The Making of Dawn of War - Part 1: The Game

A project I've been working on close to a year now - a look at the classic 2004 RTS Dawn of War.

I wanted to try interview as many as the game developers as I could. I reached out to as many people listed in the credits I could find to see if they'd be up for getting involved. I'll say now, this video is by no means an official or even an all encompassing documentary on the game's production - Some individuals listed in the credits I was either unable to locate, or they didn't reply to me or just stated they weren't interested. Thankfully though, the people featured in this video were kind enough to take time out of their day to chat to me about their involvement and memories of Dawn of War.

Dawn of War, released in 2004 was a massive commercial success for all parties involved. It came at a time when PC gaming was becoming more accessible to the wider public, and the RTS genre was still at its peak. Introducing a new Space Marine chapter The Blood Ravens, the game included a narrative campaign and multiplayer modes that allowed you to play as the 4 base races: Space Marines, Orks, Chaos Space Marines and Eldar - with more races released in subsequent expansions.

2024 was the 20th anniversary of the game's release, and two decades on the game still really holds up and is beloved by many. So I hope you enjoy my attempt at looking at how the game came to exist!

Timecodes:
Jay Wilson - Lead Designer: 00:01:25
Jonathan Dowdeswell - Producer: 00:38:53
Andy Lang - Art Director: 01:06:35
George Hormoen - Animation Programmer: 01:23:56
Michael Moore - Animator: 01:38:39
Tony Gronick - Audio Director: 02:14:57

A part 2 will be coming in future where I look specifically at the cinematic animation at the game's opening, created by Blur Studio.

These videos were made in my spare time, and if you wish to pop a donation my way to help support me it'd be greatly appreciated:

Paypal: PayPal.Me/Filmdeg