millennium quite so soon. The studio is still releasing DLC for Rogue Trader, has announced a Mass Effect-style RPG based on The Expanse novels, and now has its own publishing arm putting out mysteries like Rue Valley, which Disco Elysium writer Robert Kurvitz consulted on. After playing nearly ten hours of the Warhammer 40k Dark Heresy alpha, however, I'm certain it has even more in common with Disco Elysium than Owlcat's time loop mystery.

It takes an almighty showing to be featured on our list of the best Warhammer 40k games, but it only takes a few Disco Elysium similarities for a game to shoot up my personal 'must-play' list. Warhammer 40k Dark Heresy nails the grimdark feel of the 41st millennium while introducing a detective system reminiscent of ZA/UM's masterpiece.

The Dark Heresy alpha test is available to players who have pre-ordered the Developers Digital Pack or Collector's Edition, which cost $79 / ~£59 and $289 / ~£217 respectively. The latter comes with a brilliant Kroot statue that I'm still trying to convince myself I don't need, but it's a very expensive way to get your hands on an early build of one of the game's opening levels.

Therefore, I'm going to summarize for you. The alpha test is around eight hours long, but I replayed a couple of sections to see where alternate decisions took me. You can choose from two world states, which presumably alter the story but I haven't had a chance to test that yet. It's hard to get too attached to the characters at this early stage, with one exception that I'll come back to later, but the alpha is a great way to get a taste for Owlcat's iterations of Rogue Trader's mechanics.

The first Disco Elysium parallel is the new text. While not as flowery as Disco's prose, Owlcat has moved the text from the bottom of the screen to the right-hand side. While that text placement isn't exclusive to ZA/UM, it certainly evokes memories of my latest hobocop playthrough.

More importantly, Dark Heresy focuses on investigations. While a ruthless murderer, an Inquisitor is also a detective of sorts. Their entire job description is sniffing out heretics and eliminating those who would undermine the Emperor. Thankfully, Owlcat nails this with a great detective mechanic.

Any clues you pick up on your journey are collected into your Inquisitorial Journal. I can't imagine an Inquisitor sitting down to write a diary entry any more than I can envisage a Night Lord taking a candlelit bubble bath, but it works well as a game mechanic. Any important tidbits of dialogue or environmental clues are collated here for you to refer back to at any time.

The focus on the Inquisitor's detective skills helps Dark Heresy stand apart from its predecessor, and create interesting tension in the Warhammer 40k universe. This game is a spin-off of a miniatures game that is only about fighting. Skirmishes were a focus of Rogue Trader, too. But, so far at least, it seems like you can avoid most fights with the right dialogue skills or detection in Dark Heresy.

This is probably for the best, because combat is the weakest part of the demo. The reworked armor is essentially another health bar to chew through, similar to how it works in Divinity: Original Sin 2. Combat arenas feel a little off, with ranged weapons never quite aligning as you'd expect. I anticipate improvements over the coming months, but the fact that you can avoid it altogether makes for a very different Warhammer game. I doubt a full pacifist run will be possible with the Night Lords on the horizon, but I'd like to see players try.

With the new text box and a focus on detective skills, Dark Heresy is far more reminiscent of Disco Elysium than I expected. Sticking with that comparison, I'll wager that our Kroot companion Ra'ahkti-the standout party member of the alpha-will be the game's Kim Kitsuragi. With Owlcat's promise of "kinky stuff," we'll probably be able to smooch her and all.

I'll leave you to decide whether that's heretical or not.