History Main / KillSat

* A Kill Sat named [[FunWithAcronyms ODIN]] ( '''O'''rbital '''D'''efense '''IN'''itiative) appears in Philip Reeve's ''Literature/MortalEngines'' Quartet, especially in ''Infernal Devices'' and ''A Darkling Plain''. A semi-sentient one no less. You might even feel sorry for it after its mini-BSOD.
* Creator/PeterFHamilton

[[caption-width-right:350:Exhibit A: The GDI Ion Cannon Satellite. Exhibit B: [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill Something that has stopped being architecture]] and [[Blog/WhatIf started being physics]].]]

* The Blue in ''ComicBook/{{Fathom}}'' had a network of these orbiting Earth before [[spoiler:Killian's Blue Sun destroys them all to absorb their energy]]. In the event that the Surface Dwellers ever gave them a reason, this network could have obliterated every city on Earth several times over! They also had a secondary function of being spy satellites.

* [[spoiler:Zodon's 'modifications' to the lunar lander]] in ''ComicBook/PS238''.

* God in ''Literature/TheBible'' [[BoltOfDivineRetribution does this a lot]].
** Although He deals out punishment from Heaven several times throughout the Bible, special points go to the story of Elijah. The prophet is sitting on a hill when a captain leading fifty soldiers approaches and calls out, "Man of God, by order of the king, come down!" Elijah responds, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and [[KillItWithFire consume you with your fifty men]]!" A second captain leading fifty men suffers the same fate, and the third one appears begging for his life. An angel tells Elijah that this one is safe to go with.
* Aquinas in the Summa Theologia discusses a speculative theory for the cleansing of the Last Judgement in which the light of the heavenly bodies is focused into massive burning laser beams by huge concave cloud mirrors. He considers it improbable, mostly because it could make the hour of judgement too predictable.
* The same goes for any [[ThePowerOfTheSun solar deity]]. [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Helios]], for instance, is begged to by Gaia to throw a burning "red" ray to melt off Zeus' snow and ice off [[EldritchAbomination Typhon]] in Nonnus, Dionysiaca 2. 543 ff. [[Myth/EgyptianMythology Ra's Eye]], usually a goddess like Sekhmet or Isis, acts as this every night to kill of his enemy Apep... and punish whoever is unlawful.

* ''Radio/{{Earthsearch}}''. After the Sun threatens to go nova, Earth is surrounded by orbiting artificial suns and [[PlanetSpaceship moved to another solar system]]. The artificial suns are run by [[AIIsACrapshoot freewill computers, one of which goes power-mad]] and threatens to fry a city unless it's [[TakeOverTheWorld given control of the other artificial suns]]. Instead they cut the tractor beams holding it in orbit.

* One of the oldest (if not ''the'' oldest) examples of this trope in video games is the ''VideoGame/MissileCommand''-inspired ''VideoGame/{{Ashes to Ashes}}'' from the early UsefulNotes/{{Macintosh}} days, which has a satellite-based ion cannon as one of the three weapons in the player's defensive arsenal. It strikes the target area instantly and has unlimited uses, but has a 2-second cool-down delay and a smaller blast radius than ground-based missiles. Still, skilled players can survive for quite a while after exhausting their other weapons.

* In ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'', Earth has a ring of smartlucent microsatellites around the planet used primarily for climate control (smartlucent as in, they reflect light when and where they're told to). When the Toughs visit Earth in the Delegates and Delegation arc, Schlock wonders what would happen if all the satellites reflected their light at the same spot. [[spoiler:He gets his answer when the ring is hijacked by terrorists faking a civil war: [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2014-12-08 a pillar of hot, hull-melting death]], hot enough to melt a building into slag and strong enough that it takes Dom Atlantis raising its shields before the beam can be deflected.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'':

* In ''Webcomic/{{Megatokyo}}'', the Tokyo Police Cataclysm Division used "a high-intensity satellite-based laser" to "neutralize" Ed and his plasma cannon, in [[http://www.megatokyo.com/strip/596 this strip]].
* In ''Webcomic/RomanticallyApocalyptic'', [[spoiler:The Good Directorate]] possesses (possessed?) at least one of these.

* In ''Webcomic/ExploitationNow'', the Bad Guy is incinerated by ''[[HoistByHisOwnPetard his own]]'' "defense" satellite after the heroine reprogrammed it to target the building they were both on the roof of. [[http://www.exploitationnow.com/2002-08-12/298 1]], [[http://www.exploitationnow.com/2002-08-14/299 2]], [[http://www.exploitationnow.com/2002-08-17/301 3]]
** Earlier on, the same character hijacked an old secret Soviet orbital weapons platform to nuke Canada.
* The RPG-spoof ''Webcomic/{{Adventurers}}'' has a laser-obsessed BigBad who loves nothing more than [[http://www.adventurers-comic.com/d/20030430.html using his orbital-based DeathRay to]] [[PricelessPaperweight toast bread and make sammiches.]]

* In ''Webcomic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja'', Dracula is ''far'' too elegant to bother with something as blunt as an orbital satellite. He uses [[http://drmcninja.com/page.php?pageNum=15&issue=11 Moon]] [[http://drmcninja.com/page.php?pageNum=16&issue=11 Lasers]] instead.
** Technically, the moon is a satellite.
* ''NSTA'' revolves around the operations of the titular National Satellite Tracking Agency, which manages orbital satellites used for both techno-telepathic [[NinetyPercentOfYourBrain brain-borrowing]] computation and orbital laser strikes. The first strip to introduce the latter functionality involved precision brain surgery by thought-controlled orbital laser.
* The Tower of Babel in ''Webcomic/{{SSDD}}'' is an odd variation in that the satellite is only a mirror designed to redirect the lasers fired from a very large, very phallic looking tower. Apparently previous attempts at orbital weapons were either really large and easy to shoot down, or underpowered.
* In ''Webcomic/SequentialArt'' Jack launched an orbital laser cannon and used it to destroy a couple buildings, then Art accidentally made it target the tank Jack was driving, and (intentionally) pinned him to it. Later OZBASIC attempted to upload into that satellite.
* Gilgamesh Wulfenbach of ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' made it look like he was directing a kill sat with a handheld scepter. [[spoiler:Subverted when the power source is six large crystals positioned around the city, which fried right before the enemy surrendered.]]
* In ''Webcomic/TheFarSideofUtopia'', the IDS have The Skyhammer, which is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. [[spoiler:Unfortunately for them, it proves no match for Mium.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'':
** In one episode, XANA [[EverythingIsOnline hacked into]] a laser satellite, apparently to try to vaporize Yumi... [[DesignatedVictim again]].
** The Satellite shows up again in Season 4 episode "Hot Shower" to [[ColonyDrop divert an asteroid from its course]].

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}}'': In an episode of ''Galactic Guardians'', Darkseid tries to turn the peaceful Star City into a Kill Sat. When the heroes foil his plan, he is forced to settle for a ColonyDrop.

* ''WesternAnimation/JohnnyBravo'' was once fried by one when he started hitting on a random nerd girl.
* ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'' parodies this. When Dib discovers that Zim is weak against water, naturally a water fight ensues. This escalates until Zim builds a giant, orbital water balloon launcher.
* In ''WesternAnimation/Invincible2021'', the [[GovernmentAgencyOfFiction Global Defense Agency]] uses one of these against [[BewareTheSuperman Omni-Man]]. [[NoSell Twice. They only manage to piss him off.]]
-->'''[[DeadpanSnarker Director Cecil]]:''' 400 billion dollars for the world's most expensive nosebleed.
* In ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeResolute'', Cobra uses a kill sat to blow up [[ThrowAwayCountry Moscow]], successfully, [[DarkerAndEdgier in the first ten minutes of the first episode]].
* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Dilbert}}'' series, Dogbert causes some havoc with one of these.
* In ''WesternAnimation/CelebrityDeathmatch'', UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan tries to kill Ayatollah Khomeini with the Franchise/StarWars satellite defense system. The first attempt fails and kills a random audience member instead, but the second attempt succeeds.
* ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGalaxyRangers'':
** The episode "Queen's Lair" revolves around the Rangers' efforts to take out one of these before [[BigBad The Queen of the Crown]] takes out Earth with it. This actually makes for one of the darker episodes of the series.
** It's also played for tragedy in "Ghost Station". The Kill Sat is from a lost alien civilization that presumably blew itself to bits. The AI running the station tries holography and other tricks to try and scare the heroes off, then [[HeroicSacrifice prematurely triggers its self-destruct in order to save Earth]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'', an alien race known as the Vok had built a gigantic death ray (well, a heat ray designed to [[EarthShatteringKaboom detonate all the Energon they'd placed in the crust]]) within a second artificial moon orbiting Earth with the purpose of [[AbusivePrecursors getting rid of the Earth "experiment" if it didn't work out or would cause them problems]]. Said ray was blown up when Optimus Primal attempted a HeroicSacrifice. He got better.

* The US President in ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'' uses one of these. He has a watch with a laser pointer which causes the kill sat to fire a beam at his target.
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Spliced}}'', Octocat controls a Kill Sat that she uses on people who annoy her.
* A Kill Sat made a short appearance in the ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' episode "[[Recap/KimPossibleS1E16KimitationNation Kimitation Nation]]". Drakken attempted to obtain the controls for it, but failed.
* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/MightyDucksTheAnimatedSeries'' featured Dragaunus taking over one such satellite while the ducks dealt with an energy monster he had unleashed. Fortunately, the ducks managed to solve both problems by firing the energy creature at the satellite, destroying both.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode "[[Recap/SouthParkS21E6SonsAWitches Sons a Witches]]", the men in town have an annual witch week, during which one of them, Chip Duncan, uses a spell book to transform into a [[WitchClassic real witch]]. He proceeds to terrorize the town and kidnap children. This is resolved when the kids call their old fourth-grade teacher Mr. Garrison, who had the previous year been elected [[ItMakesSenseInContext President of the United States]]. Mr. Garrison flies to South Park in Air Force One, and tries to talk Chip down. When it fails because Chip claims to be more powerful than ever, Mr. Garrison replies "you wanna see what real power is?" and has a US military space laser incinerate Chip, leaving nothing but dust. The men cheer and then proceed to party with El Presidente.
* A villainous attempt to build one is a running plot for much of the second season of ''WesternAnimation/ThunderbirdsAreGo''. He does eventually manage to get the thing working, and tries to use it to kill his (even more villainous) boss; it can only fry relatively small areas, and the power is directly proportional to how long it takes to charge, so it's not really a global threat, but it's certainly a problem for the guy he's trying to kill.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles1987'', Shredder and Krang take control of a satellite armed with a super laser and used it to cut the Technodrome free from the Arctic ice trapping it. However, just as they were finally moving, Bebop and Rockstead get into a scuffle over a comic book, resulting in Bebop falling back against the controls of the laser[[note]][[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane which may or may not have been caused by the Turtles using Wu Wi]][[/note]]. This not only shorted out the controls, preventing them from using the satellite any further, but it also caused the laser to create a hole in the ice in front of the Technodrome, resulting in it ending up at the bottom of the ocean.

* Parodied in ''Manga/HeavensLostProperty'', where Ikaros acts as a [[SeriousBusiness Peeping-Sat]] with a mirror (think Periscope). It then carried a [[MegatonPunch karate-chop]] back ([[RuleOfFunny still through being reflected by the mirror]]), making it act as a Kill-Sat in reverse

* ''Anime/SpaceBattleshipYamato'' had a few of these. The first series had a series of Gamilon mirror satellites working in conjunction with a planet-based BFG, and the second had a proper kill sat in Earth orbit.

* Mikawa Kai uses a NASA Kill Sat in an effort to destroy the "Terminator" in ''Manga/MyBrideIsAMermaid''.

* Used in ''Anime/NadiaTheSecretOfBlueWater''. Especially impressive considering the series takes place in the 19th century (the satellite was Atlantean technology).

* The original ''Anime/SolBianca'' OAV cheats a little, when Feb hides herself on an orbiting Space Ring with a ''very'' long-ranged [[{{BFG}} laser sniper rifle]] to help her friends escape from their own execution on the planet below.
* ''Anime/GallForce'' ups the scale considerably with [[ThatsNoMoon a planet-sized energy cannon]] orbiting the sun.

* A pin-point precise version of this goes haywire in the ''Anime/AllPurposeCulturalCatGirlNukuNuku'' [=OAV=].
* The [[AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs Radam-occupied]] Orbital Ring around Earth in ''Anime/TekkamanBlade'' is used for orbital bombardment in several episodes.
* ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'', naturally, featured a comedic variation: Otae actually uses one of these in an episode [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill as protection against Kondou stalking outside her dojo]], along with spiked fences and pratfalls. It's name is SOL, which stands for "[[FunWithAcronyms Stalker Obliterating Laser]]".

* ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'''s [[spoiler:Anti-Spiral-controlled]] Cathedral Terra. The heroes nip its firing sequence in the bud, but it had several hundred (if not thousand) massive death rays trained on the planet, and it was ([[spoiler:disguised as]]) the planet's [[{{Pun}} natural satellite]] at the time.

* In the final episode of ''Anime/{{Mnemosyne}}'', TechnoWizard Mimi hijacks a Kill Sat belonging to her friend's [[MegaCorp company]] and uses it in an attempt to stop the BigBad's plan. [[spoiler:She fails.]]
* ''Manga/FairyTail'' features the Etherion, a magical version of this. It takes about an hour for the Council to charge it up, and then it blasts down with the power of more than two billion, seven hundred million ideas of magical energy, which is about equivalent to the combined magical energies of all the wizards on the continent. According to one member of the Council, its destructive power is sufficient to wipe a country off the face of the planet. Naturally, the arc's villain [[JustAsPlanned manipulated the council into firing the weapon at his magic tower]] (which was secretly designed to ''absorb'' magical energy) so he can use the energy as a power battery for his spell to resurrect history's most infamous black wizard. [[spoiler:As the tower takes too much damage in the battle between him and the heroes, however, the energy starts to leak out and runs the risk of going out of control and exploding anyways. Only barely is the tower forced to fire the energy back into space to avoid a massive loss of life]].

* Kill Sats show up in many ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' series, although they aren't quite as common as the ColonyDrop.
** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' has the Solar Ray, a super weapon made out of a colony. In the anime, it's burnt up after using it to kill General Revil and Degwin Zabi. In the novel, it's fully operational and it outright murders both sides.
** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam Zeta Gundam]]'' has the Gryps Colony Laser. [[spoiler:Which makes a return in the final episode of ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamUnicorn Gundam Unicorn.]]'']]
** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitVictoryGundam Victory Gundam]]'' has the Keilas Guilie... and it is [[spoiler:still around in ''Anime/TurnAGundam'']].
** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing Gundam Wing]]'' has the Space Fortress Barge and Space Fortress Libra.
** ''[[Anime/AfterWarGundamX Gundam X]]'' also has a colony laser. The titular mobile suit itself is a Kill Sat in a mech; Garrod once used the Satellite System in this manner, using the system as if he was preparing to fire the Satellite Cannon, then getting out of the beam's way.
** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSeed Gundam SEED]]'' has the Gamma Emission by Nuclear Explosion Stimulate Inducing System, or [[FunWithAcronyms GENESIS]]. It's an ''enormous'' gamma ray cannon that fires what is best described as a massive microwave beam powered by ''nuclear explosions.'' And it's estimated to be powerful enough to wipe out half of all life on Earth with a single shot.
** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSeedDestiny Gundam SEED Destiny]]'' has the Requiem [[spoiler:and the Neo-GENESIS]].
** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam00 Gundam 00]]'' has the Memento Mori. [[spoiler:Two of them.]]
** According to the backstory given in the original Gundam novels, the reason space colonization was needed was due to the Federation bombarding the Earth with kill sats ''entirely by accident''. They tried to solve the world's energy problems with solar power satellites, but miscalculated the power of the microwave beams used to transmit the energy to the surface and almost burned off the entire atmosphere.
** ''Anime/GundamBuildDiversReRise'' shocks the fandom with one of these. [[spoiler: [[BigBad Alus]] reveals this from the moon base he was in and, despite BUILD [=DiVERS=] trying their best, it fires and completely nukes the city of Seguri from the face of Eldora. The second half of the series is devoted to making sure Alus doesn't pull off a round two.]]
** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamTheWitchFromMercury'' has [[spoiler:the Interplanetary Laser Transmission System. That name is a lie - it's one of these disguised as a energy transferring system. The Space Assembly League plan to use this to obliterate Quiet Zero, knowing full well pulling this off would also ravage those living at Lagrange 4, planning to allow Peil Technologies to lead the reconstruction. The first shot is blocked by the Aerial Rebuild and the Gundnodes, destroying the Gundnodes and ravaging the Aerial. Suletta in the Calibarn unleashes a powerful data storm using the Aerial, Pharact and Schwartzette to shut it down for good, at the cost of the Gundams and ravaging her body]].
* ''Manga/GetterRobo'' features two of these, in HumongousMecha form. The first, from the ''Shin Getter Robo vs. Neo Getter Robo'' OVA dispenses countless meteorites over North America, some of which are so large that they function as drop pods for ''other'' HumongousMecha. The second is in the ''Manga/GetterRobo Go'' manga, and is of the laser variety. Though it can apparently fire multiple times in succession.
* ''Anime/{{Macross}}'':
** ''Anime/MacrossPlus'' reveals that, decades after Space War I, Earth has upgraded its defenses with a network of ''hundreds of thousands'' of densely-packed, automated Kill Sats that serve a dual purpose: vaporize orbital debris before it falls into the atmosphere, and discouraging invasion from external forces. When [[TheAce Isamu]] has to navigate this network and force his way into Earth, his only hope is to shoot down a couple of communication sats, hide among the falling debris, and ''pray''. His companion has so little faith in their chances he just shuts himself off into hibernation.
** On that subject, the conclusion to Space War I in ''Anime/SuperDimensionFortressMacross'': the main Zentraedi fleet folds in and the first thing they do is shoot the Earth with several million (NotHyperbole) {{Wave Motion Gun}}s, turning most the surface into an arid wasteland and exterminating 90% of the human population.
* ''Anime/{{Dancougar}}'' handles this differently; the Kill Sat hits the ''sword'' of the titular machine, creating a gigantic laser sword for it to use.

* In ''Anime/NajicaBlitzTactics'', one of the [[RobotGirl android girls]] actually is the remote control for a Kill Sat, making a fair grab for the sexiest use of this trope in fiction.
* In ''Anime/EurekaSeven'', Dewey Novak fires one called "Oratorio #8" once at the Scab Coral to make a hole for [=TheEND=] to fly through, and again to target the beacon [=TheEND=] placed on the Control Cluster. After the second shot, the thing self-destructed and STILL rained death down on the poor planet with its highly explosive debris.
* ''Manga/ShamanKing'' has one of these which is used against the main villain Hao Asakura, but he is unhurt by it. It was also detrimental for the other shaman [[spoiler:as it caused the world to become aware of their presence on the island]].

* ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'':
** [[RobotGirl Chachamaru]]'s artifact is this. ''[[CuteKitten And it's shaped like a cat]]''.
** Fast forward a few decades in ''Manga/UQHolder'', and the kill sat is now under the control of the Holders, though a little worse for wear.
* ''Anime/ElHazardTheMagnificentWorld'' arguably has two: Ifurita, a [[PersonOfMassDestruction Miniature Death Star With Breasts]], and the Eye of God, a [[WaveMotionGun superweapon]] which steps up the game by being able to ''selectively'' destroy a planet.
* Wormhole Driver from ''Literature/TheThirdTheGirlWithTheBlueEye'' is an old (but still fully operational) Kill Sat capable of creating Black Holes on top of the targeted area (which means that depending on the power used in such attack it can most likely destroy anything up to the entire planet)
* The GHQ's satellite laser "Leucocyte" in ''Anime/GuiltyCrown''. [[spoiler:All 256 of them. Or rather, all ''three'' of them, and two of them were destroyed in episode 6. The 256 number was a bluff pulled by a guy with massive steel balls, and the U.N. ''bought it.'' The last remaining satellite was not in a position to deal any damage.]]
* ''Anime/FatePrototype'' brings us Archer: his twin swords join to form a bow, yet the arrow fired from the bow itself is nothing more than a targeting beacon for a magical version of this trope.
* ''Literature/LegendOfTheGalacticHeroes'' featured two variants of Kill Sat, both of which are designed as space-based defences: the giant Iserlohn Fortress occupying an important choke-point in the Imperial frontier and the Artemis Necklace networks of battle-satellites orbiting around determinated planets. The Artemis Necklace is notable for being extremely powerful, wiping out an Imperial warfleet off-screen, but [[TheWorfEffect ultimately failing against the amazing skills of their opponents]] in the two occasions it's used on-screen.
* Saya from ''Manga/{{Onidere}}'' has access to a Kill Sat that strikes her father every time she says a phrase. However her [[MadeOfIron father is so tough]] that despite destroying his house he doesn't even notice it.
* From the ''Franchise/LupinIII'' film series:
** In ''[[Anime/LupinIIIIslandOfAssassins Island of Assassins]]'', the major governments of the world control a satellite laser that's been programmed to shoot down any ships that approach, or attempt to leave the island without authorization. Which Lupin reveals is the secret behind all the disappearances in [[spoiler: the Bermuda Triangle]].
** ''[[Anime/LupinIIITravelsOfMarcoPoloAnotherPage Travels of Marco Polo: Another Page]]'': Zeal, Bernardo’s satellite-based laser weapon, which incinerates everything it touches.
* ''Manga/{{Sekirei}}'': MBI owns one that can attack any single target in Tokyo. Matsu reveals its existence by attacking Musubi with it. Musubi manages to escape with minor clothing damage. The neighborhood she was in (she was buying groceries on Miya's behalf) wasn't quite so lucky.
* ''Manga/PrincessLucia'': "God" employs one in chapter 36, it takes 180 seconds to recharge per shot, and it completely wrecks a city block trying to zero in on its target.
* ''Anime/PanzerWorldGalient'' has the Eraser, a network of killing sats that uses a powerful gravity surge to destroy the surfaces of planets.
* ''Manga/StealthSymphony'': [[spoiler:Laika's "third eye" is revealed to be a satellite that looks like an eye and can shoot deadly lasers from above.]]
* In ''Manga/{{Toriko}}'' allied forces used those against Four Beasts, along with massive army of giant tanks, ships and airplanes. [[WorfBarrage It fails miserably.]]
* In ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'', the government builds an orbital satellite, armed with a laser, specifically designed to kill Koro-Sensei. [[spoiler:And when he manages to escape that, they trap him in a forcefield, so the next one would kill him for sure, and temporarily confine his students, just in case they decide to sabotage something in order to break him out.]]
* In ''Manga/NotLives'', the [[BigBad Emperor Gentleman's]] skill, the 'Emperor's Thumb', involves firing a giant laser beam from an orbital satellite onto the unfortunate avatars in its path.
* In episode 4 of ''Manga/CellsAtWorkCodeBlack'', penicillin is represented as a satellite zapping the cell walls off the invading gonococci, leaving them vulnerable to the white blood cells.
* In episode 10 of ''Anime/EngageKiss'', a satellite with laser weaponry, from the Cold War era, was used against Asmodeus, an especially dangerous demon. [[TheWorfBarrage It did not damage the demon.]]

* ''Webcomic/AtomicRobo'' sees the titular character seize control of a Nazi kill sat.
* In ''Webcomic/TheFarSideofUtopia'' the IDS have The Skyhammer which is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin; [[spoiler: Unfortunately for them it proves no match for Mium.]]

** The Death Star acts much more like a typical Kill Sat in the Star Wars anthology film ''Film/RogueOne'' when Tarkin orders the battlestation to fire low-power shots to destroy the Holy City on Jedha and the Imperial base on Scarif. The blasts destroy the targets and their surrounding areas while the celestial bodies remain (relatively) intact.

** ''Manga/YuGiOhOCGStories'': In the backstory of the Sky Striker arc, the AI-run nation of Spectra used satellite weapons to render humanity extinct. The [=AIs=] of the nation Karma blew up all the satellites, filling the planet's orbit with so much debris that that it is impossible to launch anything into orbit again.

** The villain in ''Film/DieAnotherDay'' makes an orbital mirror that doubles as a Kill Sat. Much like Blofeld's version, the weapon used diamonds to focus the energy.

* ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'', naturally, featured a comedic variation: Otae actually uses one of these in an episode as protection against Kondou stalking outside her dojo, along with spiked fences and pratfalls.

* ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoIIMelodyOfMetafalica'' features Replekia, which is powered by a CombinedEnergyAttack and amplifies your magic. It's [[GameBreaker rather effective]]. Several spells in the series also do this.

* The scrapped ''VideoGame/FalloutVanBuren'' project revolved around the B.O.M.B., one of two nuke-throwing death stations, still in orbit after 200 years, and still with its payload intact.

* Creator/{{Sega}}'s arcade ''VideoGame/StrategicDefenseInitiative'' subverts this trope. While you control a Kill Sat, that at the end of each stage goes back to the cargo hold of a space shuttle to be carried elsewhere, you use it to destroy enemy missiles, bases, and ships... in space.[[note]]Well, at most asteroid bases in the Master System version.[[/note]]

* The Death Star from ''[[Film/ANewHope Star Wars: A New Hope]]'', and its successor in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''. It's not ''technically'' a satellite, since it's a mobile space station with millions of staff, [[TheBattlestar a full complement of fighters and support ships, thousands of secondary weapons]], and a [[EarthShatteringKaboom planet-shattering]] superlaser - however, it is seen orbiting the planet Yavin in ''A New Hope'' so that it can turn its superlaser on the moon where the main rebel base is located.

*** Although considering the ejecta seen spewing from Jedha, the moon may have been rendered uninhabitable by the Death Star's attack. Confirmed by its appearance in a later comic: the effects were so large it blow an enormous hole in the planet, rendering it as good as dead.

When it [[Film/JackieBrown absolutely, positively,]] has to be destroyed on time, nothing beats your own remote-controlled, satellite-mounted laser cannon.

* A miniature variant (Romanov Attack Satellite) appears as a regular enemy in ''VideoGame/HeavyWeapon''. It will fire a death ray downwards, which will [[OneHitKill instantly fry your tank if it hits]], regardless of your shielding. To avoid such a fate, you have to shoot at it to push it away from you. It's also the game's signature enemy. Uniquely for a Kill Sat, it doesn't appear to be travelling in space; rather, the satellite apparently travels through the atmosphere at similar heights to other Red Star aircraft, which raises questions on exactly how it works and if it's even a "satellite", given that a ''tank'' can shoot it down.
* In ''VideoGame/DungeonFighterOnline'', the Wrecking Ball class' ultimate attack is a satellite beam.
* Since the protagonist in ''VideoGame/InFamous'' has attacks that mimic StandardFPSGuns, one these attacks is this in the form of lightning.
* ''VideoGame/NewLegends'' have the main villain, Xao Gon, using a powerful particle beam satellite called the God's Eye as his ultimate Trump card. Said weapon is a forbidden technology whose blueprints were supposedly destroyed, but Xao Gon managed to obtain a backup and have it constructed in his lab underneath the Forbidden City, with the final stage having you and the resistance stopping Xao Gon from using it. [[spoiler:Appropriately enough, Xao Gon would suffer a KarmicDeath when his satellite gets sabotaged - it's first and only shot is the one which vaporizes Xao Gon in the final cutscene]].
* In ''VideoGame/PhantomDust'', this is one of the many psychic powers you can obtain. Where exactly the laser comes from is never explained.
* In ''VideoGame/PlanetAlcatraz'', each of the [[PenalColony prison planets]] has an "Orbital security and surveillance complex" hovering in orbit. It is equipped for precision strikes again targets on the ground, on the air or in space. Your mission is to locate the space shuttle in construction, so that it can be destroyed with an orbital strike. Also, if you spill details about your mission to an NPC in Northern City, you get to see an orbital strike killing your team and everyone in the area, resulting in a Non-Standard Game Over.
* ''[[VideoGame/NintendoWars Advance Wars]] Dual Strike'' features a Kill Sat called the Black Onyx on the level ''Crystal Calamity''. Its primary purpose is to create a barrier around [[TheDragon Kindle's]] main source of power -- a large crystal that turns the land into desert while creating energy. The Black Onyx also features a potent laser beam.
** Spin-off ''VideoGame/BattalionWars'' features a good guy version -- the Doomsday Weapon used by the Solar Empire to put an end to the Iron Legion in the game's backstory.
* [[spoiler: Belcrant]] in ''VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny'' [[spoiler: It was used to fire on the earth to absorb pieces of it to create the Aethersphere]]
* In what is one of the (probably) few ''unintentional'' uses of a Kill Sat, the game ''VideoGame/{{Freelancer}}'' makes mention of a [[SingleBiomePlanet winter world]] attempting to use a vast array of orbital mirrors to gradually thaw out the world, or at least the settled parts of it. Evidently, someone didn't carry the one, because the in-game article states that it focused the refracted light into a single coherent beam and described the results as being akin to a superlaser bombardment on the colony.
* ''VideoGame/MagicRampage'': The green lightning bolts in Dungeon 15 and 16 are like this.
* In ''VideoGame/Warzone2100'', the main antagonist ([[AIIsACrapshoot a self-aware computer virus called NEXUS]]) eventually powers up his laser satellites against the player during the semi-final mission as at this point all of his systems are now back online.
** Just before TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt, the North American Strategic Defense Agency also had access to satellites stuffed with thermonuclear missiles, which NEXUS used to nuke most of humanity all the way to the afterlife.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' has the [[TheGunslinger Machinist's]] Level 3 LimitBreak call one down to raze whatever boss is unfortunate to be in its path.
* ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV'' has it's 2 Dragon protagonist and antagonist, Ryu and [[spoiler: Fou-Lu]] have their ultimate dragon forms, Kaiser and Tyrant respectively. The method of attack is eerily similar to the ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' Bahamut Zero example above, they both transform, fly high into space, and then Tyrant blasts the entire battlefield with a massive dark ball of power, while Kaiser beam spams the area.
* In ''VideoGame/NinjaBlade'', the UN's backup plan in case [[TheHero Ken]] fails to eradicate [[TheVirus the Alpha Worms]] from Tokyo is to fire an orbital death laser at Japan.
* ''VideoGame/CloudCutter'' gives you the Ion Strike designator, a power-up that homes in on designated targets you must plant manually, on certain targets like an enemy submarine or a power plant. The following cutscene will have a laser bolt larger than yourself coming down from the stratosphere and wiping out everything in it's way.
* Looking for a DeathFromAbove superweapon? Play as the good guys and beat the baddies with [[RuleOfCool style]] ''and'' [[GoodWeaponEvilWeapon morals]] in ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquer'', with three different flavors!
** The GDI Ion Cannon in the ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSeries Tiberium]]'' games is a by-the-book kind -- used ''and'' abused against the Brotherhood of Nod. It has a humble start killing small targets but [[TookALevelInBadass eventually moves]] to leveling entire military bases. As of ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianTwilight Tiberian Twilight]]'', it even has adjustable power settings, and there are even some [[PoweredArmor foot-soldiers]] that can call down a strike (first seen in ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRenegade Renegade]]'' with the Ion Cannon Beacon). Compare this to Nod's [[NuclearWeaponsTaboo excessive use]] of [[SlapOnTheWristNuke tactical nukes]].
*** In the ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberiumWars Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath]]'' expansion, GDI have an additional orbital attack protocol: Thor's Hammer orbital attack satellites that fire Mjölnir rods at the surface, decimating Kane's little armor divisions with impunity.
*** The [[StarfishAliens Scrin]], having a bunch of support starships beyond Neptune's orbit, ''as well as'' [[OurWormholesAreDifferent wormhole capabilities]], can deploy a Tiberium-laced ''asteroid'' against ground targets, as well as call down a Tiberium-seeding beam from orbit. None of these are superweapon-grade, however.
** The American Particle Cannon orbital reflectors in ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals Generals]]'' are a less verbatim kind. Technically, they're not even real Kill Sats -- they're actually part of a bigger [[PillarOfLight beam]] [[WaveMotionGun cannon]] system, and their job is [[ReflectingLaser to reflect beams fired from a Particle Cannon on the ground to another spot on the ground]]. And what do the other two sides get? [[SlapOnTheWristNuke Tactical nukes]] and [[PoisonedWeapons anthrax SCUD barrages]], respectively.
** The Allied Athena Cannon in ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert3 Red Alert 3]]'', in the form of a truck-mounted LaserSight and comms boom paired with a Kill Sat up in orbit -- also less verbatim. Oddly, though, each truck purchased gives you control of a different satellite, [[FridgeLogic leading some players to wonder]] why, if they have all these satellites up there, they can't just use them ''all at once''. However, given that the Allies are clearly obsessed with data security ("clearance" must be purchased in order to deploy more advanced weapons), [[FridgeBrilliance it does make a kind of sense]] for them not to give you too many at once.
** The [[UsefulNotes/RedsWithRockets Soviet Union]] also uses a ''sort'' of Kill Sat in the form of the Magnetic Satellite, which is capable of sucking any vehicle up into space. This, coupled with their Krasna-45 Orbital Drop protocol enables them to not only ''[[ColonyDrop de-orbit space stations]]'' at you, but also send back the ''same vehicles'' they've previously captured. The only thing that could ruin your day more than having your aircraft carrier sucked up into space is having that same aircraft carrier thrown back down at your base.

* ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'' added one in the second Expansion Pack with the Epic Spell "Greater Ruin" (though no mention is made of a "Ruin" spell) that includes a beam of earth-shaking golden light striking from above, then tracking across the ground onto target.
** There is also the "Hammer of the Gods" spell, which causes a large yellow column of holy light to strike the target. "Greater Ruin" also causes holy energy damage. It is likely an upgraded version of "Hammer of the Gods".
* ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2003'' and ''[[VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004 2004]]'' have the Ion Cannon, which deals lots of damage in a wide radius, but requires an Ion Painter to designate a target area, and there needs to be a clear line of sight between the target area and, depending on the game, one of the satellites that actually fires the beam (''2003'') or the sky directly above (''2004'').
* ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar'' - The Hammer of Dawn, controlled by the good guys, and somewhat more limited than usual for this trope as it requires a grunt on the ground to 'paint' the target using a handheld laser gun from close range; getting into a position it can reach while it's overhead plays a part in the stages where it's used.
** The Kill Sat only works in certain weather conditions -- it's how they explain it only being used occasionally. The Government in ''Gears'' deliberately Kill Satted most of the planet to stem the Locust invasion, which is the major reason for all the SceneryGorn.

* Another Rare hero example is in ''[[VideoGame/MetalSaga Metal Max Returns]]'' the only problem is activating the program that allows you to trigger it using your [[ShoutOut BS Controller]]

* The heroes in ''[[VideoGame/TimeCrisis Time Crisis II]]'' are fighting to foil a plot to launch a nuclear equipped military satellite. A prototype copy of the satellite features as the [[BossFight final boss]], and is equipped with rockets, a laser and a guy in glasses perching on top with a pistol.
* In ''VideoGame/Borderlands2'', Hyperion's Helios Space Station is outfitted with a moonshot cannon: originally designed to fire supplies to the moon of Elpis, Handsome Jack modified it to function as an orbiting artillery cannon. In ''VideoGame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'', it had a laser cannon called the "Eye of Helios" [[spoiler:which weaponized an eyeball recovered from the Destroyer, the Final Boss of the original ''Borderlands'']].

* The ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' series has the Justice cannon, a space-based laser cannon which, to this writer's knowledge, fired once, charring the surface of Earth and forcing humanity underground and to Mars in order to survive. Later, someone attempts to fire it again, and the player must take the fight down the barrel of the cannon to stop it from annihilating the planet.
** This fight, by the way, is between robots that are at least fifty, and probably closer to one hundred feet tall. And they fight down the barrel of a space gun that takes a full three seconds of flight to reach the top of. That is a ''[[{{BFG}} big f**king gun]].''
** In ''VideoGame/ArmoredCoreSilentLine'', a Kill Sat takes out anything that crosses the titular boundary. In ''VideoGame/ArmoredCoreForAnswer'', its revealed that there are ''so goddamn many'' of these cannons in Earth Orbit that its become ''impossible to reach space''.
* ''VideoGame/AnotherCenturysEpisode 2'', a spinoff of ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars'', has the Guardian System controlled by the mysterious red [[HumongousMecha Buster Ark]] which shows up to periodically harass the heroes. They occasionally wonder [[WhyDontYouJustShootHim why the pilot doesn't just vaporize their battleship]], but eventually you learn [[spoiler:that the pilot is [[TheHero Tak]]'s partner[=/=]{{Love Interest|s}} Marina, who [[FakingTheDead faked her death]] at the start of the game. The Guardian System was designed to prevent an alien invasion (here, the Zentraedi from ''Anime/SuperDimensionFortressMacross''), but it [[CastFromHitPoints runs off the pilot's lifeforce]] and the energy required to defeat the Zentraedi fleet would be fatal. Tak eventually unlocks the Guardian control program in his own mecha and convinces Marina that they should fight the invasion together so nobody has to die, which prompts her HeelFaceTurn back to the good guys and their [[EarnYourHappyEnding eventual happy ending]]]].
** As an added bonus linked to the storyline aspect of the Guardian, it actually does cause damage to the Gunark and Buster Ark when used, making these two the only mecha in the game capable of destroying themselves.
* ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsOriginalGeneration'': In ''2nd Original Generations'', one of the optional weapons is this.
* The Space Marine Force Commander's special ability in ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'' allows him to call in supporting fire from his Battle Barge in orbit. In ''Dark Crusade'' onward, the Tau Ethereal can also call down an Orbital Bombardment.
** ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000: VideoGame/DawnOfWar: Soulstorm'' has the Tau turn a natural satellite into a Kill Sat. As in, they built a cannon capable of firing across the system's interplanetary distances on a moon. (Flee not, spoilerphobes! This is told to you in the very first campaign cinematic!)
** In ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar 2'', the Orbital Bombardment ability for Space Marine players is essentially three lasers hitting the area of your target. Devastating to anything that gets hit.
* The last few missions of the first ''VideoGame/{{Crusader}}'' game involve striking at an orbital defense platform which controls a network of nuclear-armed satellites.
* ''VideoGame/DinoCrisis2'' has one of the protagonists activating a satellite to vaporize a gigantic dinosaur.
* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha3'' had this as one use of the Psycho Drive, apparently. Also, Karin Kanzuki's ending has her calling in a family favour and using their own Kill Sat to blow up the Shadaloo base.
* The ''VideoGame/GoldenSun'' games had a fair few summons that did this -- and, being summons, they could naturally target anywhere you happened to be battling, even inside caves or buildings -- but only Eclipse (a dragon) and Isis were in space at the time.
* In ''VisualNovel/{{Snatcher}}'', the Snatchers' final stronghold is destroyed by one of these in the game's climax.
** It took out [[spoiler: Random]] too. Painfully, a commenter on Slowbeef's LetsPlay of the game said, "Oh, as if [[spoiler: Random]] [[HarsherInHindsight could be taken out by anything shy of orbital bombardment]]." Ow.
* As a affectionate parody of Bond villains, it shouldn't be too surprising that your goal in ''VideoGame/EvilGenius'' is to launch one of three Kill Sats to blackmail world leaders into total surrender. It works.
* In the RTS ''Creator/TomClancy's VideoGame/EndWar'', both the American Joint Strike Force and the European Enforcers Corps have access to Kill Sat technology. The latter have your usual laser satellite tech, while the former have kinetic impactors, aka "Rods from God."
* In ''Franchise/StarWars: VideoGame/JediStarfighter'', one of the protagonists gains access to a giant space laser (actually designed to be fired from the ground at orbiting capital ships, like the ion cannon on Hoth), which can be targeted to vaporize anything.
* The {{BFG}} of ''VideoGame/RatchetDeadlocked'' is the Harbinger, which scatters targets all over the battlefield, which are then quickly followed by beams of light blasting those spots. Also the Deplanetizer from [[VideoGame/RatchetAndClank the original game]].
* The RailShooter ''VideoGame/ConfidentialMission'' revolved around recovering control of a laser satellite from the BigBad. Which you do. [[HoistByHisOwnPetard And then you fire it at his escape submarine.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}}: Call to Power'' was a Civilization-style game that included the ability to build space-based weapons and cities. One of these weapons was, for all intents and purposes, a high-powered Kill Sat that could hit anything on the ground with near impunity. It's a shame that the game was never completely debugged....
* ''VideoGame/SidMeiersAlphaCentauri'' features the Orbital Defense Pod, a satellite that serves as a missile defense system. You can also sacrifice the pod to destroy a [[FantasticNuke Planet Buster]] or an enemy satellite.
* Top-down {{sh|ootemup}}mup ''[[VideoGame/AeroFighters Sonic Wings]]'' features a barrage of orbital lasers presumably from satellites as the special weapon of one of the playable characters. Video games seem to like to give these to good guys and bad in equal measure.
* In the anime-style fighting game ''VideoGame/EvilZone'', ''Series/MetalHeroes'' parody Danzaiver's LimitBreak has him calling upon a Kill Sat to strike at his enemy from orbit, complete with cutaway to the satellite itself. [[SlapOnTheWristNuke It's not as painful as it sounds.]] However, this technique is actually a ''grappling maneuver'', which takes the concept to an unforeseen level of ridiculous.
* ''VideoGame/ParasiteEve2'' contains a Kill Sat that fires what seem to be kinetic projectiles down [[NukeEm on the entire main setting, acting as a last resort when containment looks unlikely.]]
** ''VideoGame/The3rdBirthday'' features another one, although scaled down, that you get to use several times.

* In Jack's ending in ''{{VideoGame/Tekken}} 2'', he is destroyed by a Kill Sat in front of young Jane. In his ''Tekken 3'' ending, he is carrying adult Jane on his shoulder, when Dr. Abel tries to do the same thing, but he protects her and himself with a BeehiveBarrier.
* In ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'', Nohime has this as her LimitBreak, summoning the Oda Mon as beacons with pillars of lights coming from the sky.
* The expansion pack for ''VideoGame/SupremeCommander'' gives these to the UEF. They aren't particularly powerful, but given enough resources, you can use a group of them to pick off enemies with impunity.
** As a nice touch, if the control station is destroyed, the satellite de-orbits. Straight down at whatever it was targeting. With all the ready-to-explode mass and energy of any experimental. [[OhCrap Did we mention wreckage ignores shields?]]
* In ''VideoGame/ZoneOfTheEnders'', BARAM turns Mars' moon, Deimos, into a Kill Sat based on the Urenbeck Catapult, a form of space-compression power slingshot. [[spoiler:'Course, then it turns out the real use is to ''not'' fire it, and let the overload blow a hole in space/time three times the size of the solar system.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Gunbound}}'' has two. First, the mobile E. Sate has a Kill Sat as its normal attack, though it doesn't as much fly through space as hover above it's head. However, there's the giant Kill Sat named Thor that hovers above the stage, adding damage to attacks on certain turns, and becoming stronger as it deals more damage. The two of them together is a sight to see.
** Then there's the Aduka, whose secondary weapon is specifically designed to call down the Thor. A 4v4 match where ''everyone'' is piloting an Aduka... things aren't so bad in the beginning, but the pain ''really'' starts once Thor hits 3 or 4.
* The first [[LimitBreak Support Character]] you earn in ''VideoGame/PennyArcadeAdventures: On the Rain-slick Precipice of Darkness: [[ColonCancer Episode 2]]'' is a 14-year old girl. With a steampunk Kill Sat.
* LARS from the car combat game ''[[VideoGame/Interstate76 Interstate '82]]'' which is possibly the first video game weapon that's more effective in the hands of the player than the AI.
* ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters2000'' has the Zero Cannon, a Kill Sat created by the NESTS group, powered by fight energy, but stolen by the renegade Clone Zero, who desires to use it against them. While it fails to destroy NESTS, it does succeed in nuking Southtown. It's later destroyed by Kula Diamond.
* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'':
** Human planets are defended by UNSC Orbital Defense Platforms, Orbital "Super [=MACs=]" ([[MagneticWeapons Magnetic Accelerator Cannons]]) that fire [[SciFiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale 3000-ton slugs at up to 4% the speed of light]] at incoming enemy warships. Smaller MAC weapons are mounted on every UNSC warship, and both versions can be turned to fire planetside in a tick.
** Earth's orbital defense grid is featured in ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}''; the announcement trailer has a debate between a general on the ground wanting those platforms to be used as Kill Sats against the already-landed invasion forces, and the admiral in orbit trying to hold off the Covenant fleet:
-->"I'm asking you to re-target the orbitals!"\\
"And let '''more''' of them sweep the kill zone? That's insanity! There's nothing more I can do!"
** The expanded universe reveals that the Covenant have their own orbital defense stations, except theirs fire energy beams.
** In ''VideoGame/HaloWars'', the smaller MAC Gun of the CoolShip ''Spirit of Fire'' can be used as a more conventional, if ad hoc, Kill Sat. On the other hand, Covenant ground forces can call upon their own ships in orbit to deliver plasma bombardment or 'glassing' on their enemy.
** ''VideoGame/HaloReach'':
*** A MAC strike destroys a Covenant ship this way - then the Covenant [[FromBadToWorse bring a whole fleet]]:
--->"MAC rounds? In atmosphere!?"
*** After the ''Grafton'' destroys the Spire, it gets kill-satted by the ''Long Night of Solace''[='s=] energy projector.
*** On a smaller scale, there's the Target Locator for calling down orbital bombardment strikes.
* Several of the ''VideoGame/TwistedMetal'' games feature a weapon of this type.
* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil5'', in a seemingly desperate attempt to fit possibly every trope ever into one game, gave you a Kill Sat to fight one giant boss, that came with an "L.T.D." (short for Laser Targeting Device), which was effectively an empty bazooka with a laser attached to it, a la ''Gears of War'''s Hammer of Dawn. It takes a while to lock on, so it's good to have a friend stun the orbs you aiming at (which, by the way, are the giant orbs of a humongous version of [[spoiler: the Uroboros]] you fought four chapters ago). The recharge time is ridiculous, and you can destroy the orbs you're aiming with bullets, but its great when you [[SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound hear the three quick beeps letting you know it stopped charging, and you can once again destroy whatever you lock on to.]]
* The fourth boss in the SNES game ''VideoGame/TheNinjaWarriorsAgain'' wields a pimp cane that can direct an unseen Kill Sat to fire on your position.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Spore}}'', you get the "Uber Turret", a fast moving low-orbit satellite missile platform. It is an inversion in that instead of attacking ground targets (you deploy on your own colonies; not exactly the thing you'd want to blow), it is used to destroy (in a matter of seconds) squadrons of alien invaders that enter your planet's atmosphere.
* ''VideoGame/{{Uprising}}'' has that as a building called Ksat. AwesomeButImpractical, and ''very'' annoying when the Single Player enemy uses it.
* If you built a Microwave power station in ''VideoGame/SimCity 2000'', it could occasionally "miss" and rain Kill Sat-like destruction on your helpless citizens.
* In ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', Azeroth has 4 Kill Sats in orbit, used by the [[{{Precursors}} Titans]] as orbital defense weapons and named after the Keepers of Ulduar.
** The final quest in the current starting area for gnomes suggest the gnomes have some themselves.
* In ''VideoGame/RazingStorm'', your allies have one, aimed by firing a laser cannon at the target to transmit its location to the satellite. It's used in Stage 3 to destroy the BigBad and his headquarters, as well as to finish off the GiantSpider [[SpiderTank Tank]] boss.
* The scrapped ''VideoGame/FalloutVanBuren'' project revolved around the B.O.M.B., one of two nuke-throwing death stations, still in orbit after 200 years, and still with its payload intact.
** Bethesda's ''VideoGame/Fallout3'' has a ShoutOut to the above with "Highwater Trousers" orbital platform. Broken Steel has the Enclave dust off the Bradley-Hercules satellite weapon, which you can use against either their own base [[MoralEventHorizon or the Brotherhood of Steel Citadel]]. Then there is Mothership Zeta and its WaveMotionGun...
*** And the player finally gets one of their own in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'', in the form of the Archimedes II solar death ray. Complete with a LethalJokeItem for a target designator. Prior to that, you can fire the Archimedes I on the NCR's own Helios 1 plant, [[MoralEventHorizon earning you infamy to them]].
*** Taken up several notches in ''VideoGame/Fallout76'', in which the player can earn access to the Kovac-Muldoon orbital platform. Unlike in previous games, there's no limit to where you can aim the K-C or how many times you can use it, so craft some orbital strike beacons and go wild!
* ''VideoGame/Battlefield2142'' has Orbital and {{EMP}} strikes.
* ''VideoGame/MachinesWiredForWar'' has a ion cannon that can wipe out almost anything in its (small) blast radius and set fire to anything just out side it. Taking over an enemy base can gain access to their ion cannon.
* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'':
** ''VideoGame/{{Ace Combat 3|Electrosphere}}'' has the OSL (Orbital Satellite Laser) unlockable weapon, which [[GameBreaker only requires a radar lock and the push of a button to annihilate any target in one hit, is available for all aircraft, and has plenty of "ammo" too]].
** ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'' has the SOLG (Strategic Orbital Linear Gun), a satellite-based railgun capable of firing MIRV-type nuclear warheads and wiping out half the major cities in the game's two main countries, and it's programmed to crash down into Earth if control from the surface is cut off. There's also the Arkbird, which is actually a huge spaceship rather than a satellite, but can still kick some ass down there when equipped with a laser system.
** The Belkan laser-based superweapon Excalibur in ''Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War'' is kind of a downplayed example of one. While the weapon is ground based, it uses a network of satellites with mirror-like structures in orbit to redirect the beam, thus allowing Excalibur to increase its effective range and change its angle of attack as if were an orbital platform.
* In ''VideoGame/TargetTerror'', the player can acquire a one-use "SmartBomb" by firing at a miniature Kill Sat that quickly scrolls across the screen at regular intervals. When used, a {{cutscene}} shows a satellite charging and firing into the earth, immediately killing all hostile targets with individual lasers while leaving friendly {{N|onPlayerCharacter}}PCs unharmed, even indoors.
* The 8-bit game ''Dark Side'' takes place on a moon where terrorists have built a superweapon. It continuously collects energy from the Sun; guess [[EarthShatteringKaboom what will happen]] if you fail to disable it.
* Captain Vladimir, Rank 3 in ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes2DesperateStruggle'', has a radio uplink to an old Soviet Union satellite cannon called Volk. It has two functions: a rain of smaller beams that deal good damage, and the "big beam". The big one's a OneHitKill.
* In ''[[VideoGame/ExtremeG XGRA]]'', you can use the Death Strike for a OneHitKill. It's an orbital laser ''operated by the sponsors''.
* ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'' has the magical satellite ''Nox Nyctores Gigant: Take Mikazuchi'', complete with digital monster in a coffin that shoots the beam. It has a four-year "cooldown" period, and the firing sequence is breathtaking to behold.
** Ruins of Japan: The shot from Take-Mikazuchi was the finishing blow to [[EldritchAbomination the Black Beast]].
** Ibukido: The entire city was annihilated. [[spoiler:In one timeline, only Number 12 (aka Noel) survived.]]
** Kagutsuchi: "[[DeflectorShields Activating Tsukuyomi Unit.]]"
** ''Chronophantasma'': [[spoiler:The true BigBad pulls it down to earth and repowers it to serve as the TrueFinalBoss.]]

* ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoIIMelodyOfMetafalica'' features Replekia, which is powered by a CombinedEnergyAttack and amplifies your magic. It's [[GameBreaker rather effective]]. Several spells in the series also do this.
* ''VideoGame/JustCause2'' of all games has this, while fighting [[spoiler:the Japanese boss]], and you have to dodge it constantly. Sadly for this boss, he's not FriendlyFireProof.
-->'''[[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Yahtzee]]:''' There is one [[SarcasmMode particularly sharp-witted boss]] who attacks you with a satellite missile system ''while standing on the same narrow rooftop''. [[HoistByHisOwnPetard Didn't even need to shoot the bastard.]] [[SelfDisposingVillain It was practically assisted suicide]].
* ''[[VideoGame/EpicBattleFantasy Epic Battle Fantasy 2]]'' gives ''you'' one of these after you reach the first checkpoint. The final boss has the ability to do this, as well.]] It appears in the third game as well - though instead of a summon for Natalie, it's a LimitBreak for Lance. And it's safer to use. And then in the fourth one, one of the bosses hacks it to use it on ''you'', though you can use it as well if you find the right chest.
* In ''VideoGame/TransformersWarForCybertron'', [[spoiler: the alternate form of Trypticon is one]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}'', [[spoiler:Balder]] owns one of these and will try to use it during their [[BossFight boss battle]]. It has a two-shot limit, after the second time, if you don't kill the boss before the third, they'll just [[ColonyDrop yank it out of the orbit]].
* ''VideoGame/ChampionsOnline'' actually has the "Orbital Cannon" power available for player characters (and some NPC's) to use. Normally a single, vehicle-sized blast, one optional advantage allows it to fire continuously - and select new targets on its own (always an enemy)as it does so.
* The plot in ''VideoGame/{{Vanquish}}'' is kicked off when Russians hijack the orbital colony of Providence and use its microwave emitter on San Francisco.
* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic''.
** Imperial Agents have the Orbital Strike skill, calling in a strike from some of the Imperial ships orbiting the planet.
** In Knights of Fallen Empire expansion Arcann built 6 of these to ensure compliance of conqured planets.
* ''VideoGame/SystemShock'' has the Tachyon Mining Beam on Tri-Optimum's ''Citadel Station'', in orbit around Saturn. A note says that it can be "easily configured for military usage" on top of the hundreds of other weapons available on the station itself. In-game, the station's AI SHODAN first tries to use this laser to obliterate human cities. You have to disable the laser by blasting it into the Station's shields, but you can also get a glimpse of what happens if it is fired directly.
* ''VideoGame/BlackAndWhite'':
** The most destructive spell is called Mega-blast, in his basic form consist in one powerful beam of turning a building into scraps and in his most powerful form consist in many powerful beams capable of turning a village into scraps.
** In the sequel, activating a Wonder initially manifests as a beam from the sky, quickly followed by anything from a localized hurricane to a ''volcanic eruption'' at ground zero.
* ''VideoGame/LastAlert'' had the player as a mercenary out to stop a MadScientist from [[TakeOverTheWorld taking over the world]] with one of these.
* ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' features a few examples at higher levels - the powerful War Walkers have access to an Orbital Cannon, while MadScientist Anti-Matter can launch an Obliteration Beam from his space station which not only deals massive damage but also holds players helplessly in the beam.
* ''VideoGame/DigimonWorld3'' has [[spoiler:Gunslinger]], the location [[spoiler:and last boss, sort of]], of the final boss battle for the main part of the game. It's infested with powerful Digimon and at the end [[spoiler:Snatchmon merges itself with its master and then with the station itself]]. Then it plans to merge with [[spoiler:Earth to make the most powerful Digimon EVER to have existed]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Crusader}}: No Remorse'' last mission consists in the player destroying an enemy space station (with a kill sat goal) before it becomes fully operational.
* ''VideoGame/{{Winback}}'' The entire plot of the game is to stop terrorists using a stolen Kill Sat called The Gulf System to destroy targets in America.
* ''VideoGame/WarWind'''s human scientist faction can build armed satellites.
* The EA version of ''TabletopGame/{{Battleship}}'' for [=iOS=] has a one-shot satellite-based superweapon that can devastate a fairly-large area of the game grid. Naturally, it ends up being TooAwesomeToUse.
* One of the oldest examples of this trope in video games was ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiII'''s Megiddo Arc - a massive superlaser designed to all but eradicate humanity's last strongholds. The guy who had it constructed? [[GodIsEvil YHVH]]. ''And he's intent on using it - even against cities explicitly confirmed to be aligned with Him''.
* Predating even that is the ''VideoGame/MissileCommand''-inspired ''Ashes to Ashes'' from the early UsefulNotes/{{Macintosh}} days, which had a satellite-based ion cannon as one of the three weapons in the player's defensive arsenal. It strikes the target area instantly and has unlimited uses, but has a 2 second cool-down delay and a smaller blast radius than ground-based missiles. Still, skilled players can survive for quite a while after exhausting their other weapons.
* The ''[[VideoGame/{{X}} X-Universe]]'' series features lasertowers and orbital defense stations, which operate like ''Halo's'' [=Super MACs=] in that they're defensive in nature, blowing hostile ships out of the sky. In ''X3: Terran Conflict'' the lasertower is a UselessUsefulSpell since out-of-sector combat mechanics[[note]]used when the player is in another sector[[/note]] negate its main advantage over its targets (superior range). Even in-sector, it can take dozens to bring down a capital ship. Lasertowers got a major buff in ''Albion Prelude'', making them effective defenses. The Torus Aeternal, a [[RingworldPlanet Ringworld-esque]] [[BigDumbObject megastructure]] that wraps around Earth, is a defensive kill sat - it has enough weaponry to OneHitKill ''any'' ship that deviates from their assigned docking path. The Torus was such a powerful piece of Terran infrastructure that the [[LostColony Argon Federation]] resort to sabotaging it via [[DesignatedHero suicide-bombing]] in order to invade the Solar System in ''X3: Albion Prelude''
* In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'', the ''Dawnguard'' expansion features Auriel's bow, a weapon forged by a God. Whenever this weapon is used to fire Sun-Hallowed Elven Arrows directly at the Sun, cue the magical equivalent of a powerful Kill Sat being unleashed onto nearby enemies.
* In ''VideoGame/StarControl II'', this is how the Ur-Quan appears to enslave alien races. Once an alien civilization's starfleet is destroyed, they will send ships into near-orbit as Kill-Sats over the major capitals of their homeworld and threaten death unless they surrender. Except...they still destroy some capitals as a message. As the Earth commander states: "you won't find Buenos Aires" on any new maps...
* In ''VideoGame/PlaystationAllStarsBattleRoyale'', [[VideoGame/ApeEscape Spike]]'s Level 3 [[LimitBreak super move]] involves the use of one of these to wipe out every player on screen.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'' series knows [[OrbitalBombardment Low-Orbit]] [[AtmosphereAbuse Atmospheric Deprivation Weapons]] - as war crimes to use, possibly even build. Firing one burns up the target planet's atmosphere, infrastructure and population.
* ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyGhosts'' takes place after the United States has been devastated by strikes from its own Kinetic Impactors ("Rods from God") after the space stations containing the weapons were hijacked by astronauts from a hostile nation.
* ''VideoGame/VectorThrust'' boasts the EOS-02 MRSA satellite, which uses a scalar-based laser system to OneHitKill most, if not all objecs barring other superweapons. While each beam is small, there are [[BeamSpam a lot of satellites]].
** The Blackstar UAV from the same game is functionally the same, except it's an upscaled Darkstar reconnaissance drone equipped with no less than three microwave lasers on its underbelly for shooting down enemy nuclear missiles before they reach orbit. Nobody's stopping it from pointing these lasers at other things.
* ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime3Corruption'' has one which is used by the good guys to destroy an incoming Leviathan (a living, sentient, evil meteor) before impact.
* In ''[[http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/521616 The Farm]]'', a TowerDefense game, the farmer can use a satellite-mounted laser to defend his flock of sheep. This may seem excessive, but then he is being attacked by zombies, cultists and the US Army.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Evolve}}'', the support character Hank can target an orbital bombardment fired from a modified mining satellite. His modification replaces the artillery barrage with a laser beam.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Sacred}}'', one sidequest involving a Seraphim researching their history reveals that [[spoiler:the Seraphim are actually genetically engineered cyborg supersoldiers of a space empire. Their ultimate energy beam "spell" is actually them activating one of the empire's Kill Sats that is still in orbit around their world and still fully functional after thousands of years.]]
* Sega's arcade ''Strategic Defense Initiative'' subverts this trope. While you control a Kill Sat, that at the end of each stage goes back to the cargo hold of a space shuttle to be carried elsewhere, you use it to destroy enemy missiles, bases, and ships... in space[[note]]Well, at most asteroid bases in the Master System version[[/note]]
* In ''VideoGame/PlanetSide 1'', each empire has access to an orbital laser that can annihilate anything outdoors after a short charge-up period. If you hear the distinctive whine of the strike and you aren't in a vehicle or already at a dead sprint, YouAreAlreadyDead. Orbital Strikes can be called in by players that have reached Command Rank 4, and the blast radius gets upgraded at Rank 5.
* ''VideoGame/SeventhDragon III: code VFD'' has one that the Agent class can gain access to by completing a sidequest. Firing it causes massive damage to all enemies and has a high chance of inflicting Hacked status.
* The fifth game in the ''VideoGame/BloonsTowerDefense'' series has the Bloonsday Device, which can send down a laser that can pop bloons.
* In the Doomsday Heist update for ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'', an orbital cannon was made available as a purchasable utility for your high-tech facility, enabling you to use it as surveillance across all corners of the map, or as its function as an instant kill weapon by firing on your target from high above. But, you will need $500k to fire a manual shot or, if you so choose to leave the reins to the game, pay $750k to autotarget your choice of players in the lobby and let the cannon do the rest for you. On top of that, there's a long cooldown period before it can be used again, and you can only use it from a command post in the facility.
* In ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment'', the Mechanus Cannon is effectively a cross-planar kill sat. The spells Power Word Kill, Meteor Storm Bombardment, and ''Torment'' also have kill sat mechanics with some rather impressive visuals.
* In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' the Artifice Siren, commanded by Mythra, is a HumongousMecha floating in space that wields a particle cannon. As part of Mythra's [[spoiler:and, in NewGamePlus as of patch version 1.3.0, Pneuma]] Level IV Blade Special, she calls on Siren to rain lasers from above onto the target (so long as there isn't a roof over the party's head). Its ''targeting ray'' is apparently enough to kill Pyra, when she [[StopOrIShootMyself threatens to do so in order to get Torna to take her without harming the rest of the party]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Rimworld}}'', the planet that your colonists are on has several abandoned satellite arrays which can serve this function though only one of the the three current types is purpose built for it. Your colonists can activate one of them with one-use targeter items, hacked not to require security credentials from someone who's been dead for centuries. They can be orbital weapons which drop tons of bombs, solar collection satellites which shoot [[KillItWithFire a massive beam of intense heat]] to the target, or weather manipulation satellites which create tornadoes.
* In ''VideoGame/{{SYNTHETIK}}'', there are items that can release satellite beams. The G87"BEAMER" shoots a slowly-moving beam, the "Icarus" shoots triple beams at once, and the Legendary-tier "Redline" can unleash a massive orbital beam for a long time.
* In ''VideoGame/SpyHunter (2001)'', the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Nostra]] [[EvilInc corporation]] aims to cause a [[BigBlackout worldwide power blackout]] with an array of {{EMP}}-producing satellites known as "[[HorsemenOfTheApocalypse The Four Horsemen]]".
* In ''VideoGame/BoxxyQuestTheGatheringStorm'', Low Orbit Ion Cannons are mentioned a few times in passing. A certain item lets you call down a strike from one on enemies during battle.
* ''VideoGame/YakuzaDeadSouls'' has a "Satellite laser" weapon that players can wield. Hits with it often register as "headshot".
* In ''Videogame/YakuzaLikeADragon'', completing the Business Sidequest storyline unlocks the "Essence of Orbital Laser" in which Ichiban presses a BigRedButton on his phone that activates a satellite owned by his MegaCorp to nuke the enemies to oblivion.
* ''VideoGame/{{Ironsight}}'' features the Zeus, a tactical drone that calls in a beam of concentrated energy to kill enemies once you've scored enough points to call one in.
* [[DoubleSubversion Doubly subverted]] in ''[[VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope The New Order: Last Days Of Europe]]''. Among Hermann Göring's ''[[StupidJetpackHitler wunderwaffen]]'' is a so-called [[ThePowerOfTheSun "Sun Gun"]] satellite. It doesn't work as intended...but it does kill ''someone'' by falling on [[TheyKilledKennyAgain Oskar Dirlewanger]].
* ''Videogame/GuiltyGear -STRIVE-:'' [[ActionPolitician Goldlewis Dickinson]] has a target designator for one in his glasses, and has it fire on the enemy for one of his specials.
* The Toppat Clan's orbital space station in the ''VideoGame/HenryStickminSeries'' contains a large energy weapon called the Supreme Dominance, which they charge up in one path in a last-ditch effort to stop Henry from stealing the Norwegian Emerald.
* ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'': In "Lostbelt 5.1: Ancient Ocean of the Dreadnought Gods, Atlantis", one of the biggest threats Chaldea faces is one of these, a massive divine satellite in orbit that unleashes massive magical lasers powerful enough to reduce islands to nothing and it's classified as an ''[[PlanetDestroyer Anti-Planet]]'' Noble Phantasm. [[spoiler:It's actually the [[MechanicalAbomination true form]] of the Moon Goddess Artemis herself. You see, in the ''Nasuverse'', the Twelve Olympians were once massive alien machine life-forms that gained sentience and humanity from mingling with humans after their original bodies were destroyed by another extraterrestial threat. This [[AlternateTimeline Lostbelt]] shows what happens when said Olympians managed to keep their old bodies.]]
* In ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2'', if a Ranger or a Gunner uses an Assault Rifle, they can use a photon art that has them call down a laser blast from orbit. Holding down the trigger button allows it to deal more damage, but it leaves the player vulnerable to attack, making this AwesomeButImpractical. In ''[[VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2NewGenesis New Genesis]]'', the Photon Art is changed into a [[LimitBreak Photon Burst]] when a player uses an Assault Rifle that calls down a laser beam from orbit, and the player is temporarily made invulnerable to attack while its active.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':

* ''VideoGame/ArTonelico2'' features Replekia, which is powered by a CombinedEnergyAttack and amplifies your magic. It's [[GameBreaker rather]] [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill effective]]. Several spells in the series also do this.
* ''[[VideoGame/JustCause Just Cause 2]]'' of all games has this, while fighting [[spoiler: the Japanese boss]], and you have to dodge it constantly. Sadly for this boss, he's not FriendlyFireProof.