"John Carpenter's Toxic Commando" teased: Zombie action for B-movie fans
"John Carpenter's Toxic Commando" is an uncompromising co-op zombie shooter with B-movie flair.
(Image: Saber Interactive)
US director John Carpenter is considered the king of B-movies, having cemented his reputation in the 1970s and 80s. “Escape from New York” or “The Thing” should be in any well-stocked genre film collection today. He has always been a big video game enthusiast. With “Toxic Commando” from Saber Interactive, a video game is now being released that is intended to be stylistically in the master's spirit.
First-person shooter action with retro charm
Well, that's how it can happen. You're on a suicide mission as a mercenary and suddenly get infected with a virus that makes everything worse. Some greedy CEO dug into the Earth's core, and suddenly the world is overrun by zombies. Surprisingly, the CEO in question admits his mistake and sends the mercenaries back into the fight against evil with appropriate weaponry.
Toxic Commando angespielt (5 Bilder)
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)No one should expect original plot twists or complex characterizations. Saber Interactive deliberately turns up the plot and gameplay to 11. In this PvE shooter, you go solo or with up to three players in crossplay across platforms, always straight through the middle. There's always something happening on screen during missions, heads explode, and blood splatters. “Toxic Commando” is not a game for the faint of heart or tacticians, but rather brutally violent first-person shooter action.
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Through the apocalypse on four wheels
You're not alone. There's always a truck lying around somewhere that mows down enemies with its machine gun or clears obstacles with its winch. The problem: such a truck can run out of fuel and ammunition, and there's always something to repair. Therefore, players not only have to fight zombies and monsters but also search for spare parts or fuel.
The multi-stage missions offered a lot of action in our play sessions, but little variety. The team drives and shoots its way through the area, sometimes gets a bomb or fuel, and finally defends a stronghold. Standard weapons like assault rifles or shotguns help, but also mortars or wire meshes that stand around randomly in the area. Everything has its price, resources are scarce, and the zombies are numerous.
Zombies usually come in hordes, but sometimes particularly nasty monsters appear that grab the team with grappling arms or shoot them with a kind of beam. If a player is knocked out, they can be revived by a teammate. Sometimes there's also a kind of boss fight when players have to destroy so-called Sludgits, which sprout from the earth like roots.
All a matter of reflexes
Once the mission is completed, you go to the home base. Here, players can upgrade their weapons with scopes or extra magazines, similar to the Black Ops zombie mode. After leveling up, you also get some experience points that players can spend on skills. Thanks to four different character classes, the medic can heal their friends better, or the defender can erect a shield wall and, as a so-called Strike, throw fireballs. Those who want to can experiment with the individual classes. No one is locked into one direction.
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Despite these few role-playing elements, “Toxic Commando” remains an undemanding co-op shooter that never takes itself seriously. The lines spoken by the individual team members are cheesy, and the humor is sometimes bottomless. What we actually missed was the “Carpenter” touch. The music is interchangeable, and the plot has been played through too many times. At least a few movie quotes would have enhanced the experience for fans. This way, it remains a Carpenter from the late “Ghosts of Mars” era, not from the glorious “Big Trouble in Little China” times.
Interim conclusion
Honest and gritty – “John Carpenter's Toxic Commando” never wants to be more than a straightforward and quite bloody zombie shooter. The graphics are not among the best the genre has to offer, and the story is just an excuse for plenty of action, but there is as little boredom as in a well-aged B-movie from the 1980s.
However, players should not expect tactical finesse or variety from this uncompromising first-person shooter. The influence of the big name is also limited. At least in our play sessions, we found hardly any references to the director's films. What remains is an entertaining yet undemanding co-op first-person shooter.
“John Carpenter's Toxic Commando” is available for Windows, PS5, and Xbox Series. It costs approx. €40. USK 18+. For our preview, we played the Windows version for a few hours.
(kbe)
