Metascore
68

Mixed or average reviews - based on 19 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 19
  2. Negative: 0 out of 19
  1. A great combination of real-time strategy with a primary focus on team tactics and intense 3D action.
  2. Here we have the opposite of the norm -- a great game based on a bad film.
  3. Captures the essence of a war movie better than any other game I have played, with the possible exception of the original "Close Combat."
  4. 78
    The game is rich, detailed and fun to play. The only large complaint I find with the game is the lack of multiplayer, which will keep Starship Troopers out of the top slot.
  5. 72
    There's not enough excitement here to keep you interested.
  6. Even more tragic is the fact that there is no way for you to turn the tables and play as the Arachnids. I don't know about you, but I wanted to be the first kid on my block to suck a human brain out of a skull with a three-foot long proboscis.
  7. Campaign missions tend to be repetitive and can become very tedious. The game's story lags and becomes stale quickly, resulting in a game that depends more on action and its war aspect then on plot. Even so, if you have a decent machine, Starship Troopers can be a blast to play.
  8. The most distinctive characteristic of Starship Troopers' gameplay is its immersive quality... In Starship Troopers you feel like a member of the squad. You're not actually in the action yourself (ala Quake) but you'll feel connected to the team.
  9. CNET Gamecenter
    70
    Tense missions coupled with bug-bashing fun make this one of the better strategy games we've seen this year, though it won't appeal much to gamers who aren't fans of the book or movie.
  10. PC Gamer
    60
    Mediocre. Fans of the setting may enjoy it, but not too many other folks will. [Feb 2001, p.81]
  11. 60
    While the prospect of running around, blowing the hell out of space arachnids starts off as a blast, a lack of variety, the fact that you can't save your games mid-mission, and a camera that actually serves as a One Ring-sized gameplay burden ensure that the fun won't last for long.
  12. Nice visuals and nifty RPG elements help to spice things up, but can't save this game from the quicksand of mediocrity.
  13. Has all the right atmosphere and, for once, really comes across as how a game of a film should look and feel, and it's just the game to successfully bridge the gap between role-playing and strategy.
  14. 60
    On the one hand it has a terrific atmosphere and a style that fans of the movie will most likely adore... Yet on the other it is exceedingly frustrating thanks to the lack of an in-mission save feature.
  15. CheckOut
    60
    The whole multiplayer aspect was wasted, essentially a glorified deathmatch where players can either be bugs or humans, but once again there's just not a hell of a lot to do and the whole things feels tacked on just so they could slap "multiplayer" on the side of the box.
  16. Antagonist
    58
    This game is a frustrating waste of time.
  17. When I first played SST, I considered it a guilty pleasure; by the time I finished I considered it a waste of time.
  18. Thanks to its great graphics, just watching your soldiers as they storm across the battlefield killing bugs is actually pretty fun - for a while, at least.
  19. Daily Radar
    50
    Decided it didn't want an in-game save function and forgot to add multiplayer, a skirmish mode or the ability to change the level of difficulty.
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 59 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 42 out of 59
  2. Negative: 8 out of 59
  1. Dec 31, 2018
    10
    A must have for fans of both versions - movie and the book !! Your soldiers stay with you throughout the campaign, they gain experience/rankA must have for fans of both versions - movie and the book !! Your soldiers stay with you throughout the campaign, they gain experience/rank and bigger rank meaning better armor. But if you want you can keep the squad as good old mobile infantry from the movie the whole time :) Old but really great. Enough said ! And btw not being able to save during the mission was there for a reason because it was much more engaging that way. Full Review »
  2. ZachM.
    Dec 21, 2005
    10
    Doesnt work in XP...But if you follow the comment below it works. Just right click on shorcut that launches the game. Go to properties, and Doesnt work in XP...But if you follow the comment below it works. Just right click on shorcut that launches the game. Go to properties, and click on the compatability tab. Then select windows 98. Its that easy. I didnt download any stuff like they suggest below. Now it works just fine. Full Review »
  3. Dare_Devil
    Nov 13, 2005
    10
    I just love this game - its only drawback is probably the lack of multiplayer mode. One of the games I often re-play since its first issue in 2000.