The latest patch for Friday the 13th The Game went live earlier this week on all platforms. It introduces smaller versions of the game’s three existing maps as well some new mechanics, graphical improvements, and a number of bug fixes. Unfortunately, it also introduces a slew of new bugs and glitches.
The game’s current matchmaking issues hark back to the days following the game’s troubled May 26th release, where players waited minutes to be placed in a lobby only to find themselves alone. PlayStation 4 connections in particular have been rocky since the update, with crashed games and lobbies that rarely fill to capacity. It wasn’t until my fourth attempt that I had a quick match with more than two players in the lobby, and that’s only because friends of mine joined my game.
There are plentiful new graphical issues to be found. Some cabins have trees growing out of the floor, while others feature wooden walls that are helpfully labeled “wood.” I saw floating weapons and items, disappearing dead bodies, and Jason reaching through walls and obstacles over the course of my sessions last night.
The current jankiness isn’t limited to visuals, however. Pocket knives were always a surefire way for a counselor to break free of Jason’s grasp, but now they often don’t trigger. Hitting Jason with a bat or other weapon doesn’t always connect or stun him, although sometimes it can actually break him out of a stun. Many of Jason’s kill animations are faster, taking but a fraction of a second, leaving a counselor with no time to react or to attempt to free themselves before they’re killed.
It’s not all easy, breezy, and beautiful for Jason, however. There’s a new prompt and animation when smashing windows that takes longer than the old “bash it once with your weapon” method. Counselors are now also immune to damage from him while passing through windows, so it’s possible to stay alive by climbing in and out repeatedly as Jason grasps and swings at air. Sure, it’s as silly as a slow motion Scooby-Doo chase, but hey, whatever it takes to see another day, right?
This sounds like a lot of new problems for the beleaguered game, and it is. But thankfully the patch also brought plenty of improvements.
Carried items now drop next to a counselor’s dead body instead of disappearing through the map. Teamkilling with weapons has been eliminated from public matches. There are new cutscenes at the beginning and end of each match, but don’t worry, Chad lovers, his frightened face is still front and center.
The variant maps may simply be “40% smaller” versions of the originals, but they feel completely new. The woods are denser, cabins are clustered, and roads and pathways are changed. Matches are more intense as counselors can spawn next to a phone or the car, find all the repair items almost immediately, and be on their way home within two minutes.
The patch is undoubtedly a breath of life into a game that desperately needs more content, but players are frustrated by the numerous problems that came along with it. Illfonic and Gun Media urge players to report any issues at Jason Kills Bugs, and players are also tallying a laundry list at Reddit. Here’s hoping Jason is as good at killing bugs as he is at killing counselors.