Killer Queen was originally an arcade game that got so popular that the creators had to figure out a way to get the game to more people, and so… console porting! Killer Queen Black is the console version of the arcade game Killer Queen. It is a 4 vs 4 strategy action game in which you can win in 3 different ways: kill the opposing queen, collect all the berries, or race a snail; but no matter which way you choose to play, communication and teamwork are rewarded as much as skills.

Like an arcade game, the controls are simple, joystick on the left, buttons on the right to jump, attack, grab, and throw. As mentioned before, there are three ways to win. 1. Military Victory: Kill the opposing queen 3 times in the same game. 2. Economic Victory: workers collect berries and fill the empty holes, the first team to fill up their stores wins. 3. Snail Victory: worker/soldier rides the snail to a finish line.

While each endeavor may sound easy on its own, it’s not such an easy task to tackle them all at once. One player in each team plays the queen and the rest are workers. There are portals the queen can claim for her team so when her workers pass through with a berry, they become soldiers! Said soldiers can then also acquire weapons like lances, swords, and laser rifles, speed boosts, and more. Upgraded Soldiers become Warriors.

Usually, the queens go after each other while all the workers, soldiers, and warriors scramble to screw each other over and then… someone wins by riding the snail! Nobody saw it coming… Once you start talking to your teammates, you start making plans, or communicating things like “go get the snail!” or, “queen coming your way”, things get a bit more heated and more hectic. It’s definitely a strategy game, so it will all depend on who you're playing against and how good you are. Lots of fun nontheless!

Killer Queen Black sticks to its arcade roots with a retro 16-bit look and simple level maps contained completely within one screen. The colors are bright and saturated and the layout of the levels is simple enough. The levels themselves are simple platformers and relatively easy to maneuver around—at least when you don’t have a soldier chasing you. The old-school arcade feel is topped off by an 80’s rock soundtrack that fits it perfectly.

While Killer Queen Black looks and sounds like an 80’s arcade game, it definitely doesn’t feel like one. The controls are responsive and the gameplay can get very intense with 8 players on the screen all trying to win and sabotage each other, especially when speed power-ups get involved!

Not enough games allow for local gameplay these days. At the risk of sounding old, *in old lady voice* I remember when all we had was local multiplayer! Well, that’s not an issue for Killer Queen Black as you can play with friends at home or online, showing off your skills every time you invite someone over.

Killer Queen Black can be enjoyed in 3 modes: Quick Match for when you just want to get right to it, like when you make a bet or are arguing about what toppings to get on the pizza; Ranked Match places you in the worldwide ranking; and in Custom Mode, you can make your own rules and set up your own matches however you want. Besides that, there are currently six different battlefields and they will be adding more continuously. Seems like it’ll be hard to get bored of Killer Queen Black.