Killing Time (video game)

Last updated
Killing Time
Killing Time cover.png
Developer(s) Studio 3DO (3DO) [a] [b]
Publisher(s) The 3DO Company [c]
Director(s) Larry Reed
Al Tofanelli
Producer(s) JuliAnn Juras Appler
Programmer(s) Larry Reed, Rebecca Heineman
Artist(s) Al Tofanelli
Composer(s) Robert Vieira
Engine ZX (3DO version), Jaguar Doom (PC version), KEX Engine (remaster)
Platform(s)
Release
November 1995
  • 3DO
    • EU: November 10, 1995 [1]
    • NA: November 1995
  • Windows
    • NA: December 9, 1996 [2]
  • Macintosh
    • NA: December 5, 1997 [3]
  • Resurrected
  • Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
    • WW: October 17, 2024
Genre(s) First-person shooter
Mode(s) Single player

Killing Time is a horror-themed first-person shooter video game developed by Studio 3DO. Originally an exclusive for their 3DO platform in 1995, it was later remade for the Windows and Macintosh platforms in 1996 by Logicware after the 3DO system was discontinued. On July 23, 2015, ZOOM Platform announced the release of an updated version of Killing Time exclusively for their store. The update work was done by Jordan Freeman Group and published by ZOOM Platform and Prism Entertainment. [4]

Contents

The player takes on the role of a former Egyptology student, trapped within the estate of a wealthy heiress on Matinicus Isle, Maine. In 1932, during the night of the Summer Solstice, heiress Tess Conway, while attempting to use a mystical Ancient Egyptian Water-Clock which purportedly grants eternal life, vanished, along with many of her society friends. The player's objective is to find, and destroy, the Water-Clock, and discover the secrets of the estate, all while beating back the many horrors that now occupy the island from beyond the grave.

Throughout the game the plot is slowly revealed to the player through numerous vignettes performed by live actors. An unusual aspect of the game is that live action full-motion video characters overlap with the real time gameplay, without breaking to cutscenes. [5] The only exceptions are the opening and closing sequences.

A remastered version of the game titled Killing Time: Resurrected was released on October 17, 2024, featuring assets from both the PC and 3DO versions. [6]

Gameplay

The gameplay follows the standard set by most first-person shooters with the player using an assortment of weapons. These include a crowbar, dual-pistols, a shotgun, a Thompson submachine gun (Tommy-gun), Molotov cocktails, a flamethrower, and a magical Ankh which can be used to wipe out many enemies at a time. The game does not come with any form of multiplay. To beat the game one must collect a number of vases spread throughout Matinicus Isle, each containing a symbolic part of Tess Conway's spirit. These vases also grant one-time per playthrough power ups. Some sections require the player to strafe, crouch, or jump. The game takes place on a rather large, nonlinear island, with no load times in between sections. Enemies defeated and items taken are permanent for the duration of a playthrough, with guarded weapon caches scattered throughout the island.

Plot

The player character is a college student (voiced by Bruce Robertson) out to discover the mystery behind a missing Egyptian artifact. The ancient "Water-Clock of Thoth" had been discovered by his Egyptology professor, Dr. Hargrove, but the artifact went missing soon after a visit by the expedition's patron, Tess Conway. Tess is the heiress of her family's estate on Matinicus Isle, where she keeps her friends, and pawns close by so that she might gain the true power of the Water-Clock. As the game progresses, the player finds out that Tess has used a number of people to gain what she desires, but at a price. Something went horribly wrong, transforming everyone on the entire isle (including the wildlife) into either restless ghosts, demons, or the undead. In the opening cinematic on all versions of the game, Boldt Castle located on Heart Island in the Thousand Islands region of the Saint Lawrence River is used as the visual representation of the Conway Estate.

Characters

Development and release

The campaign was created using the Doom Editing Utility and then converted to the game's map format. [7]

The game's original release came as a red CD. Players found a glitch in the game that happens in the clown stage.[ citation needed ] The screen becomes pixelated and obscures the view of the entire area. The publisher allowed purchasers to mail them their red copy for a fixed version of the game, which appears on a black disk. Since so few purchasers sent in copies, the red version remains fairly common, but the black version is rare.[ citation needed ] The 3DO Game Guru includes a save file patch which fixes the bug.

In 1996 Acclaim Entertainment acquired the rights to release three Studio 3DO games for the PlayStation, Saturn, and PC, including Killing Time. [8] [9] However, while Acclaim did publish the other two games for those platforms, they did not do so with Killing Time, even though a release date was announced [10] and it was advertised in magazines [11] and on the back of some manuals on games published by the company.

