Killer Queen Black | Switch Review

October 14, 2019 Scott Clark

A few years ago, I was visiting my good friend, Mike, in Portland. While I was there, Mike insisted I get to a barcade called Ground Kontrol. Not being one to turn down any opportunity to play games and drink beer, I happily complied. As I perused the seemingly endless amount of pinball tables and upright cabinets from my childhood, I saw an unfamiliar machine. Killer Queen was different than any other arcade game I had seen. It had two massive screens back-to-back with five sets of controls attached to each. I immediately fell in love with the madness that is this 5-on-5 arcade action. Now that Killer Queen Black, the home version of the game, has made it to console, I can finally play this at home to my heart’s content.

Guaranteed to Blow Your Mind

If you’ve never had the pleasure of playing the arcade machine (which is very possible, as it’s somewhat rare), the gameplay is deceptively simple. The playing field is a single-screen, two-dimensional platformer arena. Each team is comprised of one “Queen” player and a number of “Workers”. The Queen has the ability to fly as well as attack, while the Workers merely jump and carry berries. At least at first, anyway. The Workers have the ability to take a berry to random chambers on the map that will turn them into Warriors that can also fight.

While all of that makes Killer Queen Black sound like nothing more than a deathmatch or battle royale, it’s anything but. There are three different paths to victory, and only one of them is a military victory. In order to win with brute force, your team must destroy the opposing team’s Queen three times. But that’s just the beginning. Your team can also have an economic victory by gathering enough berries and bringing them back to your hive before the other team does. Lastly, there’s a “snail” victory. In order to win this way, one of the players mounts a slow-moving snail and rides it to their goal.

Now that I have it all down on paper, I’ll be the first to admit that this concept sounds utterly ridiculous. But once you finish your first round it will all make sense, and you’ll be eager to start again. The constant push and pull of strategies keeps you on your toes, and it’s a hilariously good time with a group of friends.

An Invitation You Can’t Decline

Killer Queen Black takes the formula from the arcade and translates it to console with some very welcome changes. First off, each team is now limited to teams of four instead of five. While many might look at this as a limiting factor, I find it a positive one. It’s hard enough gathering four to eight people in one place to play in front of my television. Gathering ten friends would be incredibly difficult. You can even play up to eight people locally, if you have two Switches and a couple copies of the game.

With that said, you can play this one online with friends or randoms if you have the necessary online service. And I found this to be a much more enjoyable experience than playing against the enemy AI. I’m not the best at the game, but I found the computer teams incredibly difficult to defeat. If there’s a way to adjust the AI’s ability level, I was unable to find one. That criticism almost seems unfair, however, when this game was clearly developed with multiplayer in mind.

Other changes include new maps, new Warrior abilities, and three modes to play online: Unranked, Ranked, and Custom. This truly feels like a brand new take on a modern classic that has been built from the ground up.

Killer Queen Black Is Recommended at the Price

I’ve been waiting for Killer Queen Black for quite a while, and I’m happy to say that the wait was worth it. Playing with my team was even more laugh-out-loud funny than I expected it to be, and I can’t wait to organize another gathering with friends to play more. You absolutely have to try this game to see why it’s so special. If you’re a fan of fast, frenetic, multiplayer arcade action, you won’t be disappointed.

To hear Zack and I gush even more about Killer Queen Black, check out our E3 2019 Day One episode.

This review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy of Killer Queen Black provided by Stride PR for coverage purposes. It is also currently available on Steam and Discord with future platforms planned.