It’s been a while since we last heard from Commandos: Origins, developer Claymore Game Studios’ revival of the classic WW2 real-time stealth-tactics series, but it’s back to show off some of the locations players will be tensely sneaking around in a new trailer.
Commandos, should you be in need of a quite mental refresher, first surfaced in 1998 with launch of original developer Pyro Studios’ first series entry, Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines – a notoriously tough, if undoubtedly excellent isometric WW2 adventure in which players took charge of a six-strong team of commandos to complete the likes of sabotage and assassination missions, all while staying as stealthy as possible.
Five more series instalments followed, with Commandos eventually fizzling out with 2006’s first-person effort, Commandos: Strike Force. Until, that is, last year’s announcement of Commandos: Origins, which sees players experiencing the events that led to the formation of the titular squad as they travel from European coastlines to icy Arctic plains and African deserts – all presented using the series’ classic isometric perspective.
Which is where today’s trailer comes in, offering a brisk look at some of those locations – which, to my eyes at least, do a good job of capturing the bleak, but ever-so-slightly stylised aesthetic of the original Commandos’ pre-rendered maps, albeit now in full 3D. Mind you, it’s been a quarter of a century since I last played Behind Enemy Lines, so what do I know.
Anyway, Commandos: Origins – which sees the return of the original Commandos line-up in the Green Beret, Sapper, Sniper, Driver, Marine, and the Spy – promises “more than 10” missions, featuring both core and optional objectives. Publisher Kalypso says these can be completed in multiple ways, and there’s even two-player co-op support, for local and online play.
Commandos: Origins still doesn’t have a release date yet, but it’s currently expected to arrive for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC (via Steam, Epic, and the Microsoft Store) sometime this year.