John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando Final Preview — A modernized cooperative undead adventure

Left 4 Dead made huge waves when it was released in 2008. With recent films like 28 Days Later, the idea of surviving a zombie apocalypse was still fairly fresh in the public’s mind. Now, nearly 18 years later. It’s only fitting that horror master John Carpenter would headline the team to modernize that formula. Based on our time with it, what the folks at Saber and Focus are delivering feels one part The Thing, one part Escape from LA. Toxic Commando is promising to be a fitting adaptation to the cooperative zombie formula, complete with an interesting story, fleshed-out progression, and weapon customization mechanics.

In the near future, a team of mercenaries takes on a job to recover an item of import at the behest of a wealthy benefactor. Assailed by a horde of undead, they fight their way clear only to come face to face with the Sludge God. With their backs against the wall, they destroy the item they were sent to retrieve in a last-ditch effort for survival. For their trouble, they’re infected with a brutal virus that threatens to turn them into mindless undead unless they can help a team of scientists find what they need to develop a cure.

For as much of the story as we have been able to experience this early, there’s something here worth tracking. Left 4 Dead just kind of had you moving from movie setting to movie setting, but Toxic Commando has a well-written action movie script I’m actually looking forward to seeing through. The characters are a little cheesy, sure, but it's in an endearing manner that promises to match the vibe of the game.

Players will get to play as one of four characters. Each is really just an aesthetic shell, so who you play doesn’t affect gameplay. The class you choose to play as, however, makes a definite difference. The Strike class will let you use a special ability to take out the hordes in their wake, the Medic can heal your team, the Operator controls a drone and offers the team support, and the Defender can raise a defensive barrier. Each class also has 30+ skills they can level up via an in-depth skill tree to improve their role over time.

As with any zombie shooter, the experience would be complete without ample firepower. Toxic Commando provides a wide range of assault rifles, sniper rifles, shotguns, and SMGs for you to play around with. Find one you like, and you’ll be rewarded with various attachments to upgrade and customize your gun a la Call of Duty. To equip them, you’ll need to use sludgite crystals you gather while you’re out on missions. It’s a nice way to incentivize players to keep coming back, though, and it feels great to see your weapon grow as you invest effort into its use in-mission.

As you’re playing each mission, you’ll have access to a fairly large area to explore. To aid in this, they give you vehicles to drive around. They can be handy, but keeping with the stress-induced nature of the game, you’ll have to make sure they stay repaired and keep fuel handy to gas up your ride (or turn into a GIANT Molotov cocktail. Pretty fun!). From localized EMPs to grappling hooks, vehicles can come equipped with a range of upgrades that aid your efforts. Zombies are smart enough to climb onto the side and latch on, damaging your vehicle as they try to get to your team. The ones that aren’t smart enough make pretty satisfying roadkill, though.

No cooperative zombie game would be complete without some specialized enemies and high-intensity horde encounters to win by the skin of your teeth. Skunks will use noxious gas to buff other zombies, nukers act as your resident suicide bombers, and stalkers can muck their way into a situation to fight with projectiles. There are a few others sure to shock and awe. It’s a great start to varied, replayable content.

Along with the specialized zombies, each mission will have you doing a few tasks that are sure to have you puckering as you fight to conquer the horde in time. Defending a church from waves of undead as you wait desperately for an EMP to charge, for example. It’s exhilarating, and knowing you have to work hard to get lucky adds electricity to the experience.

John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando has all the makings of a top-notch cooperative zombie title. The gunplay feels good, the moment-to-moment tasks and fights are fun, the classes provide needed variety in focused roles, the progression system is robust, and, hey, customizing your weapon of choice never gets old. I can’t wait to get a few friends together for some homo-mortis-killing-fun when the full game launches March 12, 2026. For Toxic Commando coverage and all things game-related, be sure to keep your eyes trained on GamingTrend.com.