John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando Preview
Aside from lending his name, I’m not sure how much the storied director of Escape from New York was involved with John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando. No matter. What counts is the end product, which is four player coop zombie-and-monster killer. Given the director’s imaginative cinematic output, the game could easily have sprung from his fertile, twisted brain.
I’ve spent some time with a short demo of John Carpenter’s Toxic Commander. I can definitely see it appealing to a specific subset of gamers, those same players who enjoy Arc Raiders, Left 4 Dead, or Warhammer Space Marine 2. In other words, the large community of action fans who like to experience their adrenaline rush with friends.
Better with Four
The premise is pretty simple. The world has been beset by eldritch monsters thanks to unleashing the Sludge God from his subterranean lair. A megacorp called Obsidian was trying to reach the riches of the Earth’s core. Those things never go well. A mysterious power drew people to the drill site, and when the Sludge God was released, it turned humans into mindless, zombie husks. I’m sure there’s a not-so-subtle allegory about the unbridled exploitation of the natural world buried in there.
In any case, you play as one of four characters — Walter, Ruby, Cato, or Astrid — who conveniently fall into the four class types of damage dealer, medic, engineer, and tank. Oh, and the characters have all been poisoned by the Sludge God’s infection. It gives them power, but at a cost.
As always, the most successful squads are balanced by having all four types and their specific skills. Note that the game is technically playable solo. There have been a lot of co-op games recently that can be played solo, but aren’t much fun alone. Toxic Commando is one of them.
Drive, He Said
One of John Carpenter’s Toxic Commander’s biggest hooks centers on drivable vehicles. They’re not just transportation, but partners in mayhem. The preview included four different cars and trucks, each with a special, deadly type of weapon or skill. For example, the ambulance heals. The cop car can explode, and the ATV has a turret. You get the idea.
However, things get a little more interesting than just finding a ride. All the vehicles — like the characters — can be upgraded and have perks. Players not actually driving have options, like manning the turret or firing from a position in the passenger seat. It’s great to always have an active role.
One of the game’s standout mechanics is a winch, which has multiple uses. Sometimes it helps clear a path, sometimes to bring down something heavy onto squishy enemies. After a very short time playing, you start to realize how important vehicles are to survivability. Driving feels pretty good, overall.
Frantic and Focused
Each mission out from home base consists of a series of evolving objectives in the semi-open world. The goals are generally bite-sized, leading to a boss at the end. The loop of fight-collect-repair-upgrade never lets up, and there’s almost no downtime. Having just a moment to breathe is really where playing with friends comes in handy.
In the preview demo, enemy types were limited to a deadly handful. Roamers attack in massive, extremely agile hordes in ways that will feel familiar to fans of the genre. My favorite monster was the Stalker, with deadly ambush tactics.
The demo had a few issues with wonky physics and driving controls, some non-zombie bugs, and graphical hitches. Considering the staggering number of enemies on screen and the complexity of its combat, though, it ran pretty well.
Classic Carpenter
At first glance, John Carpenter’s Toxic Commander looks a lot like all those other zombie horde co-op games. However, it ticks a few unique boxes. The script and acting are over-the-top. Often funny and fourth wall-breaking. The vehicles add a fun new wrinkle. Impactful weapons and freedom in approaching objectives help keep gameplay fresh from moment to moment. There are a lot of games in the genre, but fans of co-op action and zombie killing should keep John Carpenter’s Toxic Commander on their radar.
***PC code provided by the publisher for preview***
