Friday the 13th: The Game is going to be delisted from storefronts at the end of 2023, publisher Gun Interactive has announced. The asymmetrical-multiplayer horror game rode a wave of excitement for the genre when it first launched in 2017, yet where competitors like Dead by Daylight have thrived Friday the 13th hasn't maintained a consistent playerbase. Now Friday the 13th is approaching a deadline related to its licensing of the original horror film IP, and it's forced to make a difficult decision.
When it first launched in 2017, Friday the 13th: The Game benefited significantly due to its association with the popular horror films and slasher villain Jason Voorhees. The game's maps included the frightening Camp Crystal Lake from the first Friday the 13th film, Packanack Lodge from the second film, and additional maps from the next three sequels. But the gameplay of Friday the 13th didn't prove to have the longevity it needed. Updates would see surges of players returning, only for them to depart after excitement dwindled.
In a post on Twitter, publisher Gun Interactive confirmed that the licensing agreement for Friday the 13th is coming up and it has decided not to renew. The license officially ends on December 31, 2023. As of that date, Friday the 13th: The Game will no longer be available to purchase. It'll disappear from all storefronts.
Those who have already purchased Friday the 13th will still own the game, of course. That's where a different issue crops up, however. Since Friday the 13th is an online multiplayer game, it doesn't make much sense to continue supporting servers for a game that's no longer on sale. As such, Gun Interactive will keep Friday the 13th online for at least one additional year, through December 31, 2024. After that, it will either shut the servers down or reevaluate whether to keep servers online.
Since there's still plenty of time left before Friday the 13th is delisted, Gun Interactive wants to offer an opportunity to check it out that's worth the price even if the game is planned to go offline. Friday the 13th: The Game will be discounted to $4.99 across all platforms, with DLC content pricing being dropped, too, down to $.99.
It's never great to hear that a game is going to be delisted from storefronts, and even worse to hear servers will be shutting down. Yet licensed online games are unique in that they cost a lot of money to keep going. If they aren't making enough money to keep going, to pay for servers, and for game developers to run them, they become untenable. Friday the 13th is still beloved by its fans and has lasted for six years even with a dwindling playerbase. That's worth celebrating, even as Friday the 13th's time comes to an end.
Friday the 13th: The Game is available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
