What Is Friday The 13th: The Game?

Friday The 13th: The Game recently revealed a gruesome new trailer which centered around protagonist (or in this case antagonist) Jason Voorhees and the various ways in which he kills unsuspecting campers. The game, which is a semi-open world combo of horror and survival, takes place in the iconic setting of Camp Crystal Lake and can be played with up to eight people.

One person will select the role of Jason, while the other seven become the unfortunate campers attempting to avoid perishing under Jason’s remorseless hands. Seven against one may sound like the odds are stacked against Jason, but it has been revealed that Jason will have a heightened sense of hearing and vision, as well as the ability to teleport wherever he wants on the map. Most of the games will typically end with Jason as the victor, yet there is a way for the other seven players to work cooperatively against Jason and earn an “epic” victory.

This increased emphasis on teamwork is intriguing, as the motive to work cooperatively is definitely there (we personally wouldn’t want to run into Jason out in the forest). The game is obviously based on the infamous 1980s slasher film of the same title, Friday the 13th, and for developers Gun Media and Illfonic, getting their hands on the rights to use the property proved to be quite the task. According to reports, developer Gun Media had spoken to Friday the 13th director Sean S. Cunningham inquiring about obtaining a license to create the game.

After a series of lengthy meetings, Gun Media was finally able to obtain the license and the game was subsequently placed on Kickstarter for funding. Kickstarter’s response was overwhelming, raising approximately $1.1 million dollars and becoming the 106th most successful crowdfunded project of all time.

Developed in Unreal Engine 4, the new trailer really highlights how much love is being put into this game with the imagery and gore shown feeling like it was pulled straight from the film. The love for the original film continues, as the man behind the film’s original soundtrack, Harry Manfredini, will be working on the game’s soundtrack as well.

You can tell the developers are longtime fans of Friday the 13th, and the slasher film genre as a whole. They team seem to be doing their very best to honor the legendary film in Friday The 13th: The Game by utilizing every resource possible from the original director to the composer. Friday the 13th: The Game is slated to release this October, and as fans of the original film, we can’t wait!

For more horrifying indie game info, be sure to check out the horrific true story behind Kholat's nine dead hikers, a list of upcoming horror games that make great nightmare fuel, and our initial coverage of Friday The 13th: The Game's brutal new trailer.  

Morgan Shaver

Writer

Morgan is a writer, indie game lover, and socially awkward coffee addict. Need something? Morgan can be reached at morgan.shaver@allgamers.com or if you like, you can say hello using GIFs on Twitter.