A while back I was reading about a video game called Slasher Vol.1: Summer Camp from Gun Media, an Evolve-style online co-op game inspired by Friday the 13th in which you either play as one of the characters trying not to be killed by a mask-wearing serial killer…or you play AS the mask-wearing serial killer. Though not a very big fan of these online only co-op games, I was very interested in learning more about it as a huge fan of horror and especially the Friday the 13th flicks. Then came word early this year that another Evolve-style co-op game was coming that was actually based on Friday the 13th and featured Jason Voorhees instead of just being inspired by them. At the time it was revealed that a game developer was working on the game, but it wasn’t revealed who.

Well, as it turns out, these two projects are now one in the same. They’ve not only put together a Kickstarter campaign to help raise funds for the game, simply titled Friday the 13th: The Game, but they also have alums of the franchise working on the game as well including Sean S. Cunningham, Tom Savini, Harry Manfredini, and my personal favorite Jason (who I’ve had the honor of personally being “choked” by like so many other fans have) back as the character for the first time in 14 years, Kane Hodder. You can read much more about the project and watch the Kickstarter video and announcement trailer below.

About this project

For the first time since 1989, you have the opportunity to help bring a Friday the 13th video game to life! Stalk camp counselors across Crystal Lake as Jason Voorhees, or assume the role of a helpless camper and attempt to survive the night. Come be a part of this incredible moment in video game and horror history! We definitely can’t do it without you.

What is Friday the 13th: The Game?

Friday the 13th: The Game is a third-person, asymmetrical multiplayer title where one player controls Jason Voorhees while the remaining seven control camp counselors trying to survive the night.That’s right…1v7 multiplayer set in the semi-open world of Camp Crystal Lake! It’s a classic horror fan’s dream, no shaky cam, no found footage. 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.

Friday the 13th is the definition of horror to the millions of fans around the world. A masked killer going after the young and vulnerable; it grabs our attention, it frightens us, and yet we all come back for more. Friday the 13th: The Game will give you the feeling of horror and dread that you expect from Jason Voorhees. This will be the ultimate asymmetrical horror experience unlike anything you’ve seen – a title we’re proud to introduce that is worthy of the name “˜Friday the 13th’.

Gameplay Details

Friday the 13th: The Video Game is focused mainly on the Jason vs Counselor scenarios that have been the staple of the series since the beginning; you will be playing as Jason or a camp counselor in Camp Crystal Lake. The multiplayer component to the game will pit one player as Jason against up to seven people as counselors. We’ve dedicated an incredible amount of time to balancing out counselor vs. Jason scenarios to ensure fans are every bit as excited by the possibility of slaying jocks, nerds, and cheerleaders as Jason Voorhees, while simultaneously giving you that sense of challenge and fear from being a counselor.

One of our major goals is overcoming the stigma that some players have about asymmetrical multiplayer games. We know the worst feeling in the world of multiplayer gaming is believing you are “˜stuck’ and “˜without hope’. Horror in general, but specifically Friday the 13th, lends itself well to this style of game. The premise plus our game design consideration will overcome this dilemma and we can prove that asymmetrical multiplayer can work, be balanced, fun and frightening as hell.

While Jason can be an immensely daunting, seemingly unstoppable force, he is able to be brought down with an “˜epic’ win condition. It’ll be difficult, require some teamwork, and perhaps a bit of ingenuity, but we’ll be giving you the tools and opportunities to realize the biggest win in horror gaming. That sense of relief at the end, knowing you stopped the biggest and baddest killer in the world is not something to take lightly”¦ We hope that this becomes a proud gaming moment for everyone that achieves it, one worth sharing and boasting to the world about. Lest you be worried”¦ Jason will always come back for more!

Play as Jason Voorhees – The game you’ve been waiting for; you’ll be stalking the shadows and picking off each and every counselor as the most feared name in horror, Jason Voorhees! Jason will be brought to life in the game and you make the decision of how to go about setting up and performing each kill! We’ll be giving you a slew of abilities to terrify, harass and then brutally dispatch those opposing you.

