Friday, May 26, 2017

Glowing review of the new Friday The 13th game

RPS:
As a counsellor, it’s easy to fall into the mindset of the hunted. Jason is an intimidating figure and because hiding is an option, it’s tempting to do precisely that. My successes as a survivor have come when I’ve played as if I’m in a survival horror game, using stealth to stay out of the action. The killer himself is clearly the greatest threat, but fear is a great danger. Essentially, the more frightened your character is, the greater the chance of detection. Terrified counsellors scream, giving themselves away, and managing your composure is vital.

To stay calm, you’ll want to stick to the paths rather than running into the woods, avoid seeing Jason or the corpses of his victims, and try to keep your friends close. Brilliantly, all of this fear management feels like an emergent part of the slasher sim side of the game rather than a meter to handle. As Jason, you want to divide and conquer, chasing your victims into the woods where their fear level rises, isolating them from their friends, cornering them in cabins and then dragging them from underneath beds or from inside closets.

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When he’s in the vicinity, counsellors hear a musical sting, alerting them to his presence.

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Oh, but that musical giveaway? Jason can temporarily mute it when he enters stalking mode. Even knowing that the Jason player has that ability, I’ve still been startled to see the big bastard standing there, unannounced.