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Killer Instinct (1994 video game)

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For the FOX television series, see Killer Instinct (TV series).
For the reference to the way humans sometimes forget issues such as ethics, and ‘go for the jugular’, when they sense that an opponent is near ‘death’, literally or figuratively, see Killer Instinct (human behaviour)
Killer Instinct
Killer Instinct screenshot.
Developer(s)Rare
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Release1994
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Up to 2 players simultaneously
Arcade systemUltra 64, essentially a Nintendo 64

Killer Instinct is a fighting game by Rare and Nintendo. Initially released in arcades in 1994, and claiming to use an "Ultra 64" hardware engine, Killer Instinct was released the following year on the SNES home console. The SNES version was packaged with Killer Cuts, an audio CD which had arrangements of the game's soundtrack. The CD was later sold separately via Nintendo Power's catalogue.

Developed using high-powered SGI computers and 3D modeling software from Alias, Killer Instinct was considered a graphical leader when it was released. It featured animated backgrounds that were a pre-rendered movie which changed angles depending on your location and complex animated characters. This technique causes the backgrounds to have an unprecedented three dimensional look, yet look far better than was possible at the time in real time three dimensional rendering. Bram Stoker's Dracula for the Sega CD later used this technique. Killer Instinct was also the first arcade game with an internal hard disk.

There is a sequel named Killer Instinct 2. The Nintendo 64 version of the same game is called Killer Instinct Gold. Killer Instinct had a black case when most SNES games had a grey case.

While the original Killer Instinct was successful in arcades and on the SNES, the game and its sequel were critically panned for its somewhat artificial combo system.

Features

Killer Instinct is notable for having a complex and standardised combo system, based on three strengths of moves (Quick, Medium, and Fierce). A special move or jump-in move, followed immediately by a second move, known as an auto-double, would initiate the combo sequence. The combo can then be lengthed by the use of linkers, more auto-doubles, and finishers.

However, a player is able to 'break' out of the large, and potentially devastating combos, via a special attack (known as a "combo breaker"). The combo breaker has to be of a strength superior to the exact move in the combo to be successful.

While the combo system within the game was lauded as being deep initially, matches between more advanced players often broke down to single hits and defensive struggles. Successful combo breakers are also very difficult to intiate, as it is near impossible to identify the type of move the opponent makes. Ultimately combo breaking was relegated to a sort of guessing game.

The game also suffers from many glitches due the complex system, players (and AI) can simply defeat the opponent by quickly tapping low punches or kicks, and when playing against AI. Also, the CPU controlled characters deal a lot more damage than the player and even can defeat the player within 4 or 5 hits, as opposed to at least 14 hits for the player. This insane handicap was a major drawback, along with the hard-to beat boss Eyedol, this 2 headed monster often defeats the player with a single combo and most of his moves are unstoppable; an example of SNK Boss Syndrome. These flaws were mainly rectified in the SNES port.

As in many fighting games, the players attack each other, trying to deplete the other's life bar. Unlike most fighting games though, there is techinically only one round per fight. However, both players are granted two lifebars. Once a player's initial lifebar is completely depleted, he/she will fall down. At this time his/her second lifebar will become active, and the fighting will continue immediatly.

At the end of a match players are able to perform a finishing move (similar to those in Mortal Kombat), known as a Danger move. Additionally, a player could also use an Ultra finisher or Ultimate finisher when his/her opponents lifeline is extremely low. The Ultra finisher would link automatically into an Ultra combo, which could theoretically push the maximum number of combo hits to 80. Finally, the winning fighter could also make the loser dance in a generic finishing move known as an 'Humiliation'.

Combos

  • 3 hits - Triple combo
  • 4 hits - Super combo
  • 5 hits - Hyper combo
  • 6 hits - Brutal combo
  • 7 hits - Master combo
  • 8 hits - Awesome combo
  • 9 hits - Blaster combo
  • 10 hits - Monster combo
  • 11 hits - King combo
  • 12+ hits - Killer combo

Story

Ultratech is a very powerful company which organizes a tournament called Killer Instinct. Along with regular participants, experiments Ultratech created also fight in the tournament. Ultratech also discovers a technology to make bridges between dimensions and also release from his dimensional prison a two headed monster called Eyedol, an ancient warrior that was locked away along with his rival.

Characters

The game features ten characters, most of which are owned by Nintendo:

  • Jago: A Tibetan monk following the Tiger Spirit. He considers the defeat of Ultratech as his destiny. He is considered as Killer Instinct's version of Street Fighter's Ryu.
  • T.J. Combo: A former heavyweight boxing champion for 5 years. He was stripped of his title and kicked out of the circuit due to sheer brutality towards his opponents and also was reveled to have mechnical arms. Ultratech promises him to return his title if he wins the tournament.
  • Spinal: An Ultratech minion. He is a product of cell regeneration, a living skeleton of an ancient warrior. He seems to fight for sheer enjoyment.
  • Thunder: A Native American Chief, armed with a tomahawk, who enters the tournament to find out what happened to his missing brother Eagle.
  • Glacius: An alien who was captured by Ultratech and promised freedom if he wins the tournament. He gets his nickname from his body's icy liquid composition and ability to shape-shift. His character design is rumoured to be influenced by the T-1000 from the Hollywood film Terminator 2.
  • Fulgore: A cyborg created by Ultratech and is a prototype for future robots. Entered in the tournament as a final test of its capabilities. He is arguably the poster child of the franchise.
  • Cinder: A criminal who was promised early release by Ultratech in exchange for participating in chemical weapons research. As a result of an accident during testing his body is composed entirely of flame. In order to return to his original form, he is forced to defeat Glacius in the tournament.
  • Sabrewulf: A man stricken by Lycanthropy who is promised a cure by Ultratech if he wins the tournament. This is a cameo appearance of Sabre Man, known from their 1984 game Sabre Wulf.
  • Black Orchid: Hired by Ultratech as a secretary, she is really a spy working for an unknown party.
  • Riptor: A genetically engineered raptor-human hybrid created as a prototype by Ultratech. The tournament serves to test his abilities as a killing machine.
  • Eyedol: A two-headed, ancient mystical warlord who was trapped in a dimensional prison in the distant past. Ultratech released him to be the final combatant in the tournament.

Character similarities

Many of the character's exhibit strong similarities to characters from other fighting games.

  • Jago (as mentioned above) is a Tibetan monk whose goal in life is to achieve spiritual purity. In this sense he is very similar to Ryu from Street Fighter. His projectiles and flying uppercuts are also very similar to Ryu's special moves.
  • T.J. Combo has similarities to many black fighting game characters. The character's outlook and past are somewhat similar to those of Balrog from Street Fighter and he has bionic enhancements in his arms similarly to Jax from Mortal Kombat. Unlike Jax or Balrog, it is questionable whether Combo's intentions are good or malignant. Another point of interest is that both Jax and Combo use a machine-gun at a point during the games as either a special-move or a fatality.
  • Fulgore is sometimes considered to have a very strong similarity to the Protoss from StarCraft. Fulgore also has some common features with the cyborgs of the Mortal Kombat series (such as a type of an artificial hair-style)
  • Spinal shares an ability with Mortal Kombat's Shang Tsung by being able to momentarily take on the shape of another character from the game.
  • Saberwulf (as mentioned above) is a nod at a similarly named character from an older Rare game.
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