Line #2 Main/KillStreak


1	[[quoteright:172:[[Franchise/SuperMarioBros https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/killstreak_7117.png]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:172:[[VideoGame/UnrealTournament M-M-M-M-MONSTER KILL!!]]]]
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4	Let's be honest, anyone can get a couple kills by just mashing random buttons and hoping for the best. It takes an entirely different class of player to continue getting kills without dying or even taking damage and sometimes under a certain amount of time. Because of this, many VideoGames appropriately reward players who can perform these feats with special bonuses, exclusive titles, or even hidden content.
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6	May overlap with AwesomenessMeter, IdiosyncraticComboLevels, ChainLethalityEnabler, or ScoreMultiplier if an unbroken kill streak contributes to filling it. Compare UnstableEquilibrium, which is also a means of rewarding good players by helping them get even better scores.
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8	Subtrope of KillTally.
9	----
10	[[foldercontrol]]
11
12	!!Examples
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14	[[folder:Action-Adventure Games]]
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16	* ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed''
17	** While ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedBrotherhood'' doesn't feature any extra bonus for its Kill Streaks (actually named that, it's a feature where you can one-hit-kill an enemy who is in range of you when you kill another), its VR training does have a survival mode that counts how many enemies you can kill before taking damage.
18	** ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII'' plays this straighter - some EliteMooks are normally able to counter Kill Streaks, but if you have built up enough normal kills, they will be scared into vulnerability.
19	* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'':
20	** The [[GameplayGrading Stylish Rank]] system rewards you more Stylish Points for killing multiple enemies [[FlawlessVictory without taking any damage at all]] in between your kills. This means killing several enemies at once in a few seconds or in a single move can easily net you S ranks. The higher the rank, the more Orbs are dropped by the slain enemies. Inversely, if you get hit or take too long in killing the next enemy, the counter stops rising and your rank would drop or reset.
21	** Depending on the game, the need for kill streaks is encouraged, acknowledged, or enforced in a given scenario. For example:
22	*** Some Secret Missions require you to kill all enemies in the room without taking damage.
23	*** The Bloody Palace mode in later games reward you more time if you kill enemies while maintaining your Stylish Rank.
24	*** There are achievements in ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry4: Special Edition'' and ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' requiring you to kill 10 and 5 enemies within 1 second, respectively.
25	*** ''VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry'', the only game in the series which displays in-game feats in real-time, actively points out any kill streaks you've made by showing the phrases "Double Kill!", "Triple Kill!", or "Flawless Kill Streak!" on-screen.
26	*** The "Extra Bonus" system in ''Devil May Cry 5'' rewards you additional Red Orbs for accomplishing various optional feats, some of which include killing two, three, or five enemies at the same time.
27	* ''VideoGame/DinoCrisis 2'' rewards you handsomely for completing a kill streak in a given area, and throws a '''huge''' bonus on top of that for scoring one without taking any hits. Since the points are used as in-game currency to buy weapons, health and ammo, you have twice the incentive to avoid enemies, but you also have to be aggressive and expose yourself to more danger so you can rack up the kill streaks needed to make it worth your while. You can eventually purchase an upgrade that allows the timer to tick down much more slowly between kills, allowing you ease up on the pace and play more defensively.
28	* ''VideoGame/TheMatrixPathOfNeo'' has these - killing a SWAT team in 5 minutes, surviving 10 waves of Smiths that earns new moves and unlocks ConceptArt.
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30	[[/folder]]
31
32	[[folder:Fighting Games]]
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34	* ''VideoGame/{{Divekick}}'': calls out your consecutive headshot streaks. "Double Kill" for two, "Multi Kill" for three, "On a Rampage" for four, and "Total Domination" for a perfect 5-headshot streak. You'll get a PSN trophy if you pull off Total Domination in a ranked match.
35	* ''[[VideoGame/SoulSeries Soul Calibur 2]]'': Features a "Survivor" mode based on killing multiple opponents without dying.
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37	[[/folder]]
38
39	[[folder:First-Person Shooter]]
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41	* ''[[VideoGame/BattlefieldBadCompany Battlefield Bad Company 2]]'' rewards players with medals for Kill Streaks 6 or 8 kills long. Later ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'' games have a similar experience bonus for managing to kill multiple people in a short amount of time.