Counselors: Fight or Flight – Jason is deadly, but he can be stopped! The movie does have to end, right? You and your fellow counselors will have a multitude of ways to escape from Jason while in Camp Crystal Lake. Not satisfied with simply running? You’ll have the opportunity to try and take Jason out. Be warned, Jason won’t go down easy, and nothing is a sure thing.

Make Your Own Horror – Camp Crystal Lake, Jason Voorhees and a lot of horny teenagers makes for a lot of good stories. We’re going to be implementing a “˜Movie Trailer’ system that plays at the end of the match. This dynamic trailer will highlight the best moments of every game, in the style of the original 1980’s trailers! Each and every time you play Friday the 13th, you’ll be creating your own little movie. Beyond that, we plan to allow you to share your best trailers. Want to show Jason killing in dark, grisly, or even hilarious ways? Do it! Want to try to emulate the trailers from the original 80’s films? Give it a go. We’re eagerly anticipating some really gnarly cuts from the community’s trailers!

Fear System – Jason Voorhees strikes fear into every single person he comes across, and while many bravely attempt to take him on, most fail. The fear of never knowing where Jason is at any given time is powerful, and counselors will have to do everything they can to mitigate that fear while playing. Get too struck with fear and you’ll start to question what’s real and what isn’t.

Progression – Friday the 13th is a long-running franchise, one with a whole cast of characters. Players will get a unified progression system to unlock multiple Jason character models from the classic films, as well as additional Camp Counselors with their own unique stats and traits.These are just a few of our unlocks and only scratches the surface of what we have planned to engage players over the lifetime of Friday the 13th: The Game. Remember, creative gameplay from both counselors and Jason will result in bigger and better rewards!

The Return of Tommy Jarvis – One of our biggest goals is to bring back Tommy Jarvis as a guide for you, the player. With a stretch goal, we hope to give you a fully 3D environment where you can access stories about Jason, view your progress and even collect bits and pieces from Camp Crystal Lake for use with Tommy Jarvis. Do enough for him, and a special surprise will await you!

While all of this sounds like it could be amazing, what would really be exciting is a first-person option and a single-player mode. Thankfully, those things aren’t out of the question either.

Single Player?

That really depends on where this Kickstarter campaign takes us. Summer Camp was originally conceived as a multiplayer title only, and thus was budgeted as such. It was only after taking on Friday the 13th that we really started to dream up plans to bring Jason to life in ways that everyone has wanted to experience (but no one has been able to create to date).

To that end, the proposed single player portion will give you the Jason experience you’ve never had; direct through his eyes. We’ll be offering several “˜scenarios’ based off classic movie scenes from the franchise as you stalk and kill each and every counselor from a first person perspective. Not to leave the counselors out, we’ll be adding several counselor scenarios where you’ll have to confront your fears and take on Jason directly, especially in compromising situations! We are not going for anything less than a Mature Rating on this; the franchise deserves it! These scenarios might also make their way to VR, and would bring an entirely new perspective to the slasher genre!

I’d also love to see a first-person option in the multiplayer game, especially for those playing as Jason, but this added single-player would be more than enough to satisfy me as someone who’s less fond of online co-op.

The goal for Friday the 13th: The Game is a large one—$700,000 to be exact—but they’ve already raised over $330,000 as of the writing of this spotlight with 28 days to go. And the reason they’re looking to Kickstarter to make the game makes plenty of sense: this franchise is made for adults and jam-packed with lots and lots of adult content. This is not the kind of game you want to make with a publisher who might want to control things too much; it’s the kind of game you want to make as faithfully as possible to the movies it’s based on.

You can read much more about the game, see what Hodder, Cunningham, Savini, and Manfredini’s roles will be, check out more images, and see all of the available rewards for those who decide to throw some coin its way over at the Kickstarter campaign page.

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