Friday the 13th: The Game Review

I’ve always been a big horror fan, with film series like Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Friday the 13th being some of my favorites. As a big gamer, I always hoped they would make a decent game based on one of these series. Sadly, I was always left disappointed as the few games based on these franchises came at a time when video games were just starting to gain a foothold, and most of them were considered some of the worst games of all time. Illfonic and Gun Media finally tried to fix this issue by bringing us a brand-new game based on Friday the 13th. So, let’s see how this one stacks up!

If you played Friday the 13th on the NES, you probably have a sour taste in your mouth. It wasn’t good, but that was a product of the console’s limitations at the time. These days, Friday the 13th is exactly what I would expect from a game based on the series. It’s an asymmetrical online multiplayer game in which up to 7 camp counselors must work to escape from the murderous Jason Voorhees. It’s an addictive little game of cat and mouse that plays out differently every time.

Gameplay

Jason

The developers did a great job of making Jason feel supernatural and menacing. Hunting down your prey with all the tools available can be entertaining. Jason can morph around the map, sense counselors through walls and objects, and shift positions quickly. All of these abilities have a cooldown to prevent them from becoming overpowered. You sometimes feel like an unstoppable force, as this iconic character should.

Many people have criticized the fact that the game does not allow you to choose to play as Jason. The only thing it will enable you to do is to prefer Jason. This was not a problem for me. How else would you like them to do this? Many people would always choose Jason, and you’d have the same problem. Not only that, but specific individuals are more suited to Jason than others. This keeps the playing field even.

Counselors

I spent most of my time playing as a counselor and enjoyed that quite a bit. There are so many different strategies you can use to survive the night. You can survive by escaping by car or boat, calling the police and making your way to them, or by holding out until time runs out. It sounds easy, but it’s more complicated than it seems. You’re rummaging for items as you need a key, gas, and a propeller or battery for the cars and boats to start. These items spawn randomly, so coordination with other counselors is required to get the vehicles going. If you do that, you still have to make it out without being stopped by Jason, which can prove pretty tricky depending on how well the person playing him uses their skills. I got lucky finding all three items in 3 close cabins and getting out with the car without worrying about Jason once, but that’s not the norm.

Coordination is Key

Jason can be killed. I have never seen it in-game, but it is possible. It requires considerable coordination between counselors, and even then, one misstep can completely derail the attempt. Communication is a crucial element of this game. Players on headsets can let other players know their items, allowing you to coordinate an escape plan. They can also alert you to which area Jason is lurking around in.

Playstyles

There are several different Jason characters, each with different strengths and weaknesses. They also have various weapons, so your choice depends on your preference. Specific versions aren’t unlocked until you reach some of the higher levels, so there’s an incentive to keep playing. The same applies to counselors, as there are multiple options to choose from with varying statistics. Some are stealthier than others, while some have more composure. Every playstyle has a character, and I stick to the same few every time I play to succeed more often. You can even buy different perks with Customization Points to make your stamina regenerate faster or make it harder for Jason’s Sense ability to detect you, to name a couple. It’s a nice way of giving the counselors some way of combating Jason’s abilities. 

Kills

The standout aspect of the game is the gruesome ways in which Jason kills the counselors. There are plenty of different environmental kills to go along with some weapon-specific and unlockable kills (using CP to unlock them). I’ve experienced being burned alive in a fireplace, pinned to a wall with a spear, and having my head smashed in a door. It’s pretty terrifying to see Jason standing over you and knowing that some crazy death is about to happen. It’s Mortal Kombat-esque violence, but it stayed true to what you would see in the movies.

Levels

Speaking of staying true to the movies, there are a few maps to play, and they each take different pieces out of certain movies, such as the barn in Part 3 and the shrine to Jason’s mother in the post-match screen. Jason’s old nemesis, Tommy Jarvis, even appears if you call him to help finish off Jason (a dead player will assume the role of Tommy). It’s true to the Friday the 13th universe and brings the best of the whole saga together in a neat little package.

Glitches

The game isn’t without its faults, though. There are some annoying bugs related to collision detection that can cause floating, inadvertent deaths because you somehow miss Jason with a weapon shot, or just weird rag doll effects after you die. They aren’t game-breaking, but they’re pretty annoying at times. There’s also the issue of characters popping through walls occasionally and hosts leaving before the match ends, which makes the game end. Keep those in mind before you dive into this game.

Final Thoughts

Friday the 13th was a fun experience and one that I’ll keep coming back to. It’s not a game that’s very fun to play alone, but if you can get a bunch of people together, it’s a great game to play over and over.