Reviving Nostalgia: Warhammer 40K's Boltgun

The 90s era brought about a plethora of fast-paced first-person shooter games that involved players exploring 3D environments filled with intimidating 2D sprites. These sprites were a necessity due to the limited capabilities of the PC hardware at the time, but eventually, FPS games transitioned to the use of full 3D models. Despite modern FPS games boasting cutting-edge graphics, there are still avid fans who yearn for the days of Doom's 2D sprite monsters. Auroch Digital and Focus Entertainment's Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun was designed with such nostalgic FPS fans in mind.

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun remains firmly rooted in the traditions of 90s FPS games. The combat is intense and almost non-stop, with an endless barrage of 2D sprite creatures thrown at the player with little respite. Players dispatch enemies using the typical arsenal of FPS weapon types, albeit with Warhammer design twists, resulting in a satisfying explosion of red and green gore upon each kill. In addition to the constant battles, levels are filled with secrets to discover and multicolored keys that are necessary to progress to the end of each stage, reminiscent of the classic FPS games that inspired Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun.

While the combat in Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun feels as though it was ripped straight out of the 90s, it does take inspiration from 2020's Doom Eternal with its melee attacks. Doom Eternal established a healthy rhythm of melee finishing moves to accompany its adrenaline-fueled gunplay, and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun's Chainsword weapon creates a similar feel. Players can swiftly dispatch highlighted enemies using the Chainsword, resulting in a seamless gameplay experience that almost feels like Doom Eternal made 30 years ago.

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun offers exciting boltgun combat, but it can be frustrating when enemies are too tanky and slow down the momentum. Busy stages can also be challenging as it becomes difficult to dodge incoming projectiles. Additionally, the checkpoint system can leave players in a bind, saving their spot in a stage at a point where they have low health or ammo, making it next to impossible to progress without starting the level over from the beginning.

Fortunately, Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun includes an invincibility toggle that players can use to alleviate these issues. If players get stuck, they can turn on invincibility until they regain enough health for normal gameplay. This accessibility feature is greatly appreciated and can save players time by avoiding replaying levels from the beginning. However, it would have been better if the checkpoint system was implemented in a way that players didn't need to restart or switch on invincibility. On the bright side, using invincibility does not disable any Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun achievements, so players can use it without getting punished.

Unfortunately, the levels in Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun are monotonous and uninspiring, making it easy to lose one's bearings due to the lack of variation. While this is an intentional design choice to emulate 90s FPS games, it is a feature that should have been left in the past. While it can be enjoyable to revisit old-school gameplay, the video game industry has advanced beyond these outdated concepts for a good reason.

Moreover, Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun's reliance on the classic multicolored key trope quickly becomes tiresome. Many levels require players to collect a red, blue, and yellow key, in that precise order, hardly ever deviating from this formula. There are times when it can be challenging to locate these keys, which detracts from the game's entertaining aspect - its combat system - and forces players to aimlessly wander around until they stumble upon the next hidden key.

In its attempt to bring back an old FPS trope, Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun ends up shooting itself in the foot. The game is divided into three Chapters, and upon completing each one, players lose access to all the guns they collected in the preceding levels, except for the titular boltgun. This mechanic made sense in old FPS games where each Chapter or Episode started at the beginning in terms of balance, but in Boltgun, it seems unnecessary and annoying. While there may be fewer enemies at the start of a new Chapter, the difficulty doesn't seem to change significantly, making the weapon deprivation pointless. Moreover, players can quickly regain most of their weapons, rendering the mechanic even more pointless.

Apart from taking away players' weapons, the end of each Chapter also means a boss fight. Unfortunately, this is another area where Boltgun stumbles. The boss fights are repetitive, with players fighting against the same end-Chapter boss three times. Additionally, the game rarely introduces new regular enemy types after Chapter 1, which hinders the combat experience. While the game's combat is genuinely fun, the repetition prevents it from reaching its full potential.

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun is a game that boasts polished gameplay and fast-paced combat, borrowing heavily from classic 90s FPS games like Doom and Quake. However, some players may find the outdated design choices to be tiresome and may prefer more modern games. While Boltgun has a solid foundation, it fails to deliver truly compelling content, making it difficult to recommend to anyone who isn't a hardcore Warhammer fan or who isn't nostalgic for the 90s era of gaming.

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun is available on multiple platforms, including PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. This review was conducted using a PC code provided by the game's publisher.

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun is a self-proclaimed "boomer shooter" that pays homage to classic retro FPS games from the 90s.