Killing Floor 3 Gets First Dev Diary For The Franchise's 15th Anniversary

It's been 15 years since a tiny team of modders first released Killing Floor, kickstarting the popular, blood-soaked horror franchise. Now, the game's veteran devs have dished on the upcoming Killing Floor 3, discussing just how much has changed at studio Tripwire Interactive in those 15 years.

In the developer-diary video, some of Tripwire's veteran devs reminisce on the history of the Killing Floor franchise, from its origins with a tiny team creating on a restrictive schedule and budget, to the increased size and scope of Killing Floor 2.

When it came to creating the third game in the franchise, the developers are looking to find the perfect balance between old and new. "I knew I wanted it to return to [Killing Floor 1's] level of horror, have some cult elements, but become a little more mainstream," said studio creative director Bryan Wynia, who only joined Tripwire after the release of Killing Floor 2, but has been a fan of the franchise for a lot longer.

Wynia briefly touches on the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the Killing Floor 3 development process--though in this case it actually turned into an unexpected positive. With the entire studio switching to remote work, it meant Tripwire could now "open the floodgates to people that wanted to be part of the team."

At that point in development, the Tripwire team was working on early concepts for Killing Floor 3, experimenting with fun new ways the game could play. While early prototypes for the game were just rough, greyboxed levels, it was enough for the team to get a feel for what Killing Floor 3's gruesome reveal trailer might look like when it was ready to reveal it last year.

"It's been 10 years [since Killing Floor 2]; let's step the game right up and give people some new challenges," Tripwire VP Alan Wilson concludes in the anniversary video, which shows off plenty of footage of the new sequel in development.

Killing Floor 3 is set in the year 2091, 70 years after the events of Killing Floor 2. Taking the role of an operative from rebel group Nightfall, the player can join up to five teammates in their fight against megacorp Horzine and its army of obedient bio-engineered monstrosities called Zeds.