Killer Is Dead

Killer Is Dead is an action game where players take control of protagonist Mondo Zappa. As Zappa, the player goes through twelve story-driven missions selected from a world map; they range from short linear levels to longer levels that require exploration. Some level areas also require the activation of switches to move forward. During missions, Mondo fights a variety of enemies using his katana and cybernetic gun arm; using the latter changes the camera angle to an over-the-shoulder perspective.

The combat of Killer Is Dead relies on maintaining the combo meter. Each time Mondo hits an enemy, he starts a combo chain which grows as long as Mondo lands consecutive hits without an enemy hitting him. At the highest combo level, special attacks are unlocked which provide different upgrade materials. Some enemies can only be finished off with a cinematic final attack, triggered once Mondo has absorbed enough blood from his enemies by chaining together combos.

Killer Is Dead is set on a near future version of Earth, where space tourism and cybernetic enhancements have become a reality. A key element of the story is Dark Matter, a malign energy stemming from the dark side of the Moon that negatively affects weak-willed humans and generates mindless monsters called Wires. It is the job of a government-funded group dubbed the Bryan Execution Firm to kill those infected with Dark Matter using people known as "Executioners", although doing so will inevitably lead the chosen Executioner to be overwhelmed by Dark Matter.

The main protagonist is Mondo Zappa, a new Executioner with a business-like attitude towards his work and a liking for beautiful women. His superiors at the Bryan Execution Firm are its cyborg founder Bryan Roses and his second-in-command Vivienne Squall. Mondo is assisted and lives with Mika Takekawa, an air-headed young girl. Three key characters are David, the main antagonist who usurps control of the Moon and directs the Dark Matter; Dolly the Dream Witch, a woman who can enter a person's dreams and alter their memories; and Moon River, the previous ruler of the Moon and one of an ancient line that acted as magistrates and overseers of the Earth. Many characters are thematically connected to celestial bodies; Mondo represents the Earth, David symbolises Mars, Mika the Sun, Moon River the Moon.

Planning for Killer Is Dead began in late 2009 and proper development started in early 2011. Suda was inspired to title the project Killer Is Dead after The Smiths's song "The Queen is Dead". Initially the title was only a placeholder; over time Suda felt the name matched the style he wanted. The game was announced in April 2012, the debut trailer premiered in January 2013.

Suda describes it as a "Dark Side 007" game, drawing inspiration from Ian Fleming's James Bond books and films. Unlike Bond, the main character of Killer Is Dead deals with a seedier underworld that the surface world does not register.

During its first week, the PS3 version of Killer Is Dead debuted in fifth place, selling just over 17,700 units. By the end of 2013, the PS3 version had sold a little over 23,000 units. In the United Kingdom, the game did poorly during its debut month, reaching twenty-sixth place behind many other new titles including Lost Planet 3 and Rayman Legends. As of May 6th, 2025 the games has sold over 1 million copies.

The PS3 and 360 versions of the game both scored 64 out of 100 on review aggregate site Metacritic, based on 39 and 38 critic reviews respectively. Japanese magazine Famitsu gave the game a Platinum award as part of its review; its world design and gameplay were both praised, but the magazine criticised control issues similar to those seen in earlier Grasshopper Manufacture games. Western critics were generally mixed about the game. The story was cited as either poorly written or confusing, while the gameplay was praised for its emphasis on dodging despite a lack of evolution for secondary mechanics.