42	* ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' awards [[ExperienceBooster XP bonuses]] for consecutive kills with no more than a few seconds between each. The top level is called "Conveyor of Death" and requires 25 kills. Characters also have "Kill Skills" that activate upon killing enemies and remain active as long as you're able to keep killing.
43	* Beginning with ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'', games in the ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' series have deployable Kill Streak rewards for reaching certain streak counts in multiplayer:
44	** ''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' has three: a [[EnemyDetectingRadar UAV]] (3), an [[DeathFromAbove Air Strike]] (5) and an [[GunshipRescue Attack Helicopter]] (7).
45	** ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyWorldAtWar'' also has three: a Recon Plane (3), an Artillery Strike (5) and [[AngryGuardDog Attack Dogs]] (7).
46	** ''Modern Warfare 2'' introduces Death Streaks as well, giving a player who is suffering a string of deaths without killing anyone a helping hand to turn the tide. While the player can still only equip three Kill Streak rewards at a time, they have an expanded list to choose from, all the way from [=UAVs=] (3), ''[[InterfaceScrew counter]]''-[=UAVs=] (4) and sentry guns (5) up to an AC-130 (11), {{EMP}}s (15) and even a [[NukeEm Tactical Nuke]] (25) that [[InstantWinCondition immediately wins the game for that player's team]]. This game's utilization and prevalence of streaks (in particular the aforementioned Nuke) [[BrokenBase broke the base]]. This game also introduced a reward for players who kill others who are just a kill short of a Kill Streak reward (Buzzkill).
47	** ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps'' also has an expansive list of Kill Streaks, such as a deployable SAM launcher that can destroy opposing killstreak rewards, and an SR-71 Blackbird, which is a better version of the Spy Plane which cannot be shot down. It also introduced bonus weapons that can be received as a streak reward, such as the "Death Machine" [[GatlingGood minigun]] and the "Grim Reaper" [[KillItWithFire incendiary rocket launcher]].
48	** ''Modern Warfare 3'' and ''[[VideoGame/CallOfDutyGhosts Ghosts]]'' expands on this with "Strike Packages", killstreak rewards tied to your custom classes - you can choose an Assault package to get the usual directly-offensive killstreak rewards with one class, a Support package to get ''point''streaks instead that don't reset upon your death and allow you to both help your team survive longer and see the enemy better with another class, or a Specialist package to acquire additional perks as you make kills with a third class. Regardless of your streak setup, there's also a hidden fourth kill/pointstreak, the M.O.A.B./K.E.M. Strike, at 25 kills, which is much like the Tactical Nuke but less abusable - it kills every enemy on the map, but rather than ending the game at that, just gives doubled experience to the team that called it in for the rest of the match.
49	** ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOpsII'' ([[VideoGame/CallOfDutyAdvancedWarfare and]] [[VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOpsIII be]][[VideoGame/CallOfDutyInfiniteWarfare yo]][[VideoGame/CallOfDutyWWII nd]]) switches to a "scorestreak" system, wherein streak rewards are given based on how many points you make in a life. Functionally it's the same as the killstreaks from ''Black Ops'', except the streaks wrap around after your third one, allowing you to gain the same streak reward multiple times in one life rather than having to die before you can get streak rewards again. It's also still possible to gain new streaks by way of kills made with prior streak rewards (something that was removed from ''[=MW3=]'' due to how broken it could get in ''[=MW2=]''), but is much harder to do so, as killing someone with a streak reward only gives you a fourth as many points as you would get for killing him with your own weapons.
50	* The AnnouncerChatter in ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' uses [[{{Crunchtastic}} fictional adjectives involving the word "kill"]], such as Overkill, Killtacular, Killtrocity, Killimanjaro, Killtastrophe, Killpocalypse and Killionaire.
51	* Some achievements in ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' involve this (often with extra conditions, such as using a particular weapon).
52	** The Heavy's [[http://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Killing_Gloves_of_Boxing Killing Gloves of Boxing]] and Sniper's [[http://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Cleaner%27s_Carbine Cleaner's Carbine]] guarantee critical hits and mini-crits respectively after a kill, and reset the duration for consecutive kills with the same weapon within that time.
53	** The Sniper's [[http://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Hitman%27s_Heatmaker Hitman's Heatmaker]] can fill its Focus meter during Focus mode through kills and assists.
54	** In the Mann vs. Machine update, the Demoman's and Spy's upgrades for their melee weapons allow critical hits after a kill for 2 seconds.
