Co-op Multiplayer.
While Starship Troopers: Extermination may be a little light on content right now, Offworld Industries (Squad) have an excellent reputation to uphold, and I have no doubt that they will add all that they have promised and more, making Starship Troopers: Extermination one of the most affordable squad-based shooters on the market.
Despite a sizable minority in the community begging for single-player content, Starship Troopers: Extermination will remain a multiplayer-only online game, which I feel is the best course of action in this case, as to avoid the developers having to split their attention between the core gameplay modes, and a single-player campaign that the majority of the community would ignore, and only played once or twice by the rest.
Image credit Starship Troopers: Extermination - Published and developed by Offworld Industries.
Right now, Starship Troopers: Extermination is somewhat bare bones, and it seems like everywhere you look, things are greyed out or marked as under development; however, based on the developer’s previous title (Squad), I have no doubt that they will exceed expectations, and a year from now, Starship Troopers: Extermination will not only be no longer be content lite but will be classified as a content rich title, offering excellent replayability and value for money.
While Starship Troopers: Extermination currently does not have a fully functional progression system, with much of it marked as under development, what is there shows promise. Players will have plenty to grind for, including new weapons, perks, gadgets, and possibly even cosmetic items (closer to launch), which will increase player retention and give players a reason to level up additional classes.
That being said, once Starship Troopers: Extermination is released onto consoles, the developer must ensure that progress carries over from PC, as while I want to play on console as much as possible, there is no way I will regrind the same content on 3+ platforms, when there are so many other games on the market that allow me carry over my progress seamlessly, such as Overwatch 2, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, and Fortnite.
Image credit Starship Troopers: Extermination - Published and developed by Offworld Industries.
Developers haven’t announced how they will support Starship Troopers: Extermination in the long term, but a cash shop or battle pass system is expected. The game requires a constant income to stay available, as player-owned servers are not an option.
A cosmetic battle pass or cash shop is a consumer-friendly way to generate revenue if done correctly.
Starship Troopers: Extermination offers an intense battle experience against the enemy, despite having a maximum of 16 players split across four teams. It’s one of the best games I’ve played in terms of battles, second only to some of the encounters in the Battlefield franchise.
Of particular note is the last few minutes of every round, where players make a mad dash for the evacuation shuttle as gunfire, radio chatter, war cries, and explosions combine with excellent visual effects to create a feeling of confusion and urgency that, when combined with a decent selection of bugs, each with their unique traits, the last few moments feel like a true last stand, and ensures that the few times when I have not been able to ensure the safe evacuation of my entire squad feel meaningful.
In a recent match, I was forced to leave the relative safety of the excavation ship to help a group of players who had fallen behind to reach the dropship safety, which honestly felt epic, and that is the best thing about Starship Troopers: Extermination: it allows the player to feel like part of a team, and everyone has the chance to be a hero.
Image credit Starship Troopers: Extermination - Published and developed by Offworld Industries.
Starship Troopers: Extermination enters early access with a rudimentary yet simple-to-understand building system that allows players to place and construct a variety of prefabricated structures, and while this system is likely to expand as the game developers, I would love to see the developer ensure that it remains as easy to understand for new players as it is right now, as in the frantic throes of battle, players need to be able to work quickly and cooperatively with little hassle, something that a more complex building system would not allow.
Image credit Starship Troopers: Extermination - Published and developed by Offworld Industries.
Starship Troopers: Extermination is a first-person shooter video game developed and published by Offworld Industries, it was released on 17 May 2023 and retails for $24.99.
Starship Troopers: Extermination is available exclusively on PC.
Starship Troopers: Extermination offers the following matchmaking options:
The following peripherals are officially supported:
Starship Troopers: Extermination is rated PEGI 16+ and contains:
While Starship Troopers: Extermination is only at the start of its early access journey, it is off to a great start, and if the developer can keep enough of the PC community engaged while the console port is in development, it just could become a mainstay of cross-platform gaming.
That being said, keeping the PC community engaged that long, especially without the promise of cross-platform progression, is no easy feat.
While I fully recommend Starship Troopers: Extermination at its current price point, I will have to reconsider my recommendation if it does not offer robust cross-progression and multiplatform support once it leaves early access and console builds are ready to deploy.
