.gif)
Killing Time (video game)
Encyclopedia
Killing Time is a horror
-themed FPS
video game with Full-Motion Video
components, developed by Studio 3DO. Though meant at first as an exclusive for their 3DO Interactive Multiplayer
console, it was later ported (extremely different version) to the Windows 95
PC
platform in 1996 by Intrepid Software and to the Macintosh when the 3DO system failed to meet sales expectations.
Student, trapped on a fictional 1930's version of Matinicus Isle, Maine
, within the estate of wealthy heiress
Tess Conway. In 1932, during the night of the Summer Solstice. Tess, 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.
Killing Time despite its general first-person shooter
gameplay is unique, especially for its time. Throughout the game the plot is slowly revealed to the player through numerous ghostly cut scenes, all of them performed by a cast of professional actors. Unlike other games that deal in the mythology
of other cultures, the producers of Killing Time relayed accurate knowledge of Egyptian
lore in the story. Also unique for its time, the game even includes several songs written exclusively for the game along with an impressive sound track.
student out to discover the mystery behind a missing Egyptian artifact
. The ancient "Water-Clock of Thoth
" had been discovered by his professor of Egyptology
, Dr. Hargrove, but the artifact went missing soon after a visit by the expedition's patron, Tess Conway. Tess is the rich inheritor 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 into either restless ghosts, demons or the undead
.
Taken directly from the game's introduction movie:
s with the player using an assortment of weapons. These include a crowbar, dual-pistols, a shotgun, a Thompson submachine gun
(Tommy-gun), Molotov cocktail
s, 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. Unlike other old first-person shooter
games, Killing Time 's gameplay requires you to strafe, crouch and jump when necessary.
When Killing Time was released for the 3do the game came as a red CD that read the words "Killing Time" Not long after the release players found a glitch in the game that happens in the clown stage. The camera will become pixalated and obscure the view of the entire area. The company that made Killing Time allowed purchasers to mail them their red copy for a new black copy of the disk. The black version has corrected the glitch but since so little of the purchasers bothered sending in their copy the black version of Killing Time is rare.
Horror fiction
Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
-themed FPS
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
video game with Full-Motion Video
Full motion video
Full motion video based games are video games that rely upon pre-recorded TV-quality movie or animation rather than sprites, vectors, or 3D models to display action in the game. In the early 1990s a diverse set of games utilized this format...
components, developed by Studio 3DO. Though meant at first as an exclusive for their 3DO Interactive Multiplayer
3DO Interactive Multiplayer
The 3DO Interactive Multiplayer is a video game console originally produced by Panasonic in 1993. Further renditions of the hardware were released in 1994 by Sanyo and Goldstar. The consoles were manufactured according to specifications created by The 3DO Company, and were originally designed by...
console, it was later ported (extremely different version) to the Windows 95
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. It was released on August 24, 1995 by Microsoft, and was a significant progression from the company's previous Windows products...
PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
platform in 1996 by Intrepid Software and to the Macintosh when the 3DO system failed to meet sales expectations.
Overview
The player controls an Ex-EgyptologyEgyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
Student, trapped on a fictional 1930's version of Matinicus Isle, Maine
Matinicus Isle, Maine
Matinicus Isle is a plantation in Knox County, Maine, United States. The population was 51 at the 2000 census, although during the summer that number can triple or quadruple. Remote Matinicus Island is accessible by ferry from Rockland, located away, or by air taxi from Knox County Regional Airport...
, within the estate of wealthy heiress
Beneficiary
A beneficiary in the broadest sense is a natural person or other legal entity who receives money or other benefits from a benefactor. For example: The beneficiary of a life insurance policy, is the person who receives the payment of the amount of insurance after the death of the insured...
Tess Conway. In 1932, during the night of the Summer Solstice. Tess, 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.
Killing Time despite its general first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
gameplay is unique, especially for its time. Throughout the game the plot is slowly revealed to the player through numerous ghostly cut scenes, all of them performed by a cast of professional actors. Unlike other games that deal in the mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
of other cultures, the producers of Killing Time relayed accurate knowledge of Egyptian
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
lore in the story. Also unique for its time, the game even includes several songs written exclusively for the game along with an impressive sound track.
Story
In Killing Time, the main character is an ex-EgyptologyEgyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
student out to discover the mystery behind a missing Egyptian artifact
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
. The ancient "Water-Clock of Thoth
Thoth
Thoth was considered one of the more important deities of the Egyptian pantheon. In art, he was often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or a baboon, animals sacred to him. His feminine counterpart was Seshat...