55	** The Two Cities update introduced Killstreak Kits, which you can apply to your weapons. The standard version just tracks your kills, the Specialized version gives a colored sheen that grows in intensity every 5 kills, and the Professional version gives your eyes particle effects after a 5+ killstreak.
56	** The Love & War update introduced the [[http://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Air_Strike Air Strike,]] a weaker rocket launcher that fires much faster when [[RocketJump rocket jumping]]. It initially only loads up to 3 rockets at a time, but every kill with it allows a player to load another rocket, up to 8 rockets at 5 kills.
57	* One of Respawn Entertainment's goals in ''VideoGame/{{Titanfall}}'' is to allow all players access to the titular MiniMecha. The quicker the player scores kills and complete objectives, the faster they can call their [[AMechByAnyOtherName Titans]] to the battlefield.
58	* ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament'' features special names for making specific numbers of kills within five seconds of one another, and for reaching kills in multiples of five without dying, which the announcer calls out. Specifically:
59	** Announcements for rapid kills: Double Kill, Multi Kill, Ultra Kill, Monster Kill. Later games add a "Mega Kill" between Multi and Ultra Kill, and continue past Monster Kill in ''2004'' with "Ludicrous Kill" and then "Holy Shit".
60	** Announcements for streaks of five kills in a row without dying: Killing Spree, Rampage, Dominating, Unstoppable, Godlike. ''2004'' added Wicked Sick, which was replaced in ''VideoGame/UnrealTournamentIII'' with "Massacre".
61	** ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'' adds streaks for kills with specific weapons: Bio Hazard for 15 kills with the Bio Rifle, Flak Monkey for 15 Flak Cannon kills, Combo Whore for 15 Shock Combo kills and Head Hunter for 15 [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] kills with the Sniper Rifle. Then ''III'' went all the way adding streaks for the rest of the weapons: Jack Hammer for the Impact Hammer, Gunslinger for the Enforcer, Shaft Master for the Link Gun, Blue Streak for the Stinger Minigun, Rocket Scientist for the Rocket Launcher and Big Game Hunter for the Longbow [=AVRiL=].
62	** The ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' map/mod ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'' uses these sounds as well. Ditto for some server-side ''VideoGame/CounterStrike'' and ''Team Fortress 2'' mods.
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64	[[/folder]]
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66	[[folder:Multiplayer Online Battle Arena]]
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68	* In the original ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'', streaks were announced with lines taken from ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament'' as follows: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 successive kills as "killing spree", "dominating", "mega kill", "unstoppable", "wicked sick", "monster kill", "godlike", respectively. 10 kills and beyond was announced as "beyond godlike", while 2, 3, 4 and 5 kills within about 30 seconds received parallel announcements as "double kill", "triple kill", "ultra kill" and "rampage". If you heard "holy shit" followed by "rampage", that meant someone already on a big spree just soloed an entire team.
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70	* In ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', racking up a killstreak without dying will cause the announcer to declare after 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8+ kills respectively: killing spree, rampage, unstoppable, dominating, godlike and legendary. Getting a bunch of kills quickly after one another has her announce double kill, triple kill, quadra kill and penta kill. This provides no actual benefit to the player, though, and it instead [[MoneyMultiplier raises the amount of gold]] their enemies will get from killing ''them'' as their streak rises. Likewise, dying over and over reduces gold gained from you by 70% each time.
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72	* In ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'', gaining a killstreak without dying will cause the announcer to declare after 5, 10, 15, and 20 kills respectively: Killing Spree, Mayhem, Untouchable, and Hero of the Storm. Getting a bunch of kills quickly after one another has the announcer declare the following: Double Kill, Triple Kill, Quad Kill and Mega Kill. However, gaining kill streaks [[ExperienceBooster raises the amount of ExperincePoints]] their enemies will get from killing ''them'' as their streak rises. There are certain heroes like ''[[VideoGame/{{Diablo}} Li-Ming]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/{{Overwatch}} Genji]]'' that has abilities or passives that is designed to have bonuses upon gaining kill streaks.
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74	[[/folder]]
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76	[[folder:Platformer]]
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78	* ''{{VideoGame/Bug\|1995}}'' has ''hit streaks'', every time Bug successfully jumps on an enemy without landing on the ground, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8boh2TsnG0 he gains more points]] (1 hit- 50, 2 hits- 100, 3 hits- 200, 4- 500, 5 or more- 1000)
79	* ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'': defeating 3 enemies in a row will reward 1 banana coin and more for every defeat after that.
80	* In ''VideoGame/{{Purple}}'', [[GoombaStomp stomping enemies]] continuously without landing will yield bigger amounts of points and eventually 1-ups.
81	* ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClank'' games since the second one feature a [[MoneyMultiplier bolt multiplier]] (which multiplies the amount of bolts, the in-game currency, enemies drop) on a NewGamePlus. It increases by one for every time you kill an enemy up to a maximum of x20, and resets to x1 if you get hit.
82	* Most ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' games have some form of this in their scoring. Like the ''Super Mario Bros.'' examples below, ''Sonic the Hedgehog 3'' even had an infinite 1-up trick.
83	** Weirdly, ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' {{cap}}ped the bonus, so at points where there were a large enough number of targets for lock-ons, it was actually more advantageous to destroy them in groups rather than all at once.
84	* As seen in the trope image, many installments of the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' series give increasing point bonuses, and eventually [[OneUp extra lives]], for consecutive kills, whether it be multiple {{Goomba Stomp}}s or using a shell. This can be exploited to gain InfiniteOneUps.
85	* ''VideoGame/{{Germination}}'': jumping on multiple enemies without landing or getting hit increases your [[ScoreMultiplier multiplier]], as well as giving you extra powers.
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87	[[/folder]]
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89	[[folder:Rail Shooter]]
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91	* In ''VideoGame/TheHouseOfTheDeadOverkill'', you can climb up the violence ladder the more kills you get without missing or being hurt. Extreme Violence, Hardcore Violence, Ultra Violence, Psychotic, and finally ''Goregasm'' (which is accompanied by a waving American flag in the original Wii version) - each condition increases the amount of points a kill will net you (sequentially 200, 300, 400 and 500 for the first four streaks, then doubling to 1000 for Goregasm), and as such a long Goregasm is a definite requirement for a high score.
92	* In the [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco]] arcade games ''VideoGame/TimeCrisis'' (beginning with ''Time Crisis II'') and ''VideoGame/RazingStorm'', landing hits increases your combo meter, but too long of a delay between hits or taking damage resets the meter.
93	* Getting a kill streak actually figures into ''VideoGame/SewerShark'''s plot. You need to pull in higher and higher numbers of "pounds of tubesteak" to maintain your job as a sewer jockey and, thereby, earn a ticket to Solar City as a reward. Later on, critters attack you to drain your energy reserves, meaning you're just shooting them to live longer... and ''later'' on, they start {{One Hit Kill}}ing you, further boosting that second incentive.
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95	[[/folder]]
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97	[[folder:Rhythm Games]]
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99	* {{Rhythm Game}}s often feature a variation of this, known as "combo" or "chain"; hitting consecutive notes without getting a sufficiently bad judgement rank will increase the counter. In some games, having a high enough chain will give bonus points, but in some other games, it's simply used to indicate how many notes it's been since your last major mistake. Completing a stage without any significant mistakes is commonly called a "full combo".
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101	[[/folder]]
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103	[[folder:Roguelike]]
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105	* ''Videogame/{{DRL}}'' awards the player with a UAC Star medal for killing a number of enemies without taking damage - 25 enemies for bronze, 50 for silver and 100 for gold. In a little downplay of this trope, it also awards the Untouchable Badge, Untouchable Medal and Untouchable Cross for winning the game with less than 500, 200 and 50 damage taken throughout the whole game.
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107	[[/folder]]
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109	[[folder:Role-Playing Games]]
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111	* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'', you can chain enemies of the same type. Killing a certain amount will raise your chain level, and each level will increase the chances of getting a rare drop.
112	* At one specific point towards the end of ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'', the player has the opportunity to [[AndNowForSomeoneCompletelyDifferent take control of Black Whirlwind]] for a fight against a siege golem and a horde of Lotus Assassin {{Mook}}s. The assassins will keep dropping into the arena until the golem is dead and all die in one hit. A LargeHam announcer will gleefully bestow titles on you for every multiple of 20 assassins rendered into LudicrousGibs, up to 150 (at which point he will berate you for not just ''killing the damn golem already'').
113	* In ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'', the ability Moxie increases the Pokemon's Attack by one stage for every opponent it defeats. The ability Soul Heart does the same for Special Attack instead for any Pokemon that faints, which includes opponents. The Ultra Beast exclusive ability Beast Boost increases the Pokemon's highest stat.
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115	[[/folder]]
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117	[[folder:Shooter]]
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119	* ''VideoGame/CloudCutter'' rewards you for racking up consecutive kills, with the game announcing "Killstreak Record!" if your streak lasts long enough.
120	* This is a core scoring mechanic of the ''VideoGame/DonPachi'' series. In general, defeating enemies in a row is worth bonus points, while letting your combo meter run out or getting hit breaks your chain. In later games, each subsequent enemy in a chain is worth its base value plus the base value of all previous enemies in the chain combined. This can lead to some [[PinballScoring pretty ridiculously big numbers]]; for example, a perfect chain through stage 5 ([[NintendoHard much easier said than done]]) in ''[=DoDonPachi Dai-Fukkatsu=]'' with some good Hyper Counter usage will result in the last couple enemies in the stage being worth over 100 million points each.
121	* ''VideoGame/FuryUnleashed,'' which is equal parts roguelike and action-platformer ShootEmUp, references this as a "Combo." It adds bonus XP and HP (red and black ink), and a DeflectorShield once it gets up to 5, and character upgrades can add other benefits or enhance these. There's even an upgrade that gives you GradualRegeneration at a combo of 20+.
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123	[[/folder]]
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125	[[folder:Survival Horror]]
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127	* In ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'', in the Mercenaries mode, the more kills in a row you get, the more points you get, which in turn can be used to get unlockables.
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129	[[/folder]]
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131	[[folder:Third-Person Shooter]]
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133	* ''VideoGame/TheClub'': Designed around this.
134	* ''VideoGame/RedFaction: Guerrilla'' awards an achievement for achieving 25 kill streaks throughout the game.
135	* ''VideoGame/TransformersWarForCybertron''
136	* ''VideoGame/{{Warframe}}'': One possible mission objective to gain [[ExperienceBooster extra affinity]] is killing 3 enemies under 10 seconds.
137	** Another example is stealth-killing unaware enemies, which grant a rising affinity bonus so long as the streak isn't broken by drawing enemy attention or running out of time. Done properly, a stealth-kill streak can severely reduce the amount of time needed to level a weapon or frame.
138	* The 2D BulletTime shooter ''VideoGame/MyFriendPedro'' bases its rank system in large part on how long you can keep an unbroken kill chain going.
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140	[[/folder]]
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142	[[folder:Turn-based Strategy]]
143	* In ''VideoGame/DotaUnderlords'', winning multiple rounds in a row will cause your border to glow with a special effect, as well as earn you extra gold the longer your win streak goes on.
144	* DownplayedTrope in the Enemy Within expansion pack for ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown''. Enemy Within introduce [[BioAugmentation Gene Mods]] that improve your troopers, one of them is the Adrenal Neurosympathy. When a soldier with Adrenal Neurosympathy confirms a kill, he buffs soldiers in a radius around him by giving them accuracy, [[CriticalHit critical chance]] and move bonuses for two turns. A single soldier can only trigger this rush once every five turns, but multiple soldiers (up to six) can go on a kill streak, resetting the duration of the buff.
145	* ''VideoGame/XCOM2'':
146	** A [[ArchaicWeaponForAnAdvancedAge melee-focused]] Ranger can get into this with the Colonel-level "Reaper" ability, which when activated allows the Ranger to move and make another sword attack provided their previous attack killed an enemy. Each subsequent sword strike deals less damage, but when set up properly it allows a Ranger to massacre a whole crowd of weak enemies in the space of one turn.
147	** The ''War of the Chosen'' expansion uses something like this when [[OurZombiesAreDifferent The Lost]] are on a map. The Lost come against you in hordes, and more will appear based on how much of a racket you make fighting them, so to make things manageable, the Lost are subject to a "Headshot" mechanic. Each kill shot against them will refund that soldier's action, allowing your squad of four to six operatives to cut down Lost hordes before they stagger into melee range... assuming every shot hits, every hit kills, and your soldiers have enough ammo to handle the current wave. If someone's clip runs dry or they miss a critical shot (and they will), things can get dicey. On the upside, one of the available Resistance Orders from the Reaper faction is "Between the Eyes," making ''every'' successful shot against the Lost a OneHitKill. This turns Sharpshooters into zombie-killing machines due to their class' high Aim stat and the BottomlessMagazines of their sidearms, allowing them to rack up insane kill counts. There's even an achievement for taking down 15 Lost in a single turn.
148	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / KillStreak