THQ announced today that they will publish Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Development of Space Marine rests with Relic Entertainment, who is familiar with the setting thanks to their previous work on PC titles Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War and sequel Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II.

The action-rpg console title will give players control of individual units, playing through a traditional narrative-driven campaign and large online battles. THQ has not yet released any media for the game, saving the unveil for next week’s E3 convention.

"The Warhammer 40,000 universe has a huge global following and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine will bring that world to life on the Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 systems for the first time ever," THQ Global Brand Management Vice President Kevin Kraff said. "Relic Entertainment is leveraging years of experience developing games within the universe to create an Action-RPG experience unlike anything seen before."

It’s not surprising that THQ chose Relic for this console outing of the Warhammer franchise. Previous console titles - Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior and Warhammer: Battle March did not perform well critically or financially. Relic’s titles, on the other hand, have fared much better.

"Space Marine is an Action-RPG built from the ground up for the Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 systems, and will allow gamers to take control of individual units and fight in epic battles across the Warhammer 40,000 universe," Relic Entertainment General Manager Jonathan Dowdeswell said. "Relic has a deep understanding of the license based on our previous projects with Games Workshop, and our goal is to ensure Space Marine delivers the most intimate and brutal Warhammer 40,000 experience to date."