Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Horror legend John Carpenter has long declared his love for video games, but never quite got around to making one. He’s dabbled — composing the score for 1998’s Sentinel Returns and consulting on 2011’s F.E.A.R. 3 — but this squad shooter from Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 studio Saber Interactive sees him putting his biggest stamp on the medium yet.
Well, putting his name on it, at least — John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando sees the man himself once again composing, but the credited writers are Oliver Hollis-Leick and Matthew Garcia-Dunn. Exactly what, if any, narrative involvement Carpenter had is unclear. Either way, the premise — an eldritch Sludge God has been unearthed, with only the titular Toxic Commandos able to stand in the way of its zombie hordes — bears more similarity to the over-the-top schlock of Lloyd Kaufman’s Toxic Avenger than the tense, creeping horror of Carpenter’s The Thing.
Overall, enemies are a bit too familiar — this one’s on fire, that one grabs you; been there, done that — but the sheer number of them on screen at any time is impressive, constantly keeping you on your toes.
Toxic Commando hews closely to the Left 4 Dead model, with players controlling one of the four team members — Walter, Astrid, Ruby, and Cato; all snarky, jaded mercenary bad-asses who rarely stop quipping — as they wade through the ravenous undead. Thankfully, shooter mechanics have evolved since L4D, with each of the weapons here handling brilliantly, with distinct heft and feel as you pop the infected like meat balloons.
Thanks to an opening mission gone horribly wrong, partially infecting them with the Sludge God’s malign influence, the team is also mildly superpowered, conveniently forming the basis for the game’s class system. The Strike throws explosive energy bombs, the Defender shields the team, Operator unleashes drones, and Medic heals — all familiar roles, but implemented well, although the cooldowns between using special abilities feel too long.
There’s technically a fifth member — your vehicle. Whether provided by the plot or found around the open world maps of each mission, you’ll need to repair or refuel rides to keep them in the fight, but they can make a major difference — some pack powerful mounted weaponry, others heal the team when on board, and all can be used as battering rams through swarms of zombies. Overall, enemies are a bit too familiar — this one’s on fire, that one grabs you; been there, done that — but the sheer number of them on screen at any time is impressive, constantly keeping you on your toes.
However, with only nine missions in the campaign, the parts Toxic Commando does well are soon over, and even replaying on tougher difficulties to grind out skill or weapon proficiency feels repetitive. Fun in bursts, then, but this a zombie outing sadly lacking in brains.
