Starship Troopers Preview

Few names in science fiction are as recognizable as Starship Troopers. Robert Heinlein's 1959 classic is about an arachnid threat to a united Earth that is halted by the efforts of the Mobile Infantry. The MI are the grunts that land on barren planet after barren planet - in a manner vaguely reminiscent of the American island-hopping campaign in the Pacific in World War II - digging the enemy out of their tunnels. This is certainly fertile ground for a computer game, and fans of both the book and the movie will be glad to hear that Hasbro Interactive plans to release a real-time strategy game based on Heinlein's creation later this year. Starship Troopers will incorporate elements of both the Heinlein book and the 1997 Paul Verhoeven film, even though the general look of the game already strongly resembles the movie in many respects - for example, the MI is transported to the planetary surface via shuttlecraft instead of drop capsules. Powered armor, on the other hand, which was missing from the film version, will make an appearance in the game - thus, the designers have clearly familiarized themselves with all aspects of the Starship Troopers universe.

Full size images in gallery.

Hasbro announced the release of Starship Troopers earlier this year, but little information has been forthcoming until now. The game is currently under development by Australia's Blue Tongue Software. We were able to take a look at a recent build, and although it wasn't fully functional, it definitely shows the direction the game is taking. Instead of trying to re-create either the book or the movie in exact detail, Starship Troopers will concentrate on re-creating, in game form, the central conflict of the story: Nasty bugs attack humankind, and humankind gets really pissed off.

Full size images in gallery.

The story consists of a linear plot of 20 missions, with success in one mission required for progress to the next. Troopers follow you from one mission to the next, and if they get killed, they are replaced by green recruits. There are fixed events that are explained through seamless narration using the game engine: At one point in a mission, a senior officer arrives via shuttle, and the game switches to a scripted sequence before resuming and placing the new unit under your control. The storyline is fairly standard: You'll advance through the war against the bugs, and after four separate missions, you'll end up on Klendathu, the bug homeworld.

Because Starship Troopers is about the marines of the MI, unit types are limited to infantry. However, there are several different types of units, and they can all be outfitted with a variety of personal weapons and armor. While there was no powered armor in the film, the game makes sure to represent the different classes of suits, including scout, command, and marauder-class powered armor. Each trooper has room for armor and up to eight other items, although some slots are restricted to specialists. For every six troopers (or fraction thereof), a squad leader slot is available. The MI arsenal includes plasma guns, chain cannons, light rifles, flamethrowers, and more, which are all carried separately.