Killing Floor 3 is the no-brainer shooter you need after a bad day. It’s for when you feel the need to run around frantically, pulling the trigger of your rifle and shooting off limbs and heads of zeds without a care in the world, Tripwire’s latest is the perfect choice. However, when you’ve calmed down and want something with a bit more depth, there’s not a lot more to do than the standard rigmarole of fighting off the waves of zombies and levelling up your specialists.
It feels like a shell of what it could be at launch. There are already plans in place for what’s to come via its Year One Roadmap, but right now it feels like anything more than the core fundamentals are missing. That’s not to say it doesn’t offer an intense and exciting multiplayer experience. The gunplay is superb. There’s a new physics system where you can blow off all parts of the zeds to add a tactical element to how you battle the various waves. Put one to the ground by blowing off its legs. Shoot the arms off so they can’t scratch your eyes out. That kind of thing.
Each match sees you facing five waves of zombies in a row, either solo or in a team. With each new wave, the zeds get tougher, with new variants coming along all the time, culminating in a boss fight at the end. It is in these moment-to-moment sequences where Killing Floor 3 knows exactly what it’s doing. Between each wave, you can spend cash earned for successfully killing zeds to buy better weapons and upgrades. When you find that weapon that fits just right, gunning them down feels exquisite.
There’s no way you can stand your ground and fire at them as they charge towards you. They attack from behind and the side, from a distance or up close. Learning the maps becomes a significant part of the journey to master Killing Floor 3. Playing alone is more of a challenge as there’s no way for synergy between the different classes. When you do play alone, it’s still fun, but turning up the difficulty is going to mean you’re heading back to the menu quicker than Sonic the Hedgehog at dinner time.
The different classes all offer plenty of ways to play Killing Floor 3. You have specialists like the Medic who becomes a vital part of any team with their healing projector; and Commando who is great with an assault rifle and fires an acidic drone. There’s an Engineer who has some great abilities for larger enemies; Firebug who has a flamethrower; Ninja, who wields a katana in combat; and Sharpshooter who is strong from a distance but also holds her own in CQC.
Part of the fun is working out the best combinations for the type of players you and your friends are. It’s tougher going in alone as Luna, the sharpshooter, but in a group she provides amazing support picking off those zeds that get too close to your friends. Each specialist can be upgraded with new perks up to level 30, giving you plenty of reasons to keep on playing. There’re also story missions that offer something else to do, but at present it does get repetitive.
That’s not to say it isn’t fun. I’m not one of those hardcore veterans of the series, but I still had a blast fending of the hordes of zeds. The animations are excellent, both in its environments and in watching bodies explode and bullets fly. There are tons of games out there that offer a core concept that allows you to keep playing. When Fortnite was in its infancy it offered very little, but as it was added to it became the go-to experience for millions of gamers.
Right now, Killing Floor 3 has excellent gameplay with a satisfying loop. It may not offer a lot outside of the wave-based game mode, but there’s plenty of experimentation to be done in multiplayer, as well as with the six specialists on offer. The visuals are strong, and the variation with the different zeds will provide you and your friends a canvas to paint with blood after a long day. Think of Killing Floor 3 as an investment for the future and enjoy what’s available at the moment.
