Killer Klowns from Outer Space – The Game Impressions

When it comes to Asymmetric multiplayer horror games, I am not familiar with them in the slightest. I have never played Dead by Daylight, or Friday the 13th. But the game design for those games always intrigued me. So, when Lords of Gaming was at PAX East this year, and we got a small taste of Killer Klowns from Outer Space by Illfonic and Teravision Games, I was left very confused and intrigued. But idea really grabbed me, especially as someone who really enjoyed the film back when I was an age so young it was questionable if I should have watched it, thanks Dad. With that being said, with somewhere around 15 matches under my belt. I am still intrigued, and just as confused as I was back when I played it at PAX, for different reasons.

What Is Killer Klowns from Outer Space – The Game?

Killer Klowns from Outer Space is a multiplayer game where three Killer Klowns track down and kill seven humans. As simple of a design as this is, there is some depth to be appreciated. So let us start from the Klowns side of what you can expect to experience. As the Klowns not only have to track and kill the humans. They also have a cotton candy ray gun, other variants to block off escape routes the humans can take. They also have cotton candy cocoons they can find across the map to power up generators that spawn minions that aid in finding the humans. If you cannot find any cocoons, you can also make humans you find into cocoons to power up those generators.

The Klowns also come equipped with a mallet for melee fights against humans. When a human goes down you can either cocoon them with the ray gun or activate a “Klowntality”. Where you instantly kill the human in a funny cutscene. I also noticed some of the Klowntalities have some of the iconic moments from the movie. Such as the Pizza scene and the one where the police officer dies by pies.

Klowns also have an array of unique abilities to use. Like the Klown jump that lets you instantly teleport to any part of the map you and your fellow Klowns revealed. As well as some more useful ones, like summoning a balloon dog to track down humans better. Playing as a Klown does not make you completely overpowered though. As a human with the right melee weapon and timing can kill you. However, you have the option to respawn after a set amount of time while the humans do not.

The Human Side

So, while playing as a Klown in Killer Klowns from Outer Space sounds very fun, how does the human side play out? Well, to put it plainly, not as fun. While the Klowns start with a ranged and melee weapon, the humans start out with nothing. Forcing every player to stealth around the map and find each other by setting rendezvous points around the map to help their chances of survival, while also finding food to regenerate health and energy drinks to increase their running speed. But they also have to find their own weapons to fight off any Klowns while searching for key items to escape. This leads to the beginning of each match instilling a sense of dread for anyone who is not a Klown.

More often than not, while running around and looking for a way to survive, you will become the target of the Klowns and die quickly due to the fact that they can see you if you are not walking slow or crouching in stealth. Killer Klowns from Outer Space as a result, has a bit of a balancing issue. As the only way to help your teammates after dying is to play mini games that give you three random items to hand to the teammate you are spectating. This is a fantastic feature, but if the resurrection machine that can only be used once has been used before you died If you put stuff in your inventory as the teammates remaining have a full inventory. You cannot pull those items from your inventory after they have a free slot.

There is also a lack of a proper tutorial. There are ones you can read, but due to the reliance on understanding what to look for. Both in items to help you survive and fight. As well as key items to activate escape routes, like a keycard for a bunker. It would help immensely to allow players to get a feel for everything, before dropping them into their first match. I also feel like giving the humans a starter breakable weapon would go a long way. While also making certain weapons unbreakable to balance the melee system with the Klowns.

Performance and Presentation

Killer Klowns from Outer Space is a very visually impressive game. I played on the Xbox Series X, and it runs at a smooth sixty frames-per-second, at 4k resolution. The art style blends together realism and simplicity. With the signature grotesque design of the Klowns standing out specifically.

The menus are also very simple and easy to navigate through. Especially the customization menu, which is very robust for the Klowns. While similarly feeling unbalanced with the humans. You can change Klowntalities, their weapons you spawn with and one of their abilities. But with the humans, the customization is strictly cosmetic and passive stats like stamina, health and strength for melee weapon damage output. I do think explaining some of the stats in detail could help as well. While the differences do look sizeable, I would not know what general percentage I would be losing if I chose the rebellious human over the starter.

The audio design is also a major factor of the game. I was not playing with headphones for the first few matches and was impressed by how the 3D audio enhances the experience. Hearing the Klowns shoes squeak in a building behind me while hiding in a dumpster helped me know when I could leave the hiding spot. Also having the original Killer Klowns from Outer Space song in the main menu is a nice nostalgic touch. While also having some very intense music playing in the final minutes of a match. It really helps solidify the “do or die” feel in those moments.

Accessibility Settings

Killer Klowns from Outer Space also features some accessibility, with some room for improvement. You can enable subtitles, change the text scaling, and the text color. As well as the background color the text boss has. You can choose from black, white and yellow for both. There are also color deficiency options that range from Deuteranope, Protanope, and Tritanope.

For those who are hard of hearing, the game also features voice transcription for voice chat. Meaning if you cannot hear your teammates, the game will transcribe what they are saying so you can see it on screen. One room for improvement, that could help people who cannot button mash to get back while playing as a human is the ability to assist with the quick time event to get back up. As a Klown, this is not a problem due to the ability to respawn naturally. But as a human, this would naturally be a problem due to that inability.

Closing Impressions on Killer Klowns from Outer Space

Overall, Killer Klowns from Outer Space is hard to recommend one way or the other from my perspective. I only have so much time invested into it at this moment. Plus, I am not a big fan of the Asymmetric multiplayer horror games, but this game is a nice introduction. I just wish there was a proper tutorial and way to get a feel for every map before jumping into the game proper. It makes those early matches awkward if you are with people who have played for a while and want people who know what they are doing. I also think some balancing between the Klowns, and humans is needed, but the game has just released. So, any and all changes they have planned may or may not improve the experience in the future.

Killer Klowns From Outer Space is available now on PlayStation 5, Steam, and Xbox Series X|S for $39.99.

Disclaimer – A key was provided for coverage of this game. Special thanks to Illfonic.