Starship Troopers: Continuum is a fantastic addition to the Quest 3 library that succeeds both as a faithful adaptation of the franchise and as a compelling VR shooter in its own right
Twenty-five years after the devastating Battle of Klendathu, humanity's war against the Arachnid menace has reached a stalemate. As a newly appointed PsyCommander, you possess unique psychic abilities that allow you to remotely control Federation troopers on the battlefield. The discovery of a game-changing secret on planet Janus-4 could finally tip the scales of this endless conflict - if you can survive long enough to uncover it.
Continuum does an excellent job capturing the essence of the Starship Troopers universe, way way better than the abyssmal Starship Troopers Extermination, while carving its own path. The game opens with a comprehensive tutorial that brings newcomers up to speed on the franchise's lore while setting up the current state of the war. The hub area, Camp Triumph, serves as your base of operations where you can gear up, select missions, and get a feel for life as a Federation trooper.
The narrative smartly uses the PsyCommander concept to justify both the game's roguelite mechanics and your ability to possess multiple troopers. When a soldier falls in battle, you simply jump to another body - though at a significant cost to your progress with that particular trooper.
At its core, Continuum is an arcade-style wave shooter with roguelite progression elements. The gameplay loop centers around taking on campaign missions and patrol operations across various locations. Campaign missions follow a fairly standard structure - fight through waves of Arachnids while completing objectives like planting explosives or defending key positions. Patrol missions offer shorter, more focused challenges like surviving waves or protecting specific points.
The game really shines in its progression systems. As a PsyCommander, you earn permanent rank increases and perks that carry over between sessions. Individual troopers also level up and gain abilities, but these are lost if the trooper dies in combat. This creates an interesting risk-reward dynamic where you must decide whether to push forward with a high-level trooper or deliberately "retire" them to bank the rewards. The system adds meaningful stakes to each encounter while ensuring you're always making some form of progress.
Combat feels tight and satisfying, with an impressive arsenal of over 20 weapons to unlock and master. The inventory system is elegantly simple - two weapon slots over your shoulders and pouches at your waist for ammo and grenades. While you can opt for automatic reloads, manually reloading weapons provides damage bonuses that make it worth mastering the more involved mechanics.
Playing solo is incredibly intense and sometimes overwhelming, as the waves of Arachnids can quickly overwhelm a lone trooper. The game truly comes alive in co-op mode with up to three players, allowing for tactical coordination and battlefield strategies that feel true to the source material. The difficulty scales well based on party size, though it remains pleasantly challenging even with a full squad.
Continuum adopts a bold, slightly stylized visual approach that works surprisingly well in VR. The cartoonish aesthetic allows for larger, more open environments without compromising performance on the Quest 3's mobile hardware. Arachnid designs are instantly recognizable while incorporating some creative new variants, and the environments capture the hostile alien world feeling perfectly.
The audio design deserves special praise. Each weapon has a distinct sound profile that makes them feel appropriately powerful. The screech of approaching Arachnids creates genuine tension, and the voice acting (including Casper Van Dien reprising his role as Johnny Rico) helps ground the experience in the established universe. The dynamic music system ramps up during intense combat sequences and quiets during exploration, effectively managing the pace.
The game runs smoothly on Quest 3 with minimal frame drops even during hectic combat scenarios with dozens of enemies on screen. The controls are responsive and intuitive, with a good selection of comfort options including both teleport and smooth locomotion. The manual reload mechanics feel natural and satisfying, while the option for automatic reloads ensures the game remains accessible to all skill levels. It's a really well thought out system that makes the game feel great to play, no matter how you choose to play it.
Starship Troopers: Continuum is a fantastic addition to the Quest 3 library that succeeds both as a faithful adaptation of the franchise and as a compelling VR shooter in its own right. The blend of arcade action and roguelite progression creates an addictive gameplay loop that keeps you coming back for more. While solo play can be punishingly difficult, the co-op experience delivers exactly the kind of intense bug-hunting action fans have dreamed of.
The game's strategic depth, satisfying combat, and well-implemented progression systems more than make up for its occasionally repetitive mission structure. At its budget price point, Continuum offers excellent value for both Starship Troopers fans and VR shooter enthusiasts in general. Would you like to know more? The answer should definitely be yes. Thanks for reading!
The game was reviewed on a Quest 3 via a promo copy provided by the developers. Starship Troopers: Continuum is available on Meta Quest.
