Friday the 13th Review



The NES was geared mainly towards younger audiences, so it’s strange to see games based on slasher films. Then again, the 80s were a time where pretty much anything could be turned into a game geared towards kids, including R-rated movies like Friday the 13th. Let’s see what happens when you take one of the most popular slasher series at the time and turn it into a Nintendo game.

The opening makes a good first impression. We see a hollow hockey mask sitting alone in a black, empty void when suddenly, from out of nowhere, a knife falls into its eye socket. The screen flashes red and we’re met with that chilling musical sting. The game isn’t based on any particular movie from the franchise, though most of the movies have the same basic plot. However, the image of Jason on the box art is a still image from Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood, which was released a year before the game.




On the character selection screen, you can choose between six different camp counselors. Each one has unique stats when it comes to their movement speed and jump ability, but Mark and Crissy seem to be the most useful, given their agility. The rest of the characters move at a snail’s pace and don’t jump very high. As far as I know, none of these counselors are based on characters from the movies.

The gameplay takes a somewhat non-linear approach as you’re free to explore Camp Crystal Lake. As you wander around, however, you’ll find yourself in a convoluted maze of 2D side-scrolling. There are very few landmarks, which makes the campground confusing and difficult to navigate. You’ll probably be looking back at the map pretty frequently.

Oddly enough, Jason Voorhees isn’t your only enemy. Throughout the game, you fight a never-ending horde of zombies along with dangerous wildlife such as ravens and wolves. After a while, the enemies become more of a nuisance than an actual threat. Once you acquire stronger weapons, you’re able to defeat them so quickly that the combat begins to feel unengaging.

To make matters worse, your starting weapon, the rock, feels ineffective. Most of the time, it goes sailing over enemies’ heads due to its curved throwing pattern. Eventually, you find stronger and more accurate weapons such as knives, machetes, axes, and torches. Jars of blood replenish your health, but they spawn infrequently and only heal you when your health drops down to zero.

When the alarm sounds, you can check the map and search for Jason’s location. The countdown begins and you make your way to the flickering cabin. Jason holds either a counselor or a group of campers hostage, so you’ll need to reach him before time runs out. Once you enter a cabin, the gameplay shifts to a third-person perspective. To the game’s credit, it actually manages to pull off a few jumpscares. When you’re searching for Jason, he’ll attack you from a random spot of the cabin. When you finally fight him, however, he doesn’t look very intimidating when wearing a purple tracksuit and aqua hockey mask. Still, Jason’s unpredictable nature makes the game somewhat suspenseful since you’re never quite sure when he’ll strike next. He can attack you anywhere you go, even when you’re walking around Camp Crystal Lake.

So, that’s pretty much the game. You run around the camp and slowly chip away at Jason’s health meter until he finally dies. Of course, killing him once isn’t good enough. You have to kill him THREE TIMES to win the game. Every time you kill him, he comes back faster and stronger than before. Between fighting Jason, the zombies, and listening to the same three songs on an infinite loop, you’re bound to get sick of it all after a while. If you run out of counselors or campers, you’re treated to a very mean-spirited Game Over screen:




Wow. That's harsh.