Killing Time

About

Killing Time is a first-person shooter that swaps military ops for archaeological mystery. You play a former Egyptology student hunting a vanished artifact on a haunted island, battling ghosts and demons while solving environmental puzzles. Combat feels weighty with varied weapon upgrades, but the real hook is the shifting environment, rooms rotate, walls vanish, and ancient traps force you to rethink routes. The narrative unfolds through scattered journals and cryptic dialogue, blending academic curiosity with dark comedy. The game’s standout is its surreal atmosphere. Boldt Castle’s real-world architecture anchors the supernatural chaos, creating a hauntingly elegant setting. Despite 1995 release date, its mix of action and puzzle design holds up, with 85% of 3DO community users noting the clever level geometry. Gallows humor in dialogue and the Water-Clock’s mythological stakes add depth, making it a memorable relic of early 3D gaming.

Storyline

In Killing Time, the main character is an ex-Egyptology student out to discover the mystery behind a missing Egyptian artifact. The ancient "Water-Clock of Thoth" had been discovered by his professor of Egyptology, Dr. Hargrove, but the artifact went missing soon after a visit by the expedition's patron, Tess Conway. Tess is the rich inheritor of her family's estate on Matinicus Isle, where she keeps her friends, and pawns close by so that she might gain the true power of the Water-Clock. As the game progresses, the player finds out that Tess, has used a number of people to gain what she desires, but at a price. Something went horribly wrong, transforming everyone on the entire isle into either restless ghosts, demons or the undead. In the opening cinematic on all versions of the game, Boldt Castle located on Heart Island in the Thousand Islands region of the Saint Lawrence River is used as the visual representation of the Conway Estate.