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I forget how I discovered Rogue Trooper but it definitely wasn’t because of the comics. In fact, I had no idea the comics existed until after I discovered the game. I got it for Xbox years ago and played it a little but never went back to it. I think it was one of those games I got when my friend and I would take trips to the local game shops and buy a bunch of older games. I’m thinking I saw the Rogue Trooper box art and thought it looked cool and since it was cheap, I bought it.
Developed by Rebellion Developments and published by Eidos Interactive, Rogue Trooper was released for PC, PlayStation 2, and Xbox in May, 2006 and Wii as Rogue Trooper: Quartz Zone Massacre in 2009. A remastered version of the game titled Rogue Trooper Redux was released for PC, Switch, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 in October, 2017. For this review, I played the PC versions of both the original game and Redux. The official multiplayer servers for the original game were shut down some time ago and you may need to do some tweaking to get it running properly on a modern system. I would recommend consulting the game’s PCGamingWiki page to see how to resolve certain issues and how to run the game in certain widescreen resolutions.

Set on the planet Nu-Earth, where a war between the Southers and Norts is being fought, the player is put in the shoes of Rogue, one of many genetically engineered soldiers who fight for the Southers and are immune to the deadly atmosphere of the planet. After the Genetic Infantry is dropped onto Nu-Earth, most of them are massacred by the Norts as a result of a traitor. Rogue is seemingly the only surviving G.I. and sets out on a quest to track down the traitor.
The plot is pretty straightforward and borrows elements from the original comic. All the G.I.s possess biochips in their skulls which basically contains their personality and can be inserted into another body if necessary and even equipment. As you progress through the game, Rogue will acquire some biochips from fallen G.I.s and insert them into his equipment and they will aid him on his quest.
I can’t say there’s anything super innovative about Rogue Trooper but it is a well made third-person shooter for its time. That’s what I like most about it. Almost everything it does is done well. The mechanics work and the result is enjoyable. You go from mission to mission, completing objectives and killing Norts. The Redux version not only looks better but also features some minor refinements and improvements.

I played through the original game with a keyboard and mouse and through Redux with a Series X controller. Other than fumbling around with switching between underslugs and grenade types, I can’t say I had too many problems with original game’s controls or mechanics. Redux resolved the few issues I did have but the stick sensitivity was way too high, even with the in-game settings at the lowest values. I actually had to go into the Steam controller configuring settings and adjust the sensitivity in there.
Other than the source material the game is based on, there’s not a lot here that we haven’t seen before. Rogue Trooper is a pretty linear and straightforward third-person shooter. You run around areas and can engage enemies head-on or sneak around and take them out quietly. The gunplay feels good and the kill-moves look cool. Rogue’s assault rifle and its underslugs have good audiovisual feedback, muzzle flashes are bright, puffs of blood appear when enemies are shot, and their bodies do ragdoll.

You will need to be aware of your surroundings and be sure to take cover during firefights. Rogue’s health will regenerate to a point but any health that’s permanently lost can only be replenished from medi-paks. I do think it’s often easier to engage enemies head-on rather than sneak around because most of the time I would get spotted. The game indicates you should crouch so you make less noise but even when I did that and made sure I was behind cover and out of view and that nearby enemies weren’t facing my direction, I would still get spotted and then every enemy in the area would come after me. It doesn’t really matter how you engage foes, but stealth does seem to be the more challenging approach.
What really makes Rogue Trooper stand out in any way is the upgrades, underslugs, and biochip abilities. Rogue carries an assault rifle that can be equipped with various underslugs like a shotgun, beam rifle, mortar launcher, and surface-to-air missile launcher. Each one proves to be useful and are great against certain threats and you can switch between them on-the-fly. As you navigate around the environments, you’ll find Salvage which can also be acquired from dead enemies and kill-moves will reward you with bonus Salvage.

