It’s taken Killing Floor sixteen years to reach its third mainline entry, and with Killing Floor 2 now nearly a decade old, hopes and expectations for this long-awaited sequel were understandably high. Personally, I only dipped into the second game briefly—thanks, PS Plus—but I know fans weren’t exactly thrilled after February’s closed beta with Tripwire Interactive pushing back release to address some of their complaints. So, what exactly have they delivered after all this time?
Let’s start with the plot, or rather, the lack of one. There’s no introduction, no cinematic, not even a text crawl to set the scene of the techno zombie apocalypse you’re facing. You’re simply dropped into a home base for a quick tutorial, and then it’s straight into the action. The core gameplay loop remains unchanged: pick from one of six character classes—Commando, Sharpshooter, Firebug, Medic, Engineer, and a stereotypical Japanese ninja—and then fight through five waves of increasingly aggressive “Zeds” on one of eight maps, culminating in a boss battle.
Between waves, there’s a short break—maybe the Zeds are having a KitKat?—and during this time you can spend any dosh you’ve earned on new guns, ammo, and supplies. As you progress, you’ll automatically collect items like brain matter and eyeballs, which can be used to modify weapons. Don’t think too hard about it, but somehow an eyeball gives you a better magazine, and brain matter improves your gun grip. It is complete nonsense.
Zed Time, the signature slow-motion combat mechanic, is still here, triggered when your team racks up enough kills. It’s a double-edged sword: it looks great and lets you line up stylish shots, but if it activates while you’re reloading, you’ll burn half the slo-mo watching your character load a new magazine rather than do anything useful. The game attempts to inject a bit of narrative by issuing mid-battle objectives (“Go here,” “Find this”), but it’s largely lost in the chaos of combat.
The maps are all slight variations on the same theme of futuristic apocalyptic ruin, but they are all structured differently. There’s Convoy with its long tunnels and turret placements, and another leans into verticality, but while layouts differ, the visual design is samey, somewhat drab. Environmental destruction is minimal: coffee mugs shrug off shotgun blasts like they a cool summer breeze, though you’ll get to destroy the odd security camera.
And… that’s about it. There’s eight maps to run about and shoot enemies over fives waves and then one of three final bosses, you’ll slowly grind through upgrades to weapons and skills, and repeat.
You can play Killing Floor 3 solo or with up to six players. I tried solo first, and it was about as fun as being repeatedly slapped with a frozen haddock. The game simply isn’t designed for lone wolves. Maps lack safe zones, and enemies attack from every angle. With no one to watch your back, it quickly devolves into frustration. Multiplayer, however, is where the game shines.
Teaming up with a mix of classes transforms the experience. You don’t even need voice chat as the matchmaking usually ensures a balanced squad. With just a mildly competent team, the Normal difficulty becomes a joyful romp of bullets, blood, and teamwork. The gunplay is excellent, with satisfying heft to larger weapons, and the visual feedback is spot-on; headshots trigger geysers of gore, leg shots trip enemies, and dismemberment remains as gloriously grisly as ever. Zeds move fast, vaulting over obstacles and swarming with intent, but the pacing is tuned just right—you feel under pressure without being overwhelmed.
After a few sessions, you’ll have gathered enough crafting components to start customising weapons. This adds a new layer of gameplay which allows you to work on your play style. I went with a freezing grenade launcher which let me immobilise the enemy so my team mates could smash the frozen Zeds at their leisure. Fully upgrading a weapon can actually make it more effective than some shop options, so the grind actually feels worthwhile.
Unfortunately, Killing Floor 3 is riddled with strange interface decisions. On the Skills screen, you’re prompted to press Square to upgrade, but that only takes you to another menu where you then press X to actually do it. The Supply Pass is also awkward to navigate and you can scroll the focus off the screen and lose it, and while some items are labelled “Free,” they still require a token to unlock. It’s very confusing,
Priced between £25 and £35 depending on your platform, Killing Floor 3 is half the cost of a typical AAA release, and that price point sets expectations and allowances. There are no flashy CGI cutscenes, no celebrity voice cast, and some glaringly rough parts: enemies vanish mid-death and bosses clip through walls so they can barrel down corridors that are clearly to small for them. Sure, they have added new elements such as mantling, but it is 2025 and this is running on PS5. Enemies should not just vanish before your eyes like a PS2 game. Even the map names are telling. One is literally just called Office. That’s it. Office. It’s perfunctory and basic, and that sums up Killing Floor 3.
