Friday the 13th: The Game was released to much fanfare and some rough online matchmaking (thanks to the servers being killed faster than a camp counselor that doesn’t know the sprint button) but, when people were playing, Friday the 13th launched to the top of Twitch and the Steam activity charts. The results of the matches played were a plethora of darkly hilarious videos showing gamers trying their best to survive Jason’s wrath.
Like the Stages of Grief, there are a few reoccurring experiences that all victims of a Jason attack will go through in Friday the 13th: The Game. Call them cliché, call them horror tropes, but for the sake of this article, call them hilarious. The magic of F13 is being completely aware of the fact that you just zigged when you should’ve zagged and now Jason has you by the throat. “How could I just stumble over a branch and run out of stamina?” You’ll call yourself “stupid” more than once, but you’ll be laughing the entire time.
Here are some of the best reoccurring moments that have lead to funniest highlights so far.
The “Save Yourself” Moment
You’ll be bleeding, limping through the woods with Jason an arm’s length away when you realize that it’s time to just give up. If you’re alongside a friend and you’ve lost your will to live, you can become the hero, sacrificing your life in a Save Yourself moment. There’s a chance they’ll make it if Jason focuses all his energy on butchering you, right? Maybe not.
The “Letting Your Friend Die As You Escape In The Car” Moment
Finding the keys, filling a car with gas and getting the battery connected can feel like an impossible task if Jason is stalking what I assume is a certified pre-own, but when everything comes together, it’s one of the most satisfying ways to escape in the game. It’s also one of the scariest ways to die if Jason knows where the car is headed. Just like in the movies, the man in the hockey mask will show up out of nowhere and stop the car in its tracks. This is when you hope he grabs one of your passengers so you can floor it out of there. Just don’t drive into Crystal Lake.
The “Brutalizing The Trolls” Moment
This isn’t really from any of the movies, although bullies usually get their due in horror films, but the unfortunate reality in gaming is that you’re gonna get trolls; The toxic members of the gaming community will always bubble to the top, but in F13, you can at least dispatch of them in clever ways. It’s far more enjoyable than just spawning and dying constantly, and you get to have a bit of a conversation before offing them.
The below clip has been cued up so you can get right to the revenge, but the backstory is simple: racist, homophobic trolls (aren’t they all?) were mocking the streamer and the other players in the game. The streamer spawns as Jason, catches them, and they continue to talk sh*t saying they’ll respawn and continue their trolling ways. The troll does respawn, but he’s almost immediately sold out by the rest of the counselors then they tea bag him as he’s burned alive in a fireplace. Justice.
https://youtu.be/nwau3jmI_w4?t=5m18s
The “Turning On Your Friends For Letting You Die” Moment
Because you have to balance teamwork with utter selfishness, F13 will strain friendships. Groups will pass blame and eventually turn on each other, which will lead to friends becoming even more untrusting of each other. It leads to a paranoia that is difficult to overcome, but will ultimately build strong, lifelong relationships maybe.
The “It’s Not Worth It” Moment
For any horror, or Friday the 13th movie fan, it’s a delight to know that you can decide someone isn’t worth it. Remember when Jason decided a gang of street toughs were just a waste of time in Jason Takes Manhattan? You’ve probably experienced this plenty of times in the game by now. Good Guy Jason is always ready to hear you out.
This isn’t to be confused with the “Reaction Is So Funny It’s Not Worth It” Moment, but it’s close
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpWqa178gH0