Some Mystery Studio Is Making a New Friday the 13th Game

There hasn't been a Friday the 13th game since LJN's occasionally terrifying (but mostly just annoying) NES adaptation of the slasher film franchise from 1989. If EGM and Friday the 13th creator Sean S. Cunningham are to be believed, that may change later this year.

Cunningham dished to EGM late last week that a new game based on the film was in the works at "an experienced game studio" that, for the time being at least, is going unnamed. The game is targeted for an October, 2015 release, and sounds as though it will be aiming for a multiplayer-focused take on the predator/prey gameplay most recently utilized in Alien: Isolation. Perhaps Turtle Rock's Evolve might be a more apt comparison, as the game will feature a team of "resourceful survivors" going up against the series' unkillable, hockey-mask sporting big bad, Jason Voorhees, in an asymmetrical cooperative/competitive multiplayer environment.

The game seems timed to coincide with the upcoming Friday the 13th TV series (and a new, 13th film, which Cunningham says is in the planning stage). Though it's been 26 years since the last game in this series, there's been a recent uptick in similarly styled horror games of late. Apart from the previously mentioned Alien: Isolation, Supermassive Games' Until Dawn is basically a single-player slasher flick, and the Kickstarter-funded Last Year sounds almost exactly like what this Friday the 13th game intends to be, with some of the game's concept art very clearly calling back to Jason's iconic look.

The EGM story notes that the studio working on the game will be "announced in the coming weeks." In case you want to revisit what Friday the 13th games used to be like without actually having to play one, you can always go watch this classic episode of Spookin' With Scoops.

Alex is our horror video game news guy now.

Given the popularity of mods like The Hidden, I can see this being the next Youtube money maker.

Maybe it is from the developers of Alien Isolation? One of Creative Assembly's 20 teams.

That Last Year game looks interesting, never heard of it till now. How did Alex not link to the Spookin' w/ Scoops featuring the LJN game? Or did GB loose Spookin' with Patrick?

@cooljammer00: Until we hire Patrick's replacement, I think I'm your everything video game news guy for the time being.

@nilazz said:

This the PT scare or a different one?

My bold prediction of the day:

This game will probably not be good either.

@nightriff: Oversight corrected.

Hmmm... can the teenagers choose to pork while they're being hunted? I wonder if you'd put a mechanic like that in one of these slasher things. Maybe that's how you get stamina or points or whatever, but then the baddie can see you from far away? I mean, that's half the point anyway, right?

@nightriff: I'm pretty sure it is the P.T scare.

@alex: Hmm you don't have the Staff flag anymore?

I can get on board with this.

So at this point is it possible for "a mystery studio" to be anything except KojiPro?

This brings back nightmares of my childhood playing the NES version. That game was way to difficult for me, specially as a small kid.

With that Kick started Slasher game and Until Dawn I think I'm good.

hey wait a second

Wait, it's just a multiplayer kinda thing? That's really disappointing.

I hope the mystery studio is something silly, like Ubisoft: Vatican City.

Shouldn't you be writing up an article about this for Kotaku?

I'll probably play whatever this turns out to be. I'm a total sucker for these kinds of games.

He already did

I don't think any of the staff has. Not Brad or Vinny, at least.

3 sentences is not an article

Heard about this via Two Best Friends, seems really interesting.

@corevi: Well... It is Kotaku we're talking about here.

*witty comeback*

Maybe Crystal Lake Ent. is talking with the Last Year guys to strike a license deal. That's what I would do.

Is this really why Patrick left?

You dumped me. Why are you in my favorite coffee shop?!

That is weird to hear but I have a feeling that it might not be good but I was wrong before.

I think this meme died off a few years ago but the little guy is still cute...

SCOOOOOOwait

@corevi: Sure it is

You are the wind beneath our wings.

If it was I would be the head writer of the goddamn new york times for my ability to write slightly more than a paragraph.

insert frog fractions 2 joke here: __________

@patrickklepek: Did you leave Alex your press hat or does he have to purchase his own?

Wait.. EGM is still a thing? I figured it had died out again. Hard to keep track.

ETA till Spookin with the Wolf?

There will be a slight change in content. The Wolf will be doing the Spookin.

For more insight check out a rainy window near you!

I just watched that Friday the 13th Spookin' episode 2 weeks ago.

It holds up!!!!!

DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH DUH

The more interesting thing to come out of this article is that there is going to be another Friday the 13th TV show.

Yes, another. There was one before, and it did not follow the movies at all. It was more like the X-Files... only one of the investigators was a werewolf if I remember.

@bicycle_repairman said:

You're mistaken. The howl was coming from inside the house.

@heatdrive88 said:

I had completely forgotten about that video series.

I was thinking the same thing when I first heard this news. They already have the concept down pat, why not give them a bit of support?

If they take the core concepts from the NES friday the 13th and expand properly upon those, this could turn out to be a great game.

@patrickklepek: Hey, what was that game you played that wasn't licensed but was based on Friday the 13th?