The Underrated GameCube Shooter You Absolutely Need To Play
The GameCube's library is full of underrated gems, but one particular shooter stands out from the pack. Killer7 followed the exploits of a peculiar group of assassins in the near future. These assassins were actually the different personalities of one man, all of whom manifested with different skills.
Killer7 was a weird game, combining story-driven adventure game elements with intensely violent shooting sequences. Certain puzzles within the game would have to be tackled by a specific persona, giving the game's progression a tiny bit of a Metroidvania flair.
Despite its ambitious scope, Killer7 was released to divisive reviews from critics. While the game was praised for its complex storyline and innovative cel-shaded graphics, it also received quite a bit of criticism for its over the top graphic violence and coarse language, as well as for being super weird. Although Killer7 was released to both the PlayStation 2 and GameCube, critics tended to prefer the GameCube release. GameSpot's review considered the GameCube release's controls, graphics, and load times to be leaps and bounds ahead of that of the PS2 version.
With all of that praise, you may be wondering why you haven't heard of this offbeat action title.
The legacy of Killer7
Perhaps because of its bizarre nature and mixed reviews, Killer7 didn't sell particularly well in its initial run, making it more of a cult classic than a smash success. In 2005, IGN named Killer7 the "Best Game No One Played" on the GameCube. IGN theorized that Killer7 was too "experimental" to garner a more mainstream audience. Basically, Killer7 is just one of those games that many people still don't understand.
Despite not achieving wide success, Killer7 has remained popular among the gamers who appreciated its odd spin on the shooter genre. It has gone on to be considered one of the best GameCube games of all time.
In 2006, Devil's Due began publishing a Killer7 comic book series, which retold the story and filled in some of the blanks. The Killer7 comic book was cancelled after only four issues, leaving the story incomplete. Luckily for the fans, this wasn't the last they'd see of Killer7.
A remastered version of Killer7 was released in 2018 for PC, which received slightly better reviews than the original release of the game. If you have yet to dive into the world of Killer7, then this latest version is the perfect opportunity.