John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando Review

There are very good co-op zombie games out there that feature a chaotic action experience for you and your friends to enjoy. Game series like Dying Light and Dead Island are some of the best to deliver the action-packed experiences for the zombie genre. However, when it comes to the old-school zombie shooting, Left 4 Dead is still one of the highly praised games. When I first saw John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando, it reminded me a bit of Left 4 Dead, but with a class system, and after trying it, it is pretty much that. Partying up with three other players or bots to clear out levels and grinding XP are some of the core mechanics that John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando offers. This is our review of John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando, developed by Saber Interactive and published by Focus Entertainment.

Story

The game takes place in the near future on Earth, after a failed experiment to harness the planet’s core energy. Scientists accidentally release the Sludge God, a malevolent entity that corrupts the land and people, spawning hordes of sludge creatures. The whole story unfolds through a series of missions as the commandoes fight against the sludge outbreak. Throughout the missions, there are plenty of cutscenes that unfold the story elements.

Although this game has a story, it still feels like the story element is secondary. Even the cutscenes do not impact the happenings throughout the story.

Gameplay

Despite the story element feeling like a filler in John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando, the gameplay is where this game does justice. It is an FPS four-player co-op with horde battles. Moreover, there are four classes that you and your party members must utilize to create team synergy for a better experience. You can choose among the Strike, Operator, Defender, and Medic classes. Right off the bat, I suggest that you play with your friends, instead of playing with bots. It is because the bots are useless, as they only shoot in one direction and follow ahead after clearing out a horde. For a better chaotic shooter experience, team up with your friends and enjoy every encounter with sludge creatures and bosses.

I really like the overall structure of the missions. Each mission puts you in a semi-open world that you can explore and gather resources for upgrades. You must gather the Scrap, Fuel, and Weapon Parts, as these will allow you to repair and upgrade the weapons and drive the armored vehicle around. The driving feature is a good addition, as you can have mounted gun on it to have some extra thrill as you crush through hordes.

There is a decent amount of weapons in the game, including Assault Rifles, SMGs, Shotguns, Sniper Rifles, and Handguns. The gunplay is pretty decent, but it could have been better if the weapons had some sort of more impact. Moreover, there are no Legendary weapon in the game, which is kind of disappointing in a zombie-shooter game. However, there are some unique mission-specific weapons like Rocket Launchers, Grenade Launchers, Flamethrowers, and Railguns, but they are limited. You only get to use them in a specific scenario of the missions.

Sound and Visuals

The game features Carpenter’s signature synth-rock soundtrack with a campy horror flair that creates a distinct 1980s horror-action vibe. The atmospheric sound design also does justice to the whole horde encounters. All the characters deliver cheesy one-liners and buddy-movie banter to reinforce the campy tone.

The loud, messy, and gory tone greatly complements the environment and atmosphere. However, there is visual repetition in some areas, which might throw you off a little bit.

Verdict – Score 7/10

John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando is best enjoyed with friends who love chaotic shooters. The class variety and the Horde environment action give a similar feeling to Left 4 Dead or World War Z. Moreover, there is a great replayability value, as you can test out different team synergies and grind weapons. However, it lacks delivering a better narrative, and the nonchalant dialogue really makes you want to skip all the cutscenes. Moreover, the gunplay might not amaze you, but it does offer a great challenge and long-sequence fights with pure destruction.

John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Microsoft Windows.

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