Killing Time

The box art for Killing Time, as developed by Studio 3DO.

Killing Time is a horror-themed first-person shooter video game developed by Studio 3DO. Originally an exclusive for their 3DO platform, 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.

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

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 (the only exceptions are the opening and closing sequences). These are activated by standing near Tess' spectral pleadings, while in a couple of locations (The Ballroom and the Master Bedroom) clocks can be set to change which vision is shown.

A remastered version of the game entitled Killing Time: Resurrected was released by Nightdive Studios on October 17, 2024, featuring assets from both the PC and 3DO versions.

Development

The 3DO version of the game began life as "Zombie Xanadu", a concept for a 3D first-person-perspective maze-crawling game populated by undead creatures with inspirations from Agatha Christie. The custom ZX engine, itself derived from a section of the 1994 3DO game Jurassic Park Interactive,^{[citation needed]} was developed to support the project, which could utilize streaming technology on the 3DO game console to render seamlessly transitioning levels drawn via the console's internal Cel Engine. A special case version of the painter's algorithm is utilized for hidden surface removal. The level creation was completed using the DEU editor, before eventually being converted for the ZX engine with several additions.

Several original songs were created for the game. "On This Island" by Robert Vieira and sung by Elizabeth Snyder, which plays in the ballroom, and "Time Trapped Isle" by Larry Reed and the Toot Sweet Jazz Band, which plays over the end credits, are specially credited. Additional music was recorded by the Toot Sweet Jazz Band.

In 1996, Acclaim Entertainment acquired the rights to release three Studio 3DO games for the PlayStation, Saturn, and PC, including Killing Time. 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 and it was advertised in magazines and on the back of some manuals on games published by the company.

Instead, rights for development of a PlayStation and Saturn version were passed on to Torus Games (who later produced the version of Doom II for the Game Boy Advance). While Torus would work on both versions of the game, the PlayStation version would only advance to a beta stage of development before being canceled, while the Saturn port would be abandoned early in its development without even a functioning prototype.

Rights for development of a Power Macintosh version went to Logicware, Inc. Developer Rebecca Heineman, also known for the 3DO version of Doom, would develop an engine for this version of the game. James "Quasar" Haley, one of the developers of the remastered version, confirmed the game was based on the Atari Jaguar version of Doom that she had previously worked on. This version was also ported to Windows 95. These versions of the game differ significantly from the 3DO version, using different game logic, enemy designs, lower resolution 8-bit artwork, and completely redesigned levels which only make a few references in key areas to the original 3DO designs.

According to tools engineer Michael Lutynski, the game's redone levels were created using the Build level editor from Duke Nukem 3D, then double converted to WAD files and finally to the engine's native format, with no trace of Build in the finished product. LightWave 3D was tested as well, as part of an ultimately canceled attempt to implement room-over-room effects.

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, and featured fan made patches and fixes. The game was also re-released onto GOG.com by Ziggurat Interactive on November 10, 2016.

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. It was released on October 17, 2024. On April 3, 2026, Nightdive released a 2.0 patch to add Time Consumed - 3DO TC, consisting of the original 3DO campaign and a remastered version of said campaign, alongside the original Windows/Macintosh version maps and several bugfixes, as well as more modding features than the previous stable build.

Gameplay

The gameplay follows the standard set by most first-person shooters with the player using an assortment of weapons. These include a Colt .45 pistol which can be single or dual wielded, a Remington 870 shotgun, a Thompson submachine gun (Tommy gun), and a flamethrower. The Windows/Macintosh version adds a crowbar for melee attacks, Molotov cocktails, and a magical ankh, which can be used to wipe out many enemies at a time. To finish the game (at least in the Windows/Macintosh version), one must collect the ten Winged Vessels—a stylized form of canopic jar—spread throughout the island of Matinicus, presented as a seamless open world, and each containing a symbolic part of Tess Conway's spirit. These vessels also grant limited-time power-ups (although in the 3DO version, one gives a permanent effect without being activated prior). A rejuvenation vessel can restore the charge of previously used vessels. Some sections in the Windows/Macintosh version 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 the campaign, with guarded weapon caches scattered throughout the island.

The 3DO version has a high score system, in which different player names who played the game (whether finished or not), alongside their final score, are displayed. Exploring maps thoroughly, defeating enemies, and collecting items will increase score. This is entirely absent in the Windows/Macintosh version.

