The stealth-tactics classic returns with a prequel that’s 90% planning, 10% panic, and just enough modern polish to make the old war stories sing—warts and all.
If you were raised on the cold-sweat clickfest of Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines, the opening minutes of Commandos: Origins feel like shaking hands with an old sergeant: firm, familiar, and faintly threatening. Claymore Game Studios and Kalypso Media have wound the clock back to show how Jack O’Hara (the Green Beret) and his motley crew first linked up, then tossed that origin story into a sprawling, real‑time tactics revival. It launched on April 9, 2025 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S (PS4 and Xbox One digital versions to follow), at a $49.99 price point and day‑one Game Pass—clear signals that this is meant to be a proper comeback, not a remaster do‑over.
Stealth as Puzzle, Panic as Flavor
Origins doesn’t pretend to be an action game. It’s a slow, deliberate dance of sight cones, footprints, and timing, where your best moves are the ones the enemy never sees. The six specialists—Green Beret, Sapper (Engineer), Sniper, Driver, Marine, and Spy—return with sharp, readable kits designed to interlock: dig a hideout with the Beret, lure a guard with a decoy, swap uniforms with the Spy, strike with the Sniper’s long reach, then ghost the whole unit through an outpost in the space between two patrol routes. The maps are big, layered, and interactive, often letting you sneak, climb, or commandeer vehicles to create “accidents” that look like wartime bad luck to anyone who wasn’t in on your plan.
Two systems make that stealth puzzle click in 2025. First, the isometric 3D engine finally lets you rotate and zoom the camera, so you’re not fighting the perspective while threading needles. Second, “Command Mode” is Origins’ answer to the “tactical pause” trend: queue a set of actions for multiple commandos, then execute them simultaneously to pull off those Ocean’s Eleven‑meets‑SAS moments the genre lives for. It feels indispensable once you start chaining distractions and takedowns across a courtyard.
Mission Design: The Box of Tricks Is Back
There are 14 story missions set across the Arctic, North Africa, and Western/Eastern European theaters, each with a handful of optional objectives that reward exploration and audacity. Most maps play like layered puzzleboxes: there’s usually a conservative route through, but the best runs are the ones where you notice an overlooked ladder, a blind spot in a searchlight arc, or a waterlogged generator waiting for the Marine’s harpoon. The game even plays with terrain states—certain surfaces will record footprints, nighttime shrinks enemy vision—nudging you to read the map as a living system rather than a static stage.
Mid‑campaign, a standout mission riffs on the real‑world St. Nazaire raid: you’re clearing the way for the modified HMS Campbeltown to ram the docks. It’s a highlight because it crystallizes what Origins does best—wrapping historical vibes around meticulous, multi‑step infiltration. (If you’re curious, it’s “Operation Aries,” and yes, post‑launch patch notes even reference the Campbeltown crew.)
The Crew: Six Specialists, One Symphony
The character roster hasn’t been reinvented—and that’s the point. The Green Beret is still your frontline problem‑solver; the Sapper does loud engineering (and now more environmental mischief); the Sniper is exactly who you call when an alert chain would ruin your day. The Spy remains the designer’s favorite chaos lever, slipping past checkpoints and short‑circuiting “impossible” objectives with the right uniform. Crucially, the game trusts you to combine those roles. That trust is why Origins frequently lands in that rare tactics sweet spot: when a plan works, you feel brilliant; when it fails, you feel like you learned something.
Looting has been streamlined, too. Items you pick up flow straight into abilities—no fiddling with backpacks mid‑heist—so the friction is in the thinking, not the menus. It’s a small thing that adds up over a 45‑minute infiltration.
Co‑op: Two Heads Are Better (and Louder)
Here’s the surprise: you can play the campaign in two‑player co‑op (online or local split‑screen). Aside from the introductory mission, every operation is designed to let another player drop in and share the load. Steam even flags cross‑platform multiplayer support, which helps if your squad spans PC and console. While this isn’t a “party game,” dividing attention—one player priming an environmental kill while the other steals a uniform—turns chess into pair programming. It’s not just a novelty; it’s how I’d recommend newcomers learn the ropes.
Controls & Quality‑of‑Life: Modernized (Mostly)
On PC, you can choose between two control schemes—“Commandos Mode” and “Classic/RTS Mode”—and rebind pretty much everything. Quicksave/quickload is there because of course it is, and post‑launch updates added nice touches like a hotkey to select all commandos and an option to disable those white path lines if you prefer a cleaner view. Origins still expects you to live by your save files, but it does a decent job of keeping the friction on the battlefield, not in the UI.
On console, it’s a bit messier. The fundamentals are intact, but reviews at launch knocked the gamepad ergonomics and visual stability, especially on PS5. The Sixth Axis called out frame‑rate drops, screen tearing, and the general awkwardness of issuing precise orders from the couch—feedback that squares with the genre’s PC‑first DNA. The good news: patches have been rolling out, and Update 1.3 specifically lists a fix for the PS5 screen‑tearing issue, alongside a long list of stability and mission logic tweaks across all platforms. That doesn’t erase the day‑one pain, but it does improve the picture.
