If you’ve ever dreamed of holding off an entire army single handedly the new title produced by Destineer Studios and Empire Interactive could be worth your time. Built in the same universe as the sci-fi combat movie, Starship Troopers, this new title allows players to go head-to-head with hundreds of foes. The developers have built a game that allows players to go up against hundreds of opponents, capturing the feel of the movie and the book. At times this can be a daunting task, and more than a little difficult. It can also be fun to mow down an attacking wave with a squad at your back. The thunder of explosives and the rattling cry of machine guns against hordes of enemies is a much more challenging fight than it might appear at first. While the graphics, sound, and gameplay are standard fare for the FPS genre, fans of the movie and the hardcore gamer might enjoy this title.

The controls are basic, conforming to the standard design that all FPS games use these days. Players have the ability to run, jump, crawl, and interact with their environment. The controls themselves are responsive and easy to work with - a requirement for some of the firefights players will get into. Once the action heats up you will find yourself outnumbered by swarms of enemies. Around areas with choke points this is tense, but not especially nerve-wracking. When you are caught out on a flat stretch of terrain with no way out it can be especially daunting. The enemies come in swarms of a dozen or more. The developers have touted their game with being able to put players up against entire armies and they take full advantage of that capability. When 50 or more enemies charge the best you can do is throw a few grenades, begin firing short, controlled bursts, and cursing the day you ever signed up for the marines.

The rest of the game is a mixed bag. At times it is very well done, like the high quality voice-overs for your allies and commanders. At times it doesn’t do so well. The bugs chatter and squeal as they move around and attack. Some times this rings through clearly enough for you to know where the enemy is. At other times it is vague and diffuse. It might add to the tension, but it makes it difficult to figure out where the bugs actually are. Considering the fact that you can lose a mission in a few seconds if you are surprised, it is a problem. The ability to fight an army can be fun but there are times when you will simply be beaten because you cannot kill the swarms of bugs fast enough. Players with a low threshold for frustration should be aware of this trend before they purchase the game.

Like the movie, the Starship Troopers game is cursed with a number of clichéd quotes. The DVD-quality clips that appear throughout the game help remind gamers of the movie that paved the way. The clips can help pull players into the game, but they can also bring back memories of the movie. When I first saw the film I walked away with a bland feeling. While it was fun at times, it wasn’t something I felt driven to see again. The new game is cursed with the same effect. There have been dozens of first-person-shooter games released in the last 10 years. Some of them, instant classics like Half-Life and the Quake series, left players coming back for more. After playing Starship Troopers I don’t feel an urge to play the game through to the finish. Its good points are entertaining, but the vast majority of the game is simply mowing down hordes of mindless enemies with superior firepower and hoping you don’t get flanked. Starship Troopers is an adequate entry into the FPS genre. It just lacks that sparkle of magic that makes a game truly great.

Starship Troopers brings together a host of standard features for the FPS genre and adds its own unique twists. The graphics might be only average for the competition these days, but you can fight dozens or hundreds of enemies without a flicker of slow motion. The sound quality shifts from detailed voice recordings for the human characters to vague tidbits of sound for the hostile aliens. The game manages to faithfully capture the feel of the movie using both clips from the film and a setting that captures the tension of fighting a limitless horde of enemies to good effect. While the single-player campaign can be frustrating at times, the multiplayer options are solid. Fans of the movie might enjoy this game, but it is not for the faint of heart. Fun and frustration can be mixed in equal parts in this title. If you want to win you can’t be afraid of dying. After all, do you want to live forever?

Tips:

When in doubt, break out the high explosives. Many of the enemies you will face are lightly armored. A single grenade can wipe out a cluster of bugs and give you more breathing room.

Always watch your back. If the bugs stop swarming from the front they are probably getting into position to attack from the sides or the rear. The AI is cunning at times, able to adjust to move around your suppression fire.

There are no “off-hand” grenades. You have to stop shooting to toss one. If you want to use them to good effect throw them at the front line of a swarm to break up their charge. You can also toss them when your gun overheats and you are forced to cease fire for a moment.

Gameplay: 6.5
The controls handle well, but Starship Troopers is full of standard FPS fare. There’s a certain degree of fun in fighting hundreds or thousands of enemies at once, but it can get a little old. There are several points when a player can lose a mission because they were simply swarmed under by the bugs. Doing everything “right” but still losing can be a little frustrating.

Graphics: 6.8
With as many sprites running around as Starship Troopers boasts, the graphics are well done. There’s not a hint of slowdown through some of the largest battles ever seen in a computer game. Other than this good point the graphics are about what you would expect from any modern first-person shooter.

Sound: 6.5
The voices and some of the effects are very well done. It’s easy to tell what is going on around you by listening to the marines and your commanders. On the other hand the bugs make indistinct squeals at random. Some times this helps you figure out where they are, but some times it is difficult to tell which direction the sound came from, let alone how close it is. It is especially confusing during combat.

Difficulty: High
Swarms of enemies means even the smallest mistake can have profound consequences. In an early mission you have to guard an engineer while he does some repairs. Get used to frustration as several hundred bugs attempt to kill that single marine.

Concept: 6.7
Starship Troopers offers a fun chance to explore the setting of the book and later movie. The DVD quality clips taken from the movie itself help show the depth and detail of the world. The game design takes full advantage of the ability to put a player up against hundreds or thousands of enemies. Its downfall is that while some of the features are entertaining the rest are all stock components any FPS has to have to survive in the genre.

Multiplayer: 7.0
Starship Troopers allows several ways to cooperate and compete with other players. The various modes you’ll find here are all common themes from the FPS genre. Having a friend to watch your back means more fun for everyone.

Overall: 6.7
Just living up to expectations isn’t enough to make a game great. The average graphics and sound weigh down Starship Troopers. The ability to fight swarms of enemies is entertaining at first, but it can be a problem at times. Losing because the enemies attacked faster than you can kill them or because you looked the wrong direction for a second and a half can be frustrating. Fans of the movie will enjoy this game. Other gamers should take a moment to consider this before purchasing Starship Troopers.