Boltgun 2 Review: Louder, Smarter, Still Gloriously Dumb

The first Boltgun was a great trailer that turned into a slightly tiring game. Fantastic shotgun feel, a chainsword charge that never got old, and then hour after hour of samey grey corridors. So I went into Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 with one question: did Auroch Digital fix the levels? Mostly, yes.

What it is

A single-player, retro-styled first-person shooter from Auroch Digital, published by Big Fan Games (a Devolver Digital label). It launched on October 14, 2026 on PC (Steam), PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, with a Nintendo Switch 2 version promised for later. The pixelated sprites and crunchy 90s look are back, and so is Sternguard Veteran Malum Caedo - but this time he has company.

How it plays

The big addition is a second playable character, a Battle Sister of the Adepta Sororitas. She is quicker and leans on fire, while Caedo remains the walking tank who solves problems by standing in them. Swapping between their styles is the best thing the sequel does: the same arena plays differently depending on whether you want to dance around a daemon or simply out-armour it.

The gunplay is still the star. The boltgun has that wet, explosive punch, the shotgun is a door-kicker in the best sense, and enemies come apart in a satisfying shower of pixels. New foes from the Chaos side of the roster, including Bloodletters and hulking daemonic Juggernauts, force you to move instead of backpedalling down a hallway.

The highs

Level design is where the sequel earns its number. The campaign branches, environments range from a cramped hive city to a jungle swamp, and missions feel more focused, with far less of the aimless backtracking that dragged the original down. Pacing is tighter, encounters are better staged, and I rarely wandered around looking for a key.

The lows

The second half leans on the same tricks: a big arena, a wave of everything, a door that opens. Difficulty still spikes in odd places, and the retro visuals, charming as they are, can turn busy fights into readable-only-if-you-squint soup. Story is window dressing - fine for a boomer shooter, but don't expect lore depth beyond shouting about the Emperor.

Who it's for

If you liked the first game, this is the better version of it, full stop. If you bounced off Boltgun because of its levels, this is worth a second look. If retro shooters aren't your thing, nothing here will convert you. Grab the Steam demo first if you're unsure - it shows the game honestly.

Verdict

Boltgun 2 is a confident sequel that fixes the most important problem of the original and adds a genuinely different second hero. It is loud, fast and fun in short sessions, and runs a bit thin by the end. A solid recommendation for genre fans.

Score: 7/10

Image: - EMR - / CC BY 2.0, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:E3_2011_-_Space_Marine_(5834920636).jpg