Presentation & Historical Touches
Origins runs on Unreal Engine 5, and while it won’t stop traffic, the look is clean and readable—the exact quality you want in a game where you’re constantly parsing states. Multi‑story buildings are now integrated without yanking you into a separate window, and the added camera freedom makes scouting routes a pleasure rather than a chore. There’s also an option to disable sensitive historical symbols in some regions—a practical, player‑friendly approach that acknowledges how global the audience is without flattening the setting.
The audio design and VO are serviceable if not showy; the real star is clarity. Guards bark just enough to telegraph states without turning into noise, and the score knows when to vanish so that footfalls and “uh‑oh” moments carry the scene.
How It Stacks Up
If you measure Origins against the recent high‑water marks of real‑time tactics—Mimimi’s Desperados III and Shadow Gambit—you’ll notice two things. First, Origins is more conservative; it’s reverent about preserving Commandos DNA, sometimes at the expense of big swings. Second, when it’s firing, it’s absolutely in the same neighborhood: the sandbox maps and “execute a three‑move checkmate without a shot fired” puzzles scratch the exact itch that keeps this genre alive. Contemporary reviews reflect that split personality: Shacknews loved the revival (9/10), PCGamesN praised the intensity while noting some stealth friction, while Slant Magazine flagged clumsy interactions and polish gaps. The aggregated picture on Metacritic shakes out to “mixed or average,” with PC faring better than PS5—again, no surprise for a mouse‑first series.
The Quibbles That Matter
A few sticking points keep Origins from greatness:
- Pathing & micro‑clumsiness. Every so often a commando nudges into a sight cone you swore they’d avoid, or a throw line clips geometry in a way the preview arc didn’t suggest. Post‑launch patches have hammered many mission‑specific bugs, but you’ll still have moments where failure feels like the UI, not you.
- Console feel. You can mastermind a perfect infiltration on a controller; it’s just not as elegant. Critics weren’t wrong to ding it, and while improvements have landed, the mouse remains king here.
- Conservatism. There’s a whiff of museum exhibit in places. If you wanted a radical reimagining, you won’t find it. If you wanted Commandos in 2025 with better cameras, smarter UI, and co‑op, you’re in the right barracks. (The devs also say mod support isn’t planned, which will disappoint tinkerers.)
The Wins That Last
On the flip side:
- Maps worth mastering. The best missions hold up on repeat runs, especially when you start chasing optional objectives or no‑kill routes. The footprint/vision systems and environmental kills conspire to make “one more hour” an easy rationalization.
- Command Mode magic. Queueing synchronized actions is Origins’ signature flourish; it rescues the fantasy of flawless execution from the limitations of human APM.
- Co‑op that teaches. Having a friend to share the mental load is both fun and oddly educational; you come out of a session better at reading maps and planning. Cross‑platform support is the cherry on top.
Buy, Try, or Wait?
Here’s the straight recommendation:
- PC (mouse & keyboard): Buy if you’re hungry for classic stealth tactics with modern conveniences. The core loop is excellent, and the patch cadence is encouraging. The $49.99 price feels fair for the length and replayability.
- Console: Try on Game Pass if you can. Post‑patch, PS5’s worst visual issue (screen tearing) has been addressed, but the controller ergonomics and occasional jank mean your enjoyment will hinge on patience and tolerance for quick‑saving.
Verdict
Commandos: Origins is a mission accomplished—not flawless, but genuinely worthy. It’s faithful without being fossilized, modern without sanding away the series’ sharp edges. When you’ve mapped patrols, timed a three‑unit takedown, and slipped out under a guard’s nose with the Spy buttoning his stolen coat, you remember exactly why this genre endures: it lets you master a space through observation, timing, and nerve.
Yes, the console experience still trails the PC’s precision. Yes, a few lingering rough edges can turn a glorious plan into a graceless reload. But when the plan does come together—and it often will—Origins delivers that rare, delicious stealth high. If you’ve ever craved that feeling again, report for duty.
Key facts at a glance
- Developer/Publisher: Claymore Game Studios / Kalypso Media. Release: April 9, 2025. Price at launch: $49.99.
- Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S at launch; PS4/Xbox One digital versions later in 2025; available on PC & Console Game Pass.
- Campaign: 14 missions across multiple WWII theaters; co‑op (online/local) for two players (most missions).
- Notable features: 3D camera with rotation/zoom; Command Mode for synchronized actions; quicksave/quickload; vehicles; multi‑story buildings integrated; cross‑platform multiplayer.
- Launch reception: “mixed or average” overall; stronger on PC than PS5.
- Post‑launch: Multiple patches; Update 1.3 fixed PS5 screen tearing and addressed crashes/mission bugs.
Note: For players sensitive to historical symbolism, there’s an option to disable certain symbols in some regions—worth knowing before you dive in.
