Gameitall Aside from his guest appearance in Mortal Kombat X, Jason Voorhees hasn’t had the best of luck in the realm of video games. However that might change, as Gun Media and developer Illfonic have announced Friday the 13th: The Game, a third-person, asymmetrical multiplayer game for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
The new Friday the 13th game will have one player take control of Jason while 7 others take control of camp counselors who are attempting to survive the night in a “semi-open world” version of Camp Crystal Lake. “It’s a classic horror fan’s dream, no shaky cam, no found footage,” developers said. “We want you to know we’re revitalizing the golden era of slashers, and putting you at the controls of each horrific, blood-splattered moment.”
The game originally started as another project titled Slasher Vol. 1: Summer Camp, a multiplayer only game that drew heavy inspirations from the Friday the 13th series. The team were able to jump into the popular slasher series after franchise creator Sean Cunningham reached out to the development team.
“That’s when things got awesome,” the developers said. “Sean came to us in early 2015, but we quickly discovered these weren’t the normal business conversations you would have when you try to secure a license as important as Friday the 13th. It was totally different. It was a conversation built on mutual admiration and respect for what each had created.
“Sean immediately noticed the passion we had for Friday the 13th, and after several incredible meetings over the next few months, we decided to upgrade our plans for Summer Camp and embrace the Friday the 13th video game license,” they added. “After several incredible meetings over the next few months, Sean surprised us by offering the Friday the 13th video game license. It was literally a dream come true for a group of lifelong fans. He knew he could trust us with the most coveted horror IP ever, and we plan to make good on that promise to both him and you, the millions of loyal Friday the 13th fans around the world.”
Gun Media is going to Kickstarter for funding due to the fear of a traditional publisher wanting to tone down the violence, gore, and nudity elements in the game which they described as “necessities.” “We don’t want that. You don’t want that,” they said. “We’re not interested in compromising what made the film franchise so popular. We’re interested in building precisely what we, as fans, want. The ultimate Friday the 13th experience. Blood, guts, gore, brutal kills, and more. You want an experience true to the films, and so do we. It’s about creative control and delivering the best game we can. We want to share that control, with you, not a publisher.”
Friday the 13 will run on the Unreal 4 engine. It is currently planned as a multiplayer only title, however the team did state that they will consider a single-player mode depending on the Kickstarter success. They are currently looking to fund $700,000, and at the time of this writing are currently at $222,212, with 30 days left to go. If you would like the fund the game, you can check out the game’s Kickstarter.
