The Texas Chain Saw Massacre review – A Cinematic Seesaw

Horror movies have produced some of the most memorable pop culture icons frequently referenced today, such as Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and the chainsaw-wielding Leatherface. The last of which has been terrorizing rural Texas since the 1970s, when the first The Texas Chain Saw Massacre movie was released and now where the game takes place.

In this new title from Sumo Digital, players will either take on the role of one of a three-member team of the Sawyer family or a Victim on a team of four. What follows will be a stealth offensive as Leatherface and his family run across each cinematic map reminiscent of the movie. If it does one thing correctly, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre evokes the same feelings as the movie where it takes its name.

There are two kinds of people in this world

Each of the members of the Family is fairly unique, with the players able to quickly understand their abilities and see their use in tracking and hurting the Victims. This doesn’t feel the same on the Victim’s side as the abilities are mostly context-specific so I found myself sticking to one or two favorites who had skills that I felt the most comfortable using.

You can customize each survivor on a branching skill tree similar to Dead By Daylight’s Blood Web, but with tracts that split in places, letting you decide which upgrades to choose from. These are either skills or attribute points that can be applied to a character’s build to increase their base stealth, endurance, strength, and other major stats.

In the 10 hours or so I played across nearly a dozen matches, I came to understand how to properly use two of the Victims, Sonny and Julie. These characters had the ability to track and cancel tracking for the Family, respectively, which likely saved my skin more than once. That being said, I could count on one hand the number of players able to escape in my playthrough, making it a much harder feat to achieve.

There is a lot of give and take in this title, with the Victims often succeeding until they are spotted, then being forced to run and try to get away from three separate killers. At that point, it becomes more of a snowball rolling down a hill as they get on your trail. However, your teammates can do little to help, so your torture and distraction serve as your allies’ opportunity to move.

Whereas other asymmetrical horror games on the hunted side feel like you’re making progress toward a goal based on your allies, that’s way more of a thing on the Family side. At launch, it feels like the game is heavily weighted towards Leatherface, but it’s also not impossible to escape either. Victims who are able to consistently find matches will likely have the opportunity to learn the maps, characters, and escape.

Cinematic, interactive, and tense

Part of the joy of playing as the Family is the opportunity to work as a team, which leads to some tense moments where you’re trying to communicate or chasing after a survivor together. Thanks to the heavy soundtrack and just standard sound design, running after a Victim with my family, only to have them slip through a gap in the wall at the last second, felt like it was plucked from the movie.

Something that was immediately apparent to me was how beautiful the world was for a horror game, not only detailed but the camera also makes sure to capture moments in cinematic angles. Something as simple as Cook climbing a ladder can be viewed from an impressive angle as he slowly ascends to follow a Victim who may have just gone that way.

The lighting is also impressive, with both the Victims and the Family having their views of the world adapting to light sources, like going from the dark house to broad daylight will cause you to be unable to see briefly. It’s a pretty cool detail, with the light coming through the windows in the house and other interiors also showing as clear beams with dust particles floating through them.

The environments are incredibly detailed, with each corner of every map being just as interesting and decorated as the last. At the same time, it never feels too busy, with every prop seemingly being placed with a purpose and even some that seem to have a sort of dark humor about them. Regardless, it all combines into exciting experiences that are just as fun to explore as they are to hunt in.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is teeming with personality and it can be fun to play on both sides, but the real test will be to see if it can draw a consistent player base. Not only that, but Sumo Digital will need to find a way to ensure that the IP the entire experience relies on doesn’t suffer the same fate as the Friday the 13th game. Time will tell, but the title has a strong place to start from.

Try Hard Guides was provided with a PC review copy of this game. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles in the Game Reviews section of our website!