Highlights
- The Texas Chain Saw Massacre game lacks long-term content and may not receive updates for as long as other asymmetrical games.
- Despite this, the game is still enjoyable for streamers and fans who can play together in full parties.
- The necessity of always including Leatherface in matches limits the diversity and synergy of playing as different family members, which may be a drawback for some players.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has gradually begun to fade from the hype that enveloped it at launch, which is only natural for an asymmetrical horror game of its ilk. Unlike Dead by Daylight, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre never boasted any years-long content roadmap and while more content may be arriving at some point in the future, it’ll likely not be upheld for nearly as long. Such is the way with games that adapt an incredibly specific IP such as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, especially if it’s only meant to adapt the original entry at this point, and Evil Dead: The Game is further proof of that impeded longevity.
Still, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre remains fun for the community it has, which is mostly composed of streamers or peers who have been able to hop into full parties together as either a victim or family member. There hasn’t been any particular meta involved in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, at least not to the degree that other asymmetrical games commonly have attributed to them, but it seems like there are popular escape routes and victim characters for fans to choose. Interestingly, while there are currently five family characters with three playable in each match, one of those three must always be Leatherface.
Players Must Pick Leatherface in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
In The Texas Chain Saw Massacre queues, a lobby’s wait time can often be lengthy depending on what players have been sifted in through matchmaking. The victim queue has five characters players can choose from, meaning there will always be one character singled out and not chosen from the bunch, but that still offers a great dynamic based on what abilities have been unlocked and what amount of teamwork is demonstrated during a match.
Indeed, it is much easier to survive if all victims are working toward the same goals and escape routes, but playing solo still allows fans to find their own way out even if they are not on comms. The family members all have their own unique abilities as well, but players may not get to see an optimal level of synergy between them because Leatherface is a prerequisite for every match.
Because Leatherface takes up one of the family slots, one of the three players queued in to play as a family member must choose him for the match to begin. This is completely fine as long as someone queued loves playing as Leatherface—and he’s certainly fun and iconic with a surprisingly engaging chainsaw mechanic—but someone who enjoys another family member may eventually feel obligated to select him since nobody else will.
Leatherface is Essential to TCSM, But Diminishes a Diverse Family Dynamic
If Leatherface wasn’t fun or OP this would be a much larger concern, and thankfully pursuing victims with a revved chainsaw held high rarely ever gets old. That said, Leatherface doesn’t have the diverse utility that other family members get in their kits, and needing someone to choose Leatherface potentially means that someone has to miss out on playing as their preferred character.
Of course, players can be stubborn and wait for a lobby where someone is willing to play Leatherface. But as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre