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Play as a radio DJ whose callers are being murdered live on air in Killer FrequencyTrouble on the airwaves
Trouble on the airwaves
Image credit:Team 17 Digital
Image credit:Team 17 Digital
I am having an absolute riot playingKiller Frequency. It’s a first-personpuzzlehorror where you’re trying to help folks escape a rampaging murderer. Usually, when I read a game description like that, I’m already grabbing my cushion to hide behind and readying my cute puppy compilation video on a second screen, but Team17 have heavily leaned into the campy side of slasher horror with humour serving as the perfect buffer. No safety cushion or puppies needed here, folks.
Killer Frequency | Launch TrailerWatch on YouTube
Killer Frequency | Launch Trailer
With each person that calls in, you need to listen to their situation and help them escape the killer, all while being live on air. It’s almost like a text adventure via audio, as you need to listen carefully and figure out the best course of action. During one phone call the caller asked what weapon they should nab: a police baton, a can of pepper spray, or a tazer. The pepper spray was appealing but - like a bolt of lightning to my synapses - I suddenly remembered from an earlier conversation that the killer wears a mask, which would make the pepper spray completely and utterly useless. I told her to snatch the tazer and, after a tense encounter, she unleashed it and fried them, giving her enough time to escape. I have no idea what would have happened if she’d grabbed the baton, and I don’t wanna think about it.
A lovely detail that Team17 didn’t really need to go so hard on, but is fun that they did, is the actual radio station desk where you take the calls. It’s filled with buttons, knobs, tapes, records, and a lavish turntable that you can mess with. There’s even a soundboard you can use to supply your listeners with a little comedic relief. You can also flick through a set of records and decide which tunes to play; it’s all very tactile. |Image credit:Team17 Digital
Having callers constantly talk you you through their situation as you give them instructions to follow is wonderfully tense. Given the mood of the game, if you do accidentally get someone murdered, Killer Frequency kinda shrugs and moves on. There’s no direct pressure to save all these eclectic folks, but you definitely want to. Successfully saving someone after a nervy back and forth feels so satisfying. Big brain energy. Oh yeah, and it’s the right thing to do, of course.
