La Vie En Grossness.
Ah, Paris – a city known for its culture, fine dining, and romance, but beware: the locals can be rude.
Immersive, gripping, messy. Killing Floor 2 is an adrenaline-packed fun house. Set one month after the events of the first Killing Floor, the sequel is staged in and around romantic Paris, France, and takes you on a date unlike any other. Sure, it's pretty and full of excitement, but it's not just mindless fun. This beauty has brains. Literally, it has brains – slipping-and-squishing-around-on-the-ground brains – just one of a few charms we'll be covering.
1. You Can Paint the Town Red.
“The blood never disappears. It always stays in the world. It never goes away.” - William Munk, Creative Director
“Splatter maps” hold onto every last ounce of blood sprayed from your assailants, from the first wave to the very last, and with Tripwire Interactive's new MEAT system (Massive Evisceration And Trauma), you can rip, slice, and blow apart zeds in roughly 22 different ways. Where the original Killing Floor zeds had only 5 ways in which to be dismembered, Killing Floor 2 offers 5 different results of trauma on the head alone, with 90 different animations based off of what zone of the body you hit. These animations are randomly generated for that particular zone, which can then chain in conjunction with additional hits, making it unlikely that you will see the same death sequence twice.
Additionally, you'll see that zeds, like ogres, have layers: skin, then bones, then insides – all of which can be stripped away or obliterated completely depending on the weapon being used to mow them down.
2. The Weapons and Their Animations are Intense.
In first person shooters, the main character may as well be your weapon, so why shouldn't it be as fleshed out and badass as possible?
Ever thought, “I wish I could use saw blades as high velocity projectiles” or “This sledgehammer is great but would be even better if it also fired off explosions?” The Eviscerator and Pulverizer are a couple of examples of how those sorts of dreams have been made a reality. The real meat here, however, is the detail put into the animations. Any and all weapon actions are executed in extreme definition with Tripwire's “high frame rate animation” system – animations captured at over 200 frames per second. While this may seem like more frames than necessary for typical gameplay, the addition makes typical gameplay that much more immersive with seamless actions and truly shines during Zed Time, where each subtle jiggle and kick comes fully to life.
3. Take in the Sights and Horrifying Lack Thereof.
Go into the light. No, really. Go into the freaking light.
Lending to moments of panic is the environment itself. A majority of the things in your environment are considered “destructible,” meaning they can be broken, kicked around, tripped over, caught in, blown up, shot to pieces, or shattered by one means or another – not just by you or your team, but by something like a siren's scream as well. When every shot counts, if you lose visibility of any kind, you're going to have a bad time – never mind being grabbed from behind by an over-affectionate clot in the dark when you can hear things skittering and bump into things and know you're being attacked, but can't see a thing. Some guns come with a flashlight, but those lights run off of batteries, and those batteries do run out. Shoot out the lights in a closed setting? Sucker. This is a lovely outdoor cafe until you get tangled in the chairs you were messing with while waiting for the next wave to start. Yes, there ARE things in the vents and they WILL drop down on you. In a dark room full of chairs and vents? Just start crying. Turn off your computer and cry for a little bit. The struggle is real.
The answer to this is to be mindful of where you choose to hold out, but accidents happen.
4. Nothing Sets the Mood Like The Right Music.
Catch some of the music in the 30 second intro and outro, or sit the whole way through to see more about the game's weapon development.
Boasting an extensive soundtrack, playing in the background is a mix of industrial, electronic, and metal. While this isn't everybody's cup of tea and can be turned down or off completely, it definitely gets the adrenaline going. Most tracks are hard-hitting and fast-paced, every bit the equivalent of the rage-filled horrors rushing at you, absorbing you into the action of the moment where the next pounding downbeat could herald your end.
5. Slow Down and Unwind with Some Zed Time.
Reverend David Alberts using his Eviscerator against a Fleshpound during the desaturated Zed Time effect.
Triggered by a head shot from either you or one of your teammates, Zed Time is a mechanic carried over from the original Killing Floor that gives the game a dramatic slow down effect, its duration dependent on the selected perks in your group. And while Zed Time should be used to efficiently kill as many zeds as possible during this brief respite, Tripwire has put a lot of time and effort into the little things.
“That's what you want in Zed Time, is the gore. So let's enhance that element of it.” – Alan Wilson, Tripwire Interactive's Vice President.
So, take a moment to appreciate the 200 frames per second animations put into how your gun functions. Bask in the splendor of the MEAT system as things burst apart and rain gore in super slow-mo. Though tactically useful, it also offers you the chance to take a breath, at the very least, and steel yourself against what's to come.
All this, and it's just early access. And though “early access” tends to carry with it the stigma of game-breaking bugs and developers using it as a means of milking extra money out of its fan base for the privilege of suffering through incomplete, unplayable content, Killing Floor 2 has done it right. At a price that's not set to change, it is and has been fully functional straight out of the gate, choosing to use its early access as a way of getting feedback and data on a larger scale so that it can be fully molded and balanced upon release. So, slip on your gas mask, grab some dosh, and hop on in – the water's totally playable.
