John Carpenter’s legacy of horror continues to inspire new generations, and now his name is tied to an upcoming cooperative first-person shooter called Toxic Commando. Developed by Saber Interactive and published by Focus Entertainment, the game draws on the director’s mix of pulp storytelling, eerie atmosphere, and dark humor. It is scheduled for release in early 2026 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, giving players the chance to step into an action-packed experience that fuses classic horror with chaotic modern gameplay.
The premise sets the stage for carnage. In the near future, an energy corporation attempts to extract limitless power from deep within the Earth. The experiment backfires, releasing a monstrous entity called the Sludge God. Its toxic influence spreads quickly, turning soil into sludge and corrupting living beings into grotesque undead husks. To clean up this disaster, a group of mercenaries is assembled. These ragtag fighters are not elite soldiers but a mismatched crew of survivors hired for a dangerous cleanup job. They are the Toxic Commandos, and their mission is to stop the sludge apocalypse before humanity is completely consumed.
Saber Interactive is known for its Swarm Engine technology, which powered the hordes in World War Z. That same tech is put to use here, filling battlefields with overwhelming waves of infected enemies. Large environments allow players to fight on foot or use vehicles such as Humvees, police cars, and ambulances. These are more than transportation, since many carry added advantages. Some provide mounted weapons while others can store ammunition or allow healing, encouraging squads to coordinate and make tactical decisions.
The game uses class-based combat. Players choose roles such as support, healing, or heavy offense, each with its own abilities and progression system. Teams of up to four commandos can combine these skills to form a balanced squad, ensuring missions unfold in different ways depending on composition. Unlike other zombie shooters that push nonstop chaos, Toxic Commando asks squads to think strategically, especially when facing towering mutated monsters and endless waves of sludge-born horrors.
True to Carpenter’s style, the atmosphere embraces 1980s B-movie flair. Dialogue mixes buddy-movie banter with grim comedy, while a synth-driven soundtrack helps set the mood. The result is both campy and chilling, equal parts terrifying and entertaining.
Dark Horse Comics expanded the world with a prequel miniseries titled John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando: Rise of the Sludge God. Written by Michael Moreci with art by Alberto Jimenez Albuquerque, it follows Leon Dorsey, the CEO, whose project awakens the creature, and shows the early outbreak as mercenary squads are deployed. The series draws on the body horror of The Thing while setting up the game’s apocalyptic action.
Early previews at Gamescom 2025 praised Toxic Commando for delivering the sense of being inside one of Carpenter’s classic action-horror films. Between enemy swarms, vehicle-driven missions, and its mix of humor and horror, the game has already built momentum ahead of its 2026 launch.
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I grew up on John Carpenter horror. I still like to re-watch ‘The Thing’.