Weapons

• Crowbar (Windows/Macintosh version only)
• Pistol
• Double Pistols
• Shotgun
• Tommy Gun
• Molotov (Windows/Macintosh version only)
• Flamethrower
• Ankh (Windows/Macintosh version only)

Enemies

• Duck (3DO version only, initially planned for the Windows/Macintosh version but later scrapped, later added back to Resurrected)
• Hunter
• Gardener (Windows/Macintosh version only)
• Two-headed dog
• Wasp
• Gangster
• Thug (Windows/Macintosh version only)
• Harpy / Flying skull
• Clown
• Chef
• Maid
• Diabolic maid (Windows/Macintosh version only)
• Roach
• Specter (Windows/Macintosh version only)
• Scarab
• Prohibitionist
• Cloud demon
• Skeleton
• Smoking skeleton (3DO version only, later added back to Resurrected)
• Dung Ball (in 3DO version) / Crawler (in Windows/Macintosh version)
• Bat (3DO version only, later added back to Resurrected)
• Anubis head
• Avatar of Seth (Duncan De Vries)
• Avatar of Isis (Tess Conway) (Windows/Macintosh version only)

Vessels

• Ears - displays enemies on the map
• Hands - grants unlimited ammunition
• Eyes - increases map detail
• Liver - eliminates enemies
• Nose - highlights ammunition locations on map
• Mouth - highlights secret areas on map
• Legs - doubles player's running speed
• Back - grants invincibility
• Chest - doubles player's maximum health (also immediately and permanently increases default maximum health in the 3DO version if picked up)
• Arms - increases damage by eight (only applies to crowbar melee attacks in the Windows/Macintosh version)

Plot

Spoiler Warning: Plot details follow.

The player character is a former archaeology college student (voiced by Bruce Robertson) who has set 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 discovers 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 island (including the wildlife) into either restless ghosts, demons, or undead zombies. In the opening cinematic of 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

• Tess Conway (played by Lise Bruneau, voiced by Yayoi Jinguji in the Japanese dub): Inheritor of her parents' wealth as well as the Conway Estate, Tess will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Obsessed with being young and beautiful forever, Tess acquires the Ancient Egyptian water clock in the hopes of using it to stop time itself. Tess keeps her most useful pawns close to her on the isle, nourishing them with food and drink long enough for her to have them help her fulfill truest ambitions. When at last she has the power of the water clock within her grasp, she is murdered and subsequently activates the water clock too soon in order to save her life and curse her killer. This action ends-up trapping all the people on the island, and the timing causes the experiment to go horribly wrong. Tess and her friends become restless spirits while the rest are turned into mindless zombies.
• Duncan De Vries (played by Eric Flom): Tess's associate, and her key to the black market. Duncan is an ambitious bootlegger trying to make a name for himself in the world of crime. His goal to marry Tess in order to acquire her property and wealth. Duncan does whatever Tess asks in order to gain her favor. Later on, it is revealed that he is the one responsible for smuggling the water clock to the Conway Estate, with the help of his own henchmen. With a short temper and a broad mean streak, it is no wonder how quickly he turns to murder when he finds out that Tess has no mind for marriage. With her dying breath, Tess curses Duncan, and possesses his body with the vengeful spirit of the Egyptian god Set (Seth).
• Byron Flemming (played by Colin Thomson): Tess's archaeologist friend who speaks in a German accent, Byron falls hopelessly in love with her, while helping her to decipher the instructions for the water clock. All his efforts to woo Tess are of course futile. The most clever person on the island, he knows the true power of the water clock.
• Mike Murphy (played by Tim Flanagan): Duncan's rent-a-cop body guard, Mike follows Duncan around and makes sure everything goes smoothly. Officially the "guard" of the estate, Mike finds himself without much of a job to do most of the time. He appears only once by himself in the game to offer a quick warning to beware of both Duncan and Tess (although unused cutscenes included in Resurrected suggest that he was to have a more proactive role in helping the player throughout their journey).
• Robert Kenilworth (played by Edward Sarafian): An England native, Robert has been the Conways' official butler for decades, and even goes as far as to reminisce over Tess and Lydia's childhood together. Robert laments over Tess's transformation after the death of her parents, and keeps a wary eye on Duncan, whom he openly distrusts. He is Byron's only friend. He appears often to offer friendly advice on how to navigate the Conway estate. Robert dislikes what is going on but remains a loyal servant out of honor for the dying memory of the Conway family.
• Lydia Tewkesbury (played by Paula Sonenberg): Tess's childhood friend, Lydia is kept on the isle for reasons unknown, though it would seem as though Tess gains confidence from being two steps ahead of Lydia at all times. Lydia confesses later in the game that she is sick of being in the shadow of Tess and works to bring her whole establishment down from the inside by leaking as much information as she can to Duncan. Both Duncan and Mike grow fond of Lydia during the course of the game primarily because she is physically attractive. At the same time, she remains miserably trapped on the island and spends most of her time drowning her worries in gin. When her mother found out that Tess stores a copious amount of gin within the Estate, she led her friends from the Woman's Christian Temperance Union to raid the Conway Estate, only for them all to be trapped by both Tess and Lydia in the Estate's wine cellar. Two unused scenes, one featuring Robert and another featuring Lydia herself, suggest that Lydia was to be an aspiring singer, with Here on This Island (the song that plays on the lounge at the West Wing) being assigned to her.
• Angela Conway (played by Ashley Penrod, voiced by Shiho Kikuchi in the Japanese dub): Tess's niece, this ghost of a young girl appears often in the game to spout cryptic poems, particularly in junctions in the hedge maze. Seemingly wise beyond her years, she understands what must be done and where to go and hopes that one can decipher her riddles in order to get the job done.

Endings

The 3DO version only has a single ending, in which the Avatar of Seth gets defeated with a Tommy gun by Tess, who appears out of the thin air wearing a black robe, presumably from the underworld Duat. Upon dying and transforming back to Duncan, he expresses his regret of not killing Tess earlier. Tess laughs at both him and the player, imprisoning them in Duat alongside the rest of the undead dwellers of Matinicus Isle.

The Windows/Macintosh version expands on this by having two endings, depending on the final outcome of the battle against Tess under the form of the Avatar of Isis. If the player gets defeated by Tess, the last part of the original 3DO version's ending will be played. However, if the player manages to defeat her instead, a good ending will be played. In this exclusive ending, the player finally goes back to the boat that he used to access Matinicus Isle, pointing out that Dr. Hargrove's words on the water clock were indeed true, alongside Tess' treacherous ambition to use its true power. He relates his plans of revisiting the isle the next day, in hopes of being able to recover what remains of the water clock to show to the archaeological society, hoping for plentiful funds to conduct a more thorough expedition. As the scene fades out, Tess can be heard emitting a distant cackle, suggesting she may not be done with the player yet.

Spoilers end here.

Areas

3DO version

• Beginning/outdoor part
  • In the Beginning: Matinicus Unbound
  • Conway Courtyard: Duck and Cover
  • Outer Patio: Invitation to Death
• Conway Estate (ground floor)
  • Great Hall: Robert's Welcome
• East wing
  • Tess's Temple
  • Circus Mortus
  • Columns of Seth
  • Pyramid of Pain: Osiris Hunting
  • Ballroom: Ghostclock
• Dining room and kitchen
  • Dining Room: Lingering Guests
  • Hell's Kitchen: Chef's Night Out
  • Pleased to Meat You
  • Deadly Ends and Magic Lanterns
• West wing
  • Egyptian Switches
  • Assyrian Experience: Go East
  • Pyroglyphics
  • Tess's Lounge: Supporting Rolls
  • Byron's Library: Spines but No Pages
  • Gangster U: A Hardcover to Look Up
• Secret maze labyrinth
  • Angela's Garden of Secrets
  • Hedge Your Bets
  • Tommygun Gardener: Don't Get Clipped
  • Old Foundations: Tess's Secret Path
• Wine cellar
  • Elevator Shoes
  • Lydia's Mummy Dearest
  • Hopscotch on the Rocks
  • Parlor Games: 20 Ways to Die
• Sewers
  • Have a Ball
  • Sewer Rats
  • Necropolis
  • Dankmosphere
• Conway Estate (upper floor)
  • Upper Hall: Flapper's Palace
• West wing (upper floor)
  • Cleaning Your Clock
  • Maids in the Shade
  • Room Service 4 Tess
• Secret east wing (upper floor)
  • Mike's Retreat: Guard No More
  • Bonus Blast: The Roaring Twenties
• Master bedroom
  • Tess's Room: Who Dunnit
• The attic (climax part)
  • Attic Intro: Curse of Matinicus
  • Attic Memories: Short But Sweet
  • Losing Your Ka
  • Darkling Attic: Atum's Nightfall
  • Bloodclock Hunting
  • Time2Die
  • Hargrove's Storeroom: Split Level

Windows/Macintosh version

• Dock
• Courtyard
• The Gardens
• The Kennels
• The Hunter’s Cabin
• The Lighthouse
• Conway Estate (contains The Great Hall)
• 2nd Floor West Wing (contains The Guest Quarters)
• 1st Floor East Wing Conway Estate (contains The Ballroom)
• Kitchen
• Wine Cellar
• The Sewers - Level 1
• The Sewers - Level 2
• Temple of Isis
• 1st Floor West Wing Conway Estate (contains The Firepit and The Library)
• The Caverns
• The Lookout Tower
• The Mausoleum
• The Topiary
• The Arboretum
• Hedge Maze
• 2nd Floor East Wing Conway Estate (contains The Master Bedroom)
• The Attic and Towers (contains The Vessel Altar and Hall of Mirrors)

Keys

• 3DO version
  • RSVP invitation (listed as the green-blue slot on HUD in the 3DO version, must be retrieved from any of the hunters in Outer Patio: Invitation to Death)
  • Yellow-Orange Key (found in Columns of Seth, used to access Dining Room: Lingering Guests and subsequent levels)
  • Red Key (found in Hell's Kitchen: Chef's Night Out, used to access Deadly Ends and Magic Lanterns)
  • Violet Key (found in Deadly Ends and Magic Lanterns, used to access the portion of Upper Hall: Flapper's Palace that houses the orange/Arms vessel)
  • Yellow-Green Key (found in Elevator Shoes, used to access Egyptian Switches and subsequent levels)
  • Yellow Key (found in Sewer Rats, used to access the secret Upper East Wing section of Conway Estate)
  • Orange Key (found in Assyrian Experience: Go East, used to access Gangster U: A Hardcover to Look Up)
  • Green Key (found in Gangster U: A Hardcover to Look Up, used to access Angela's Garden of Secrets and subsequent levels)
  • Purple Key (found in Old Foundations: Tess's Secret Path, used to access Tess's Room: Who Dunnit and all subsequent levels)
  • Blue Key (found in Room Service 4 Tess, used to access Hopscotch on the Rocks and subsequent levels)

• Windows/Macintosh version
  • RSVP Invitation (found in the Hunter's Cabin)
  • The Wine Cellar Key (Blue Key)
  • The Kitchen Key (Yellow-Orange Key)
  • The Kitchen Annex Key (Red Key)
  • Master Bedroom Annex Key (Purple Key)
  • Temple of Isis Key (Green Blue Key; also unlocks The Mausoleum)
  • Second Floor - East Wing Mansion Key (Yellow Key; also The Lookout Tower)
  • First Floor - West Wing Mansion Key (Yellow Green Key; also The Topiary)
  • The Library Key (Orange Key)
  • The Hedge Maze Key (Green Key; also The Caverns)
  • Master Bedroom Key (Violet Key)

Quirks and differences between 3DO and Windows/Macintosh versions

Alongside all aforementioned differences, there are other significant quirks and differences between the two versions of the game, defining each one from another. For the complete list of such differences, see Comparison of Killing Time versions.

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. 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. Next Generation complimented the humor and concluded, "In short, Killing Time is the bastard child of Doom and 7th Guest, and it works." 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."

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

Trivia

• Many of the keys have symbols that differ from the symbols of the doors they actually lock. Out of all the keys, the Yellow-Orange Key is the only one which symbol is not used in any locked doors (the Orange Door, as well as the Windows/Macintosh-exclusive Green-Blue Key and Door all share the same symbol).
• Both the 3DO and Windows/Macintosh versions lack any sprite for the player character, since they were not designed with multiplayer in mind. Since the latter is based on the Jaguar Doom engine, which still requires sprites to display the player, it instead assigns the stationary pistol pick-up sprite to the player, if a chase-cam mode using a cheat or debugging program is activated.
• The starting name section can be extensively used for cheats. See Killing Time cheats for more details on this.
• According to a leaked build (internally listed as Alpha 2.2), the 3DO version was initially planned to contain up to 59 levels, although only 45 are playable and the rest not included in the beta. This number remained within the final versions of the release.
  • Planned additional levels include a pier, a forest, a cottage, a clearing area, a lawn, a conservatory, and an inner pool. The Windows/Macintosh version possibly took inspiration from a few of these. The enhanced 3DO campaign from Time Consumed - 3DO TC features reimagined versions of some of these maps.
• Time2Die was another developing title of the game, as evidenced by a preview featured in the 3DO port of Soccer Kid as well as a handful other media coverage. The title was eventually retained in one level of the 3DO version, making up part of Tess' attic, where the water clocks are stored.
• The lack of ducks in the Windows/Macintosh version is due to an unexpected supervision by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, who objected to the inclusion of ducks in the game, even after a clarification that the ducks are zombified alongside all other denizens of the island.
  • Despite the eventual removal, the completely programmed AI of the duck remains in the game, accessible only by cheat or debugging programs. The ducks would later be included again in Resurrected.
• The 3DO version has been compared to Zero Tolerance, a 1994 Sega Genesis/Mega Drive-exclusive first-person shooter game with an engine slightly more advanced than Wolfenstein 3D with its own quirks, including but not limited to 45-degree walls, level progression by means of an elevator, destructible walls, blood decals that appear if the player shot or killed enemies nearby any wall, and the flamethrower as an obtainable weapon.
• The Windows/Macintosh version is still related to the PlayStation port of Doom and, subsequently, Doom 64, as both share the Jaguar Doom port codebase.
  • Coincidentally, a two-headed dog (which would have a fleshy appearance, as designed by Gregor Punchatz, in comparison to the Killing Time iterations) was planned as a new enemy in Doom 64, although this was ultimately scrapped, possibly due to cartridge size concerns and time constraints.
• Studio 3DO also distributed Strife in Europe. Coincidentally, both Strife and Killing Time share a rather similar hub system, with their own ways of interactive story-telling: Killing Time by means of in-game FMV-based scenes, and Strife by means of non-playable characters.
• Killing Time has also been compared to another ancient Egypt-themed first-person shooter game, PowerSlave (also called Exhumed in Europe), due to several coincidental similarities.
  • Both games have different versions with significant differences based on platforms (in the case of Killing Time, the 3DO and Windows/Macintosh versions, whereas in the case of PowerSlave, there are the Sega Saturn, PlayStation, and DOS versions).
  • Both games (minus the DOS version of PowerSlave) feature a non-linear gameplay, with heavy emphasis on exploration using key items, alongside the usual run-and-gun gameplay.
  • Both games run on different engines across platform releases, although still taking technical cues from their predecessors (in the case of Killing Time, the ZX engine features maps originally built with DEU, with the Windows/Macintosh version now using an engine derived from Jaguar Doom, while in the case of PowerSlave, the custom SlaveDriver engine used in the Saturn and PlayStation versions was developed by Lobotomy Software with some inspirations from the Build engine, which powers the DOS version of the game itself).
  • Both games feature professional entertainment artists for their story telling (in the case of Killing Time, actual actors and (occasionally) voice actors, while in the case of PowerSlave, it features at least one significant voice actor).
  • Both games feature orb pick-ups dropped by enemies upon death. In the case of Killing Time, all the orbs affect the player's health, either positively or otherwise, while in the case of PowerSlave, this depends on the versions. In the Saturn and PlayStation versions, the dropped orbs are for either healing the player or for replenishing a weapon's ammo, due to the version of the game's use of universal ammo system. In the DOS version, the dropped orbs are mana, used for magical power-ups that can be stored by the player.
  • Both games feature flying wasp enemies (natural wasps in Killing Time, and alien wasps in PowerSlave) and bosses specifically based on the god Set.
  • Both games' console releases were also released in Japan with significant localizations.
  • Both games were remastered by Nightdive, with several features inspired by different versions of their original respective games.
• As two horror themed sprite based first-person shooters with extensive use of full motion video, a setting influenced by an ancient civilization, and an emphasis on environmental exploration and puzzle solving, the game is also often compared to Realms of the Haunting.
  • Many of the assets were also used in Mike MacDee (Impie)'s fan games that tribute Killing Time—Mask of Sobek and Kiss of Scorpion.
• Killing Time has also been retrospectively praised for its extensive use of the art deco theme and story telling, a theme uncommonly explored by other first person shooter games at the time, until Blood, BioShock, and Mouse: P.I. for Hire.

External links

• Killing Time at Ziggurat Interactive
• The Conway Estate - Killing Time Fan Site (archived) by Mike MacDee (Impie)
• Mask of Sobek and Kiss of the Scorpion fan games by Mike MacDee (Impie)
• Killing Time Walkthrough (mirror)
• Killing Time on Ross's Game Dungeon
• Killing Time retrospective by Ruby Ranger
• Killing Time retrospective by Sabwones
• Killing Time retrospective by Mr. E Macheen
• PC version playthrough by Pedro Arturo Gomez Blanco (PAGB666)

Sources

• This article incorporates text from the open-content Wikipedia online encyclopedia article Killing Time (video game).

References

Source code genealogy
Based on	Name	Base for
Doom (Atari Jaguar)	Killing Time (PC)	Killing Time: Resurrected