I played the Starship Troopers demo and accidentally wiped out six teammates

Auroch Digital, the studio behind Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun, is developing Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War, and a demo is now available on Steam to try for free. The game adopts a blocky boomer-shooter look and delivers frequent, graphic violence.

The level I played felt more open than Boltgun, dropping me into a large outdoor area with three objectives: secure two outposts under attack, retake a resort, and help evacuate the wounded. HUD markers marked each task, but I was free to tackle them in any order while fending off swarms of attacking bugs.

Certain mechanics — supply drops and the need to destroy bug nests with explosives to stop respawns — echoed Helldivers, even though Ultimate Bug War is strictly singleplayer. The demo captured that chaotic energy: a grenade I threw bounced off a squadmate's head, landed among my buddies and turned them into paste, only for replacement troopers to charge in seconds later.

Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War is set to launch on March 16.

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