The 1995 cult classic horror first-person shooter Killing Time is getting an HD revival.
Killing Time: Resurrected, because of course that's the title, is an HD remaster of the original goofy shooter, which takes place in the 1930s and follows a student who gets trapped in a mansion that just happens to be terribly haunted because some rich jerk performed a ritual to try to forever and then bailed when she inadvertently summoned a bunch of demons into the house.
Demons, in this game, come in the form of giant bugs, killer clowns, zombie ducks, people that hunt zombie ducks, skellies smoking cigarettes, and ultimately, the heiress that caused this whole mess, Tess Conway. As I said, this is a silly game that very much knows it's silly, but there's a little more meat to its bones than you might otherwise assume.
Yes, it's a lot of Doom-style demon blasting with your choice of crowbar, dual-pistols, a shotgun, a Tommy-gun, Molotov cocktails, a flamethrower, and a magical Ankh, but there's also a heavy puzzle-solving element that requires strategic thinking.
The remaster boasts high-res character artwork and sprites from the original 3DO and PC versions of the game, upscaled environment textures, and more control and key-bind customization options. Notably, Nightdive also says the gameplay is smoother and more responsive, and to be frank, the one thing I remember about playing this game back in the day is how unwieldy the controls are, so I'm hopeful the remaster is more approachable.
Nightdive is a beloved studio known primarily for buying the rights to abandoned games, remastering or remaking them, and releasing them on modern platforms. The studio started when founding member Stephen Kick realized there was no way to legally purchase the 1999 FPS System Shock because of a trademark snafu.
Kick started Nightdive with his wife, Alix, after convincing the rights holders that a System Shock re-release would make them money, and from there the studio has gradually become a champion of video game preservation with highly regarded re-releases like Quake 1 and 2, Doom 64, and the 2023 System Shock remake.
In addition to the Killing Time remaster, Nightdive seems to be teasing a remaster of 2002 action-adventure game based on John Carpenter's The Thing, which would just be an absolute dream.
Killing Time: Resurrected is coming to PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch "soon."
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