I’ll keep this brief: I played some Boltgun 2 and I’m still buzzing about it. It’s extremely similar to the original Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun, but with enough escalation to feel like a perfect sequel.
Developer Auroch Digital is starting from a strong foundation. The original game was a nearly perfect throwback FPS, walking a fine line between modern convenience and '90s sensibilities. Boltgun 2 is more escalation than reinvention, offering more weapons, more biomes, and double the protagonists.
Dual Protagonists Change the Pace
While I initially assumed the two characters would share playtime during the campaign, you actually lock one in at the start of a playthrough. That choice matters, as they have different abilities and carry mostly different weapons.
New to the party is Nyra Veyrath, an Adepta Sororitas battle sister. She brings two signature weapons to the table:
- A Crossbow: Bolts fling out with a heavy, intimidating "thwip," cleaving through enemies. A single shot can decimate six poxwalkers (a new enemy type) before hitting a wall. Its long-range capability is so effective that I hardly missed the comfort of Malum’s shotgun.
- A Flamethrower: This weapon immediately joins the videogame flamethrower hall of fame. When a flamethrower has more in common with a fireman's hose, you know it’s special.
Nyra also sports a springy slide ability on cooldown that chains into a big jump, triggering bullet time.
Returning hero Malum Caedo is the more aggressive option. His charge ability lets you plow clean through soft mobs, and he wields a crowd-clearing plasma gun and shotgun. Playing as Malum feels like stepping back into comfortable shoes. His boltgun, shotgun, and heavy bolter are right where I left them (even assigned to the same hotkeys), but with noticeable tweaks. The shotgun cycles a bit slower, while the plasma shoots faster.
Auroch Digital is angling its dual protagonists as a great excuse to replay Boltgun 2 at least once, and it works as intended. I plan to play as Nyra first to test the agile playstyle, but honestly, I just want to use that crossbow more.
Simplified Gameplay and New Environments
The demo covered two missions lasting around 30 minutes each. One took place in a swampy jungle infested with poxwalker zombies, and the other was in a frozen industrial complex hiding a bloody demon den.
Auroch chose these specific missions to send a clear message: they heard player feedback demanding more environmental variety. While the first game wasn't exclusively hallways and steel girders, Malum sure didn't get out much. Boltgun 2 should be better for it.
However, the other major theme of the demo was simplification. Auroch has streamlined several systems:
- Grenades: Simplified into a single type for both characters.
- Toughness System: The mechanic that made some enemies resistant to certain weapons is largely gone.
- Level Design: Both missions were more linear and less "Doom-y" than Boltgun 1. There was no backtracking and only a single red key in the entire demo.
I asked Auroch if this represents the whole of Boltgun 2's campaign. Their response? Levels do get more complex as you progress. If that holds up, we’re in business.
Boltgun 2 is out sometime in 2026.