" had been discovered by his professor of Egyptology
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
, Dr. Hargrove, but the artifact went missing soon after a visit by the expedition's patron, Tess Conway. Tess is the rich inheritor 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 into either restless ghosts, demons or the undead
Undead
Undead is a collective name for fictional, mythological, or legendary beings that are deceased and yet behave as if alive. Undead may be incorporeal, such as ghosts, or corporeal, such as vampires and zombies...
.
Taken directly from the game's introduction movie:
" I'm off the rocky coast of Maine, heading toward the Island of Matinicus, alone. My Egyptology professor, Dr. Hargrove, was always recounting his trips to Northern Africa, in the 1930's, and his search for a mystical Water-Clock, from the dynasty of the Pharaoh Ramses. The Clock supposedly, had powers to grant everlasting life. Claimed he found it once, but whatever Hargrove found, mysteriously disapeared after a visit by the expedition's patron, Tess Conway. I've picked-up the trail where Hargrove left-off, it has lead me to heiress Tess Conway's island estate. Tess was obsessed with the occult, and her greed drew her towards Duncan DeVries, a debonaire two-bit smuggler. In its heyday the Conway estate hosted wild, extravagant parties. It has been deserted for decades. Tess and her "society friends", disapeared in 1932, on the night of the summer solstice. I'm just getting my first glimpse of the house. The weather's getting worse, but I'm almost ashore. I fear my life may be in danger, but I have come prepared. (sound of shotgun being cocked) Hmmm, that's strange, my watch has stopped. "
Gameplay
The gameplay follows the standard set by most first-person shooterFirst-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
s with the player using an assortment of weapons. These include a crowbar, dual-pistols, a shotgun, a Thompson submachine gun
Thompson submachine gun
The Thompson is an American submachine gun, invented by John T. Thompson in 1919, that became infamous during the Prohibition era. It was a common sight in the media of the time, being used by both law enforcement officers and criminals...
(Tommy-gun), Molotov cocktail
Molotov cocktail
The Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol bomb, gasoline bomb, Molotov bomb, fire bottle, fire bomb, or simply Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary weapons...
s, 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. Unlike other old first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
games, Killing Time 's gameplay requires you to strafe, crouch and jump when necessary.
When Killing Time was released for the 3do the game came as a red CD that read the words "Killing Time" Not long after the release players found a glitch in the game that happens in the clown stage. The camera will become pixalated and obscure the view of the entire area. The company that made Killing Time allowed purchasers to mail them their red copy for a new black copy of the disk. The black version has corrected the glitch but since so little of the purchasers bothered sending in their copy the black version of Killing Time is rare.
Characters
- "Tess Conway" (played by actress Lise Bruneau): Inheritor of her parent's 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 Conway 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 nurturing them with food and drink long enough to gain her 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 DeVries": Tess' associate, and key to the black market. Duncan is an ambitious bootleggerRum-runningRum-running, also known as bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law...
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. With a short temper and a broad mean streak, it's 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 SetSet (mythology)Set was in Ancient Egyptian religion, a god of the desert, storms, and foreigners. In later myths he was also the god of darkness, and chaos...
(Seth).
- "Byron": Tess' Archaeologist friend, Byron falls hopelessly in love with Tess, while helping her to decipherDECIPHERDECIPHER is a web-based resource and database of array comparative genomic hybridization data from analysis of patient DNA. It documents submicroscopic chromosome abnormalities, including microdeletions and duplications, from over 6000 patients and maps them to the human genome using the Ensembl...
the instructions for the Water-Clock. All his efforts to woo Tess however, are futile of course, and the lonely Byron is reduced to nothing but another hapless pawn in the long run of things. More clever than anyone else however, he knows the true power of the Water-Clock, and keeps it to himself, carefully observing Tess' attempt for immortality so that he might learn from her mistakes.
- "Mike": 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.
- "Robert": Robert has been the Conway's official butler for years, and even goes as far as to reminisce over Tess and Lydia's adolescence together. Perhaps one of the game's only "truly innocent" characters, Robert laments over Tess' transformation after the death of her parents, and keeps a wary eye on Duncan, who he openly distrusts. He is Byron's only friend, and 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 Tweksbury": Tess' childhood friend, Lydia is kept on the isle for mysterious reasons 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. All the same she remains miserably trapped on the isle, and spends most of her time drowning her worries in ginGinGin is a spirit which derives its predominant flavour from juniper berries . Although several different styles of gin have existed since its origins, it is broadly differentiated into two basic legal categories...
.
- "Angela Conway": Tess' 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, if one deciphers her riddles.