Salvage can be spent on upgrades, ammo, grenades, and medi-paks. I always seemed to have plenty of Salvage for every new upgrade that became available so by the time I reached the end of the game, I was fully upgraded. That said, the environments are linear so finding Salvage isn’t very difficult as long as you take the time look around and since you’ll kill plenty of enemies, that means even more Salvage. In hindsight, buying upgrades seem like an unnecessary mechanic. The upgrades are beneficial but it’s not like I had to decide between multiple since there’s more than enough Salvage in the game to buy them all. So, ultimately, Salvage proved more important for manufacturing because that’s the only way to replenish ammo, grenades, and medi-paks.
The biochips Rogue acquires is what unlocks your ability to manufacture resources and upgrade equipment and grants you access to different capabilities. For example, you can equip your rifle with a silencer and set it down as a turret to distract and kill foes. You can also activate a Holodecoy to distract enemies or use the attract ability to lure enemies to your position. These abilities essentially let you engage enemies in various ways and are part of the game’s charm.

Your assault rifle doubles as a sniper rifle and with the silencer equipped, you can silently pick off enemies from long distance. While Helm is hacking a door, you can lay down your rifle as a turret to defend you from an incoming wave of enemies. You can deploy a Holodecoy to a specific location to attract the attention of an enemy sniper while you get into position to take him out. You can lay down micro-mines to cover your back or in front of doorways so any enemy that comes through will be blown up. It’s these kinds of things that make Rogue Trooper a lot of fun and you’re not really forced to do any of this, minus some tutorial segments in the beginning.
You’ll primarily engage different Nort soldiers along with some other foes like Decapitators and Pillboxes which are like sentry guns. Sometimes you’ll face enemies utilizing Tactical or Heavy armor. Norts are often found patrolling areas or will come pouring into an area after you trigger or activate something. They can arrive by drill probes that come out of the ground and even by aircraft like Hoppas. You’re usually always outnumbered and headshots will typically drop most foes immediately. Things do get more challenging as you progress and you might have to change up your tactics here and there to deal with the different enemy types.

The environments are linear and it’s always made clear where you need to go. Many firefights take place in more open-ended areas and often times there’s multiple paths and rooms off to the sides. The only reason to explore would be to find Salvage. The run and gun action is broken up by some cool set pieces. You’ll fly around in a Hoppa and have to defend it from enemies and one mission has you protecting a train from waves of foes.
One of the benefits of Redux is that it currently supports online multiplayer although I was unable to find any matches. As mentioned earlier, the servers for the original game were shut down. However, you can still get games going via LAN and even play the game types solo. The multiplayer centers on cooperative play and comes with two game types, Stronghold and Progressive. Stronghold has you fending off waves enemies. Progressive has you running through the map to reach a specific point and in my opinion, is the more enjoyable game type to play solo.

Visually, the original game definitely shows its age and the noticeable jaggies can be an eyesore but I can’t say it looks too bad. The environments are diverse and convey a war-like atmosphere and the action is backed by a decent soundtrack with some cool moody tunes that fit the action and sci-fi theme. Redux is the better looking version and showcases remodelled characters, weapons, and vehicles, remastered cinematics, new special effects, dynamic lighting, and higher fidelity geometry. On the technical side, I can’t say I experienced any major issues and both versions ran smooth. I do want to mention that the widescreen fix for the original game does result in some issues with menus like the Biochip menu being too big and part of it goes off-screen.
I had fun with Rogue Trooper. I think it’s a solid third-person shooter that’s definitely worth playing through at least once. I also think there should be more to it. More content, more levels, more modes, something. Beating the campaign does unlock stuff like cheats and an additional difficulty level but in my opinion, it’s not enough to increase the replay value significantly. The campaign is short and very linear and I can’t imagine it playing out drastically different on subsequent playthroughs. The multiplayer seems like it would be fun if you have some friends to play with but even that doesn’t offer a lot. There’s not many maps and only two game types. Other than the campaign being short, I don’t have a lot of negative things to say about the game. It just doesn’t have a lot of lasting appeal. It’s not really innovative, it doesn’t break new ground, and there’s very few reasons to return.

I would recommend Rogue Trooper if you can get it on sale. The same goes for Redux. Redux is simply a better looking version with some refinements. That said, it costs more and offers the same exact experience so it’s harder to recommend. In the end, the best thing about Rogue Trooper is that it’s fun. It may not offer many reasons to return but what is here is fun. If you’re looking for a short but solid third-person shooter and/or are a fan of the comics, definitely check it out.