Get ready to see Haddonfield in a whole new light with ‘Halloween: The Game.’ Does the game live up to the series’ legacy? Read our review.
With Michael Myers as a classic horror icon and the asymmetrical horror genre in gaming on the smaller side, expectations are high for Halloween: The Game to make an impact. Illfonic and Gun Interactive are no strangers to the space, with previous titles between the two including Friday the 13th, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game, so how will they approach Halloween?
Players will have the option to play as Myers himself or one of the many civilians to choose from in 1v4 multiplayer matches. The Standard Edition of Halloween: The Game features 10 playable Civilians, with the Deluxe Edition offering an additional two, Richard and Alexis, and three maps to play on release: Haddonfield Heights, Haddonfield Town Center, and Orange Grove Estates.
Become a Hero of Haddonfield, or take on The Shape of Evil. The choice is yours.
The Story Begins.
When I learned there was a single-player mode designed to complement and expand on moments from the film, I was eager to start with it. This standalone mode puts you directly into the shoes of Michael Myers to learn important game mechanics and also experience canon story events. Things kick off with Michael’s escape from Smith’s Grove Sanitarium, and from there, his journey back to where it all began. Haddonfield, Illinois.
While I was hoping for a little more from the single-player mode, it makes the game feel more approachable for new players. The mode does a good job setting up scenarios where players can learn all of Michael’s abilities without the stress of jumping into an online match and scrambling to learn. If trial by fire is more your thing, you can just hop right into a match and go, or squad up with friends in a private match.
There are multiple difficulties available for the chapters, challenges that offer rewards for you to use in multiplayer mode, and collectibles that reveal additional lore. All of this adds incentive and replayability to the single-player mode and makes it feel less like a tutorial.
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The single-player mode, if anything, makes me wonder what a fully solo Halloween game would be like. From what’s here, it feels like it has the potential of a Hitman-style game, but with Michael Myers in lieu of Agent 47. I hope they add more chapters in the future.
It’s a Lot of Work to be a Civilian. It’s Less Work to be a Killer.
(For this review, all the multiplayer matches were played in private lobbies.)
I tend to favor the Civilians/co-op side in asymmetrical horror games, so I started my multiplayer experience as a Civilian in Haddonfield.
Each of the Civilians comes equipped with their own unique abilities, and from the loadout screen you can customize and strengthen them further. I chose Jennifer Aarons because I liked her Dreamer (residents become harder to stalk) and Survival Rage (melee damage increased when Terrified) traits, with my starter item of choice being a baseball. Was my aim great? Sometimes. Was it fun to chuck a baseball at Michael? Every time. There are also a lot of options for abilities with the Perk Cards that could help tip the scales in your favor, and they range from common to legendary.
When the match starts, you’re set loose with various tasks, including Special Targets (NPCs that give more points) to save, ways to escape, and, of course, staying alive. A lot of the time, the approach seemed to be divide and conquer. Michael can track down the Special Targets fairly easily, so finding them (which is a chore in itself) and convincing them to hide or otherwise having to protect them feels like a priority. I spent my time hunting down items to help my team escape and weapons for when I inevitably got ambushed, but finding specific items was difficult. The maps are a pretty decent size, and there are so many drawers, cabinets, and boxes to loot through. I made it a goal to get NPCs to follow me to safety, and I even got a car started at one point and picked up my fellow Civilian players to escape. A word of caution though; your teammates can, and will, leave you to fight for yourself.
It’s a lot of work to be a Civilian. It’s less work to be a Killer.
While it’s fun to fly around the map in Shape Jump, I was concerned it would be overpowering in multiplayer. There are some limitations, like restrictions on entering or exiting in direct light and within civilian line of sight, plus an additional cooldown before going back in. Timed right and surrounded by shadows, you can just phase through doors/windows, or hop to a shadowy spot to cut off a civilian on the run.
Sometimes, playing as Michael feels more overpowering. After all, his only task is to track down targets and kill, but I had a well-equipped group of Civilians gang up on me in a match and was shown that ‘Okay, I could be stopped in my tracks long enough for them to escape.’
Each match is 20 minutes, and they can start to drag on once it reaches a certain point. Civilians who get caught and eliminated quickly can spectate, play mini-games to get more Perk Cards, and if they have a specific Perk Card, players can respawn as a Police Officer (so don’t forget to spend points for those!). It isn’t nearly as exciting as actively trying to survive, however. One match as Michael, two Heroes escaped and the other two were eliminated, but I still had a Special Target and other NPCs to track down. It felt like the round should have ended when there were no more player-controlled characters, and that I was holding up in the match by not being able to find the last resident I needed.
There’s a Lot to Work With.
This is a game for fans of the Halloween franchise, or those who liked Illfonic or Gun Interactive’s previous work (there’s still a following for the delisted Friday the 13th game).
One big question remains: what will matchmaking times look like over the course of the game’s life? Long queue times plague every asymmetrical horror game, because at the end of the day, one side is going to be more favored amongst the player base. Thankfully, there is an option to queue up as “No Preference”, meaning you’re willing to play as either side, but let’s face it. Most fans of the Halloween franchise will want to play as Michael. He is THE guy after all. Crossplay is also an option, which is great since the game launches simultaneously on PC and consoles.
One concern I always have with games that lock themselves to one IP is longevity and how quickly the matches will get repetitive. Now don’t worry, I’m not saying that it needs to follow the live service formula and have a battle pass to be a success (believe me, we need less of that), but I want there to be enough content to keep the game going past its initial release. There’s a lot to pull from with the Halloween universe, and I want the developers to take advantage of that.
Gameplay feels a little clunky at times, and there are some existing issues I experienced that will hopefully be resolved in the hefty day-one patch. There are multiple instances where I would go to initiate a grab as Michael, see the prompt, and hit a wall or furniture, or have the grab not connect at all. I also got stuck in a car when I went to hide, but at least I got points for admiring my work (recent kill) through the window.
The game is releasing at a great time, Halloween the holiday is right around the corner, the movies are getting a theatrical re-release, and new comics just for the game are coming out, so there’s a lot to work with in the coming months.
Out of the Illfonic and Gun Interactive games, this one is their best so far, and despite my critiques here and there, I did have fun in some of the matches I played. Halloween’s overall gameplay will feel familiar to fans of the asymmetric horror genre, and those who played Friday the 13th or The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but it still needs just a little bit more polish. The game has a lot of potential, and I hope to see regular updates in the future to keep an active player base. Otherwise, it risks fading into the shadows over time.
Halloween: The Game Early Access begins September 4 for Deluxe Edition pre-orders and launches fully on September 8 for Steam, Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and XBOX Series X/S.
