I love the Texas Chain Saw Massacre 1974 and this game is a fun addition to the lore of the old films.
Kane Hodder as Leatherface, can't go wrong there.
Scout Taylor Compton (RZ's Halloween) plays Julie and also serves as motion-capture for all of the female survivors. That detail is fun for horror fans like me because you can play as one of 3 fictional TCM scream queen (victims), and one is voiced by Scout herself.
The setting borrows the tunnels from the second TCM film & the house from the first film in a juxtaposition, of a familiar looking atmosphere to traverse, for the gameplay and navigation.
Victims start the match after hearing the audio of a harrowing mystery crime case that plays during the loading screens which continuously adds story context to the murder mystery all players are engulphed in.
Once the victim frees themselves the hunt and chase is on. As a survivor you have to scavenge for bone scraps, screwdrivers, and health bottles to make your way towards more key items that will unlock final exits for the victims.
All while Leatherface (a mandatory player for the Family side, 3 against 4, 3 killers, 4 survivors) and his "Family" is chasing victims through wall crevices, traps, and the chaotic scattershot of sandbox objectives in order to build an escape as a victim.
Now, I personally love Dead By Daylight, I enjoyed Resident Evil Resistance, couldn't really get in to Evil Dead The Game, and wished Friday the 13th got the help it deserved. So with that said, this game surprised me for being a film-tie-in.
Any online game like this takes time, practice, and patience before you get the hang of things. As much as I love Dead by Daylight, TCM the game makes it look rather dated and simplistic.
Though not perfect, the matchmaking is still rough. If not enough players join the lobby, it counts down anyway. Then Leatherface is required as one of the 3 Killers. Victims can be swapped amongst players, but unlike DBD nobody can share the same character per round. This makes for some dodgy Lobby experiences where you may not even get a Killer who wants to play Leatherface, or a D/c because someone didn't want to swap Victims. I hope matchmaking improves. They could also add more outfits & cosmetics.
With that aside, this game is a fun tribute game, I just recommend you research survival tips or at least learn the characters and the basics to ward off any instant frustrations one might have. Online games move rather quickly once everyone is up to speed.
This game packs a thrill that is designed with respect to the source material, right down to references about star signs. It echoes the lore in a presentation of previous murder mystery intended to broaden the universe. I'm surprised at how it manages to succeed, it will just be interesting to see if it's willing to survive.
I'm glad they spent some time on this to make it special.
