Friday the 13th: The Game

The classic slasher returns with Friday The 13th, an impeccable work that has all the essence of the movies and the legendary killer Jason Voorhees.

In the future, we may view Friday The 13th as one of the year's great games. Its mix of laugh out loud moments and tense chase sequences is unique, refreshing, and a draw even if you're not usually a multiplayer fan. As it stands currently, however, the game is weighed down by far too many issues that hurt the overall experience. A lot of the game requires wits and patience, but it'll be hard to retain those qualities when the game is regularly throwing technical flaws at you. The bright side of this is its issues rarely relate to design. Bugs can be patched, like some already have been. If Illfonic can rein in the many issues seen in Friday The 13th it will go down as a classic multiplayer game. Until then, it's simply wishful thinking.

It’s been more than 30 years since the Friday the 13th franchise launched, and nearly 30 since the last game was released. While graphically and technically superior to the 1989 NES game, gamers now have higher standards, and unfortunately Friday the 13th hasn’t lived up to those. A myriad of bugs, server issues, and gameplay glitches plague the summer camp, and at times it feels like Jason isn't the only problem you need to worry about.

Friday the 13th: The Game invites us to survive a night in Crystal Lake. We must flee as campers or kill if we are Jason. Although the idea is a good one and the matches are fun, there isn’t content enough and in the technical aspects the game aren't up to snuff.

Illfonic's game offers a very captivating gameplay loop with original and effective mechanics, but it ends up being dragged down by too many technical flaws and too few contents. It feels like an early access game at an overly too high price, and that's a pity as it shows great potential.

While the concepts are interesting and really have something special in mind, the execution and technical issues really hold back Friday the 13th from living up to its own hype. There are a few moments of fun here and there, but the Xbox One version is still having issues finding games for people, myself included. I hear the other versions are in better shape than this one, so if you’re still really interested in it, maybe get if for PC or PS4. Even then, I must warn you, there is some fun to see, but in the end it is still a clunky, random experience that I feel needed a few more months of development.

Despite showing potential that may one day be realized, Friday the 13th comes across as an unfinished game that shouldn't have been released in its current state.