Developed and published by Illfonic and Teravision Games, Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game is an asymmetrical multiplayer horror game based on the iconic film from the late 80s, offering players the chance tomake their escape as the citizens of Crescent Cove, or being their invasion as the Killer Klowns from Outer Space. The objective is straightforward; Up to three Klowns must capture and eliminate the humans. The seven humans, on the other hand, just need to escape.

After deciding between a Private Match, to play online with friends, or learn the gameplay against bots, or Quick Play, where you’ll be dropped in with players online, you are randomly assigned as either a Klown, or a huamn. As you play the game, you’ll level up and earn new weapons and skills to use. If you are playing as a Klown, you’ll potentially have access to one of five classes, with the default being the Ranger. As one of the starter classes, the stats are fairly well-balanced and it has a 3-bar rating on health. This makes it best suited to getting around the map, clearing the fog of war, and helping out the with the Klown Jump skill. The Trapper’s stats are more focused on movement and speed, though it has a lower health pool compared to the Ranger, so it’s best used for quickly scouting out and relaying human positions to teammates and helping to plan out ambushes.

The first unlocked Klown class is the Tracker, and like the previous classes, the Tracker is the best of both worlds. It comes with the same health as the Ranger, a lower cost to stamina than the Trapper, and its role is simply to find and track the Human players. Dealing damage to a human will apply a mark on them, highlighting them for a few seconds and giving their location to the other Klowns. of where they are on the map for a few seconds. The Tank is the biggest threat, especially if you are in a fight. It has the highest health bar and hits hard, but this is balanced by its lack of speed, so running away is a very appealing option. Once you reach level 50, you’ll unlock the Brawler, and this Klown can be quite the nuisance, despite its small frame. Its strength stat is the lowest, but it makes up for it by hitting more often, and its movement speed is the highest, so running will only bring a painful death.

The Klowns also come equipped with weapons and skills from the movie, such as a ray gun that encases the target in cotton candy, or a shotgun that fires a spread of popcorn. They can also use the previously mentioned Klown Jump, leaping into the air to see an overlay of the map, and if the fog of war has been removed, they can choose a location to land. They can also enrage themselves with the “LOL” power-up, raising their health and speed for a short period – perfect for chasing down a target or running from a mob of humans. My favourite throwback to the movie, by far, was using the dog – a balloon animal, you can lead around to sniff out the humans, but it was also fun driving an invisible car around the map, getting from A to B faster, and trying to run the Humans over.

The Klowns win a round by eliminating all of the humans, and this can be done by either hanging them in a candy-floss cocoon or killing them with an animation, such as a Klown hiding in a pizza box and leaping out to blast them as the delivery takes place, but there are many others that were featured in the movie. Alternatively, simply letting the timer run out will result in a Klownpocalypse; a bomb that will finish off any humans left in the match. You can also trigger this early by hanging cocooned humans, but while the concept is good, I wish it had a bit more of a cinematic feeling to it, much like other finishers. Right now, it’s just a flash of pink light, and very underwhelming.

As a human, your objective is to escape, but unlike other asymmetrical horror games, you can fight back, and like the Klowns, there are five classes for the human team. The default is the Athletic class, providing the best movement and stamina out of them all, but it’s very low in strength, so one-on-one fights aren’t ideal.

Rebellious is the second class, with stamina, movement and strength stats being more balanced, but offering slightly more health, meaning you can stay and fight that little bit longer. The Heroic is the high-strength class, designed to jump in and assist teammates. You might run a little slower, but you can hit a lot harder and buy some time for the team to escape.

The Resourceful class comes with the lowest stamina, but it has a significant boost to movement compared to the other classes, making it great for darting around the map to grab items to repair and activate escape routes. It also has a decent strength stat, making it perfect for opportunistic attacks against Klowns. Lastly, the Tough class is the brawler of the group, with a very high strength stat. What it lacks in stamina, it more than makes up for it, regardless of what weapon it has in hand.

As you plan out your escape, you’ll find weapons such as baseballs, fire axes and firearms, so it’s not just a game of hide-and-seek, and there are a few options to work towards when it comes to escaping. You could use a boat, for example, which requires repairs and refuelling. There’s a bomb shelter, but you’ll need to start the generator before you can unlock it with a keycard, or you can escape across a bridge, but you’ll need a key for the padlock and a weapon that can tear the wooden planks off the gate. If you really want to test your skills, you can also use the Klowns’ tech against them by finding a way to power up the teleporter.

Finally, as another throwback to the movie, the Terenzi Brothers might just smash through a wall in an ice cream van. As it happens in the last few moments of the round, this is probably the hardest of all, and if you need to be in the right place at the right time… BOOM!

If they’re taken out, Klowns will respawn after 40 seconds, letting them jump back in to deal with the human team until the round ends, Klown victory or otherwise. On the other hand, if a human has left the game area, dead or alive, they are still able to play a role in helping others escape. The “Hand of Fate” system is a set of short mini-games you can play while waiting for the round to end, and should you successfully complete these, you can give the remaining players random items that will assist them. These could be items key to opening an escape path or boosts that restore health and stamina. Additionally, players still on the ground could find the resurrection machine randomly placed in the level – this will bring back every dead human, but it only works once. Regardless of the game’s outcome, players can unlock cosmetic items such as clothing and hairstyles as they play through the various rounds, and these can be used to create some truly unique characters.

Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game looks great – it keeps the ’80s theme in mind so the humans’ outfits are true to the era, and the theme continues with how stores are decorated, and the designs of the vehicles scattered around the different maps. You might find yourself navigating city streets or wandering through spooky woodlands, and these are all wonderfully crafted to give off an eerie 80s horror vibe. Designs are similar to the previous Illfonic game, Friday the 13th, but atmospheric lighting plays a greater part, alongside the vibrant colours of carnival decorations and set pieces scattered around the map. You’ll find walls of cotton candy, streamers and circus tents alongside creepy locations, with bright neon lights to match the Klown’s alien technology, leaving you wondering if that flash was from the environment or if you’ve been seen.

The 80s was a great decade for music, and while the movie’s banger soundtrack makes a comeback, the real standout was the proximity chat. I love a good horror game, and proximity chat can make or break them. Being able to group up and make plans with a teammate and not having the entire map hear you, or the screams and back-and-forth banter as a Klown chases a human past you is an incredibly immersive experience.

Loud sounds and alarms from a failed skill check or shattering glass as you climb through a window could give away your position, but don’t worry, human players will have a slight advantage; the Klowns love their squeaky shoes. A mild backing track plays throughout the game intensifying in the last few minutes of each match, while the Klowns laugh, growl and snarl when attacking Humans. As the prey in this deadly encounter, humans will cry out in fear and pain when being attacked, or announce points of interest, such as an escape path, as well as what the group will need to find to get out.

Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game has all the makings of a great asymmetrical multiplayer game, and it could very well replace most of the current fan favourites. Even if you’re only playing with a small group of friends, the random rotation of who plays on what team and the variety of options to escape will help keep it feeling fresh. The different classes, both Klowns and Humans, offer new challenges and hurdles, and no escape attempt will ever feel the same. I look forward to seeing where they might go with this in future updates, because it really stands above the rest.

Written by: Shane Walsh