Rogue Trooper PS2 Review

This writer has fond memories of the science fiction comic that was 2000 AD, and Rogue Trooper is certainly a character that instantly springs to mind upon reminiscing about this cult comic. The blue-skinned uber soldier has appeared in very few titles in recent years so it’s good to see the blue soldier being honoured in a game for once.

Making a game based on a cult licence is a difficult one, as there’s fans to please, and also an audience who might not care about the blue-skinned soldier, but need to be given reason to investigate the title anyway. Rogue Trooper is pretty basic stuff, and will join the t-shirt, poster and mug as perfect fan service, and for the rest of us this is a perfectly decent, but flawed title.

The games biggest drawback is the way it’s laid back in its designs entirety, and the majority of players will be able to make steady and sure progress given the lack of any real obstacles placed in their path. Yes the game is stupidly easy, made even more so by being able to create weaponry and health packs almost whenever they are required. Forgetting the lack of challenge for a moment, did we enjoy our time spent with the cult character?

Rogue Trooper is indeed a sound title that never strays too far from being good old fashioned fun. Yes It has a lot to like about it, but there’s also much to deride it.

The trooper is skilled in combat, both fierce and defensive, and he’s as capable of emptying as much lead as possible into his enemies, as he is at defensively backing himself against a wall for protection, and even casually tossing grenades and shooting at enemies from his place of refuge. Then of course there’s the obligatory stealth, which is rarely forced on you as the game encourages you to play it in the way you see fit, although applying a silencer to your gun and being calculated, quiet and more meticulous is definitely rewarding and worthwhile (earning you bonus salvage, more about this below).

Rogue‘s fallen comrade‘s can be kept alive to a degree if their biochips are quickly installed in various pieces of kit . These biochips allow Rogue to do a number of things, Bagman’s biochip is installed in the GI’s backpack for instant, and allows you to make weapons, ammo and med kits upon salvaging materials from the dead (you are rewarded with extra salvage for silent kills) or simply found lying on the levels. Gunnar is meanwhile attached to Rogue’s gun and gives you aiming assistance, sniping abilities and even allows you to place the gun on the ground in which Gunnar will then suddenly become a sentry gun that works independently without you needing to operate it. This will then proceed to spew bullets at anything and everything in sight, which is always a useful tactic whenever you feel that enemy numbers are overwhelming you. Finally there’s Helm, who’s new home becomes that of Rogue’s helmet and he can hack into computers and project a hologram of the blue soldier to grab the attention of your enemy.

For the fans there’s artwork to unlock and enough encyclopaedic information to turn anyone into a Rogue Trooper expert. That’s about all though, and throwaway extras like this won’t always appease even the most hardcore of fans, as these are the obsessive lot that have all the magazines and everything else.

There’s LAN, Split-screen, and online options for the multiplayer crowd. There’s some pretty interesting modes, which includes Stronghold that tasks you with protecting an injured comrade from scores of enemy soldiers as well as progressive, which has you attempting to complete certain missions. Both modes are cooperative, therefore the game is devoid of any competitive activity. Going online is a waste of time as it’s completely devoid of life, as we are literally yet to even see another player on the servers. This is a crying shame, as it could have been great, but at least there‘s split screen and LAN for those who care.

Rogue Trooper is good old fashioned and gung-ho fun that might be overly easy from start-to-finish, but is enjoyable nonetheless. It’s difficult to recommend a purchase to anyone, but the most hardened of fans, although it’s definitely one to rent, if only to pop a few bullets into the back of an unsuspecting soldier and then witness the panic before his gas cylinder explodes, it’s one of those priceless gaming moments that should not be missed.

7/10