John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando PS5 Review
Summary: There are some genuinely standout moments, but I can't help but look back at the likes of Left 4 Dead and just wish Toxic Commando had that same level of charm. It's just missing something—a little personality—a hook, the kind that made Left 4 Dead endlessly replayable.
3
Stuck in the Mud
Back in the day, Left 4 Dead was the go-to game when my friends and I wanted frantic co-op multiplayer, and even after almost two decades, very few games have captured that same adrenaline rush. Back 4 Blood tried to resurrect the magic with mixed results, and while plenty of decent co-op shooters have come and gone, none have quite scratched the itch left behind by Valve’s deceptively simple but endlessly replayable formula. With that in mind, I was pleasantly surprised by the first few hours of John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando. Hordes of zombies? Check. Satisfying gunplay? Check. Straightforward co-op classes? Check. On paper, all the ingredients are here for this to be the perfect successor to one of the defining series in modern gaming—so why does it feel like something is still missing?
If you thought Toxic Commando was a homage to a bygone ‘80s franchise, that’s very much the point. The synth-heavy soundtrack practically demands neon shoulder pads, and its schlocky B-movie storyline feels ripped straight from a Blockbuster bargain bin. After a tech billionaire unwittingly unleashes an ancient entity that turns the planet into a muddy zombie wasteland, you and three friends step in as four mercs hired to clean up the mess. Don’t get too excited about the narrative, though; it’s surface-level stuff, with just enough plot sprinkled in to give each of the nine missions a little narrative flavor. In reality, though, you’re here for the zombies, and that’s where the game shines the most.
That’s hardly surprising, though, as developer Saber Interactive has shown time and again that it excels at filling our screens with an obscene number of enemies. Just like in World War Z and Space Marine 2, the studio’s in-house Swarm Engine cranks things up to 11. There’s rarely a moment when you aren’t facing hundreds of enemies at once. Mowing down endless zombies is a jaw-dropping spectacle, and the first time I stood behind a gate thinking I was safe—only to realize that the zombies could climb—was both terrifying and impressive. Perhaps what’s even more impressive is that it does this with perfect stability—not a bug, texture pop, or technical hiccup to interrupt my zombie-slaying antics in sight—just pure, uninterrupted carnage.
While there are plenty (and I mean plenty) of standard zombies, Toxic Commando also throws a variety of grotesque monsters your way. There’s a faint Stranger Things vibe to the alien-corrupted landscapes, and the enemy designs lean into that extraterrestrial weirdness. With fast-moving, spindly-armed ranged beasts, gunk-spitting plants, and brutish monstrosities looking for any opportunity to pick you up and bash you into the ground, there might not be any true standouts like, say, Left 4 Dead’s Witch, but I found myself pleasantly surprised with Toxic Commando’s rogue’s gallery. Taking them out is also a joy, too, with everything from punchy, responsive pistols with great weapon feedback to grenade launchers that decimate entire waves of enemies. There are also, of course, melee weapons, and while it’s fun to beat enemies up with a baseball bat, these don’t feel quite as satisfying as the ranged options, but they’re still a good backup when things get messy.
If you don’t fancy shooting them, you can always run enemies over. Vehicles are Toxic Commando’s biggest departure from similar titles, and they’re far from a gimmick. Maps are surprisingly large, full of secrets and bonus objectives—and absolutely covered in mud. Getting through particularly boggy spots on maps requires some off-roading, and by essentially taking the best bits of Saber’s underrated MudRunner, this easily became my favorite element of Toxic Commando. For example, slowly trying to unclog a vehicle from a pool of alien grime by using a winch to slowly pull yourself free, while three friends fend off nonstop groups of enemies, makes for some of the tensest moments in the game. You’ll also need to manage the upkeep of your vehicles by making repairs and supplying them with gas, and with fuel hard to find, you’ll often find yourself detouring across the map to look for supplies.
When you aren’t exploring what remains of Earth, Toxic Commando offers a great gameplay loop that typically splits missions between big, open-map sections followed by more linear boss battles or area defense sections. It’s a formula that works well, giving players ample opportunity to explore, gather loot, and complete side missions before taking on mission-ending tasks. That said, things can get a little repetitive but arriving at an area with a bunch of buildable defenses and slowly realizing you’re going to need to hold a point from an unfathomable amount of enemies constantly left me grinning ear to ear.
Whether you find yourself alone or with friends, there are four classes available to pick from, with each one giving you an edge on the battlefield. From your typical medic type that provides your squad with much-needed healing to a really fun, aggressive class called Strike that turns your fist into an almighty weapon of mass destruction, each class feels distinctly individual. There’s also a really well-balanced skill tree for each of these classes. While it doesn’t change the fundamentals of the game, being able to make small changes, such as giving yourself more starting ammo or having your special ability last a little longer, all feel like nice additions to allow you to shape your favorite class how you want. I was also surprised by how important it was to have a well-balanced team when it came to classes. More than once, I matched with strangers online only to find we had all opted for the tanky Defender class. This made for some tricky scenarios, as we lacked the skill of someone who could quickly administer healing or get us out of a tricky situation like a well-built Strike class player.
This further solidifies the fact that to succeed in Toxic Commando, you really need three good mates at your side. While you can play with the system AI if you don’t have anyone to take with you, Toxic Commando, like many of these types of games, loses much of its charm when going solo. While you can give AI companions basic commands, it’s just not the same as having a real human to talk strategy with or to point out ammo and loot to. Being able to type or chat away with friends to fill them in on ideas, or to warn them of incoming swarms while they work on fixing a terminal, for example, is essentially what gives Toxic Commando its old-school charm. There’s unfortunately no local co-op either, which feels like a missed opportunity and really, something that should be a staple in any co-op-focused experience.
There are times when Toxic Commando completely misses the mark, too. For example, guns can be modified almost endlessly—from adding stocks, sights, and everything in between a la Call of Duty—but I have to question if this is the right type of game for a modular gun system. The last thing I’m thinking about when I’m knee-deep in zombie guts is whether my gun is kitted out to the best of its ability, and it just feels like an unnecessary addition. There are also three currencies in-game that are used to purchase gun parts and cosmetics. While there’s plenty of currency around the maps to find and earn, with some currency rarer than others, I can’t help but feel like these instances of multi-currency in modern games are getting a little tiring. I also feel like Toxic Commando is a little light on content, with only nine missions, some of which are relatively short, and only four characters to pick from (who, unfortunately, happen to be a completely uninteresting bunch). There’s just something missing in Toxic Commando to push it to achieve what its foundations clearly show it could do.
But the frustrating part is, I’m not sure what that is. The guns feel great, the hordes are a marvel, and yes, missions grow a little tiring after a while, but the gameplay loop is still a blast—so why can I not see myself picking up Toxic Commando as much as I’d like to in the future? There are some genuinely standout moments, but I can’t help but look back at the likes of Left 4 Dead and just wish Toxic Commando had that same level of charm. It’s just missing something—a little personality—a hook, the kind that made Left 4 Dead endlessly replayable. Still, there’s more to come, with an expansion pass on the horizon promising new content, and there really aren’t many games doing what Toxic Commando has demonstrated it can do, so maybe, just maybe, Saber can finally fill that co-op-shaped hole in my heart.
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