For some stories, it can be difficult to transition media from the big screen to a game story.
Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War!
Title: Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War!
Genres: FPS
Edition: March 16, 2026
Developer: Auroch Digital
Available: Xbox Series X|S
Price: $24.99
Xbox Anywhere Play: ❌
Xbox Game Pass: ❌
Locking down the tone, themes, and plot points of the original source in a way that still creates a compelling gameplay loop is often where developers stumble.
But when it came to Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War!, that wasn’t a problem for the developers at Auroch Digital and the publishing team at Dotemu.
Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! is a retro-inspired first-person shooter based on the beloved Starship Troopers franchise — a 90s military sci-fi film that was inspired by a book from the 50s and spawned a number of movies and animated shows.
Starship Troopers’ satirical take on a militaristic government and a world of hyperpatriotism has inspired many video games over the past 30 years, including popular shooters. Helldivers 2.
Like the source material, Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! The shoes bring together intense patriotism and military action, with the game itself serving as a meta-joke over its propaganda role.
This game-within-a-game is set as the official game by FedDev, a government-funded software developer for the Citizens United Federation, a militaristic government set in the distant future that values patriotism above all else.
Players will step into the shoes of Major Samantha “Sammy” Dietz as she reprises her role in the Federation fighting an arachnid invasion from the planet Clendathu. Major Dietz is joined by General Johnny Rico, and the two are interviewed about the invasion as part of the campaign to promote the in-universe game.
It acts as sequences FMVs, interspersed with live-action footage alongside retro web elements that call back to the late 90s, calls to action for the player to learn more about the Federation and its goals in stopping the spread of the arachnid menace.
These FMV sequences serve as exposition and story devices, while Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! leans more toward a boomer-shooter aesthetic, with flat, 2D sprite-based teammates and enemies set against low-poly environments.
Players choose a human storyline to experience events from the point of view of Major Dietz, from a basic training session to experiencing a tragedy caused by an arachnid swarm.
Each mission has three objective structures on a semi-open map, allowing the player to complete the required tasks at their own pace and in the order they wish. Mission challenges include removing arachnid nests to minimize swarms, as well as other tasks such as destroying unique types of bugs using special equipment ranging from powerful bipedal mechs to nuclear weapons.
Classic Starship Trooper weapons like the Morita rifle are also available, as well as support equipment like airdrops and grenades.
Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! It offers a lot accessibility and difficulty settings to make the game more accessible to players of all skill levels, including surprising features like God Mode and Infinite Ammo to help take the pressure off combat.
With each level of human storyline missions the player completes, additional missions are unlocked for both the human storyline and the arachnids. That’s right, you can manage bugs in a parallel third-person campaign that lets you terrorize the Federation for yourself.
If you’re looking for a funny yet challenging nostalgia trip that stays true to the source material and drips with satire, Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! It’s likely to check all your boxes. Finishing this single player boomer shooter will give you a “I did my job!” Gives the right to say.