On July 23, 2015, ZOOM Platform announced the release of an updated version of Killing Time exclusively for their store. The update work was done by Jordan Freeman Group and published by ZOOM Platform and Prism Entertainment. [12] The game was also re-released onto GOG.com by Ziggurat Interactive on November 10, 2016. [13]

It was announced on June 6, 2024 that a remaster of the game was being developed by Nightdive Studios under the name Killing Time: Resurrected. [14] It was released on October 17, 2024. [15] [6] James "Quasar" Haley, one of the developers of the remastered version, confirmed the PC version was based on the Atari Jaguar version of Doom that had previously been worked on by developer Rebecca Heineman. [16] However, the actual level creation was completed using the Build editor from Duke Nukem 3D and then converted to game's map format. [17]

Reception

The original 3DO release received mostly positive reviews. Critics for both Next Generation and GamePro praised the fast game engine and combination of intense first-person shooting with brain-stimulating adventure elements. [21] [22] GamePro also approved of the stylish visuals and music and especially the use of real-life weapons for the player's arsenal, though they criticized the need to use button combinations to change weapons or look up and down. [22] Next Generation complimented the humor and concluded, "In short, Killing Time is the bastard child of Doom and 7th Guest , and it works." [21] GameSpot concluded that the PC version was a "breath of very fresh air", due "largely to a thoughtful design interweaving setting and story with healthy doses of gunplay and gore." [23]

The game was awarded the 3DO Adventure Game of the Year. [24] In 1996, GamesMaster ranked the 3DO version 2nd on their "The GamesMaster 3DO Top 10." [25]

Killing Time: Resurrected reception

The remaster developed by Nightdive Studios received "mixed or average" reviews according to Metacritic. [26]

Notes

  1. Ported to Windows and Mac OS by Logicware.
  2. Remastered version developed by Nightdive Studios.
  3. Remastered version co-published by Nightdive Studios and Ziggurat Interactive.

References

  1. "Arcade smash unleashed" . Heartland Evening News: the Voice of Nuneaton, Hinckley, Bedworth and Atherstone . November 11, 1995. p. 8. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved July 25, 2023. There's a new first person perspective shoot 'em up out on the 3DO machine this week entitled Killing Time.
  2. "Online Gaming Review". February 27, 1997. Archived from the original on February 10, 1998. Retrieved April 22, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. "What's New". June 1998. Archived from the original on June 10, 1998. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  4. "Zoom Releases Killing Time Game and Announces Strategic Partnership with Prism Entertainment". Lightning Releases (Press release). Zoom / Prism Entertainment. July 23, 2015. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  5. "Killing Time". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 76. Ziff Davis. November 1995. pp. 142–143.
  6. 1 2 "Killing Time: Resurrected Released". Blue's News. 2024-10-17. Archived from the original on 2025-03-01. Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  7. Nightdive Studios (5 December 2024). "Conv2ZX.txt" . Retrieved 15 December 2024. The contents of the Conv2ZX folder are the original source levels for the 3DO version of the game, which were created using the DOS Doom editor, DEU.
  8. "In the Studio". Next Generation . No. 19. Imagine Media. July 1996. p. 20.
  9. "Acclaim to Bring 3DO Titles to PSX, Saturn". GamePro . No. 85. IDG. August 1996. p. 17.
  10. "Coming Soon". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 94. Ziff Davis. May 1997. p. 29.
  11. "Advertisement". GamePro . No. 105. IDG. June 1997. p. 95.
  12. "Exclusive Release: Killing Time". Zoom Platform. July 23, 2015. Archived from the original on 29 November 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  13. "Release: Killing Time". GOG.com . November 10, 2016. Archived from the original on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2017.
  14. Scullion, Chris (2024-06-06). "3DO horror comedy FPS Killing Time is being remastered by Nightdive Studios". VGC. Archived from the original on 2024-06-06. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
  15. Romano, Sal (October 17, 2024). "Killing Time: Resurrected launches October 17". Gematsu. Archived from the original on October 4, 2024. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  16. Haley, James (11 October 2024). "Killing Time: Resurrected". Doomworld . Retrieved 27 November 2024. The original PC version of Killing Time uses a heavily modified version of the Jaguar Doom codebase. All asset loading, 2D drawing, and system code were replaced with BurgerLib components.
  17. MacDee, Mike (16 May 2013). "MY INTERVIEW with MIKE LUTYNSKI". The Conway Estate. Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
  18. Sackenheim, Shawn. "Killing Time (3DO) Review". Allgame. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
  19. Lisa Karen Savignano. "Killing Time (Macintosh) Review". Allgame. Archived from the original on November 16, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
  20. Michael L. House. "Killing Time (PC) Review". Allgame. Archived from the original on November 16, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
  21. 1 2 3 "Killing Time - Rating 3DO". Next Generation . No. 12. Imagine Media. December 1995. p. 185.
  22. 1 2 Atomic Dawg (January 1996). "ProReview: Killing Time". GamePro . No. 88. IDG. p. 104.
  23. Poole, Stephen (1 May 2000). "Killing Time Review". GameSpot . Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  24. "And The Winner Is... 3DO Awards Honor Best of the Best for 1995; Electronic Arts' Road-Ripping Need for Speed Named 'Game of the Year'". Business Wire (Press release). 3DO Company. December 19, 1995. Archived from the original on February 4, 2014. Retrieved August 13, 2021 via The Free Dictionary.
  25. "The GameMasters 3DO Top 10" (PDF). GamesMaster. No. 44. July 1996. p. 75. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-07-05. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  26. "Killing Time: Resurrected". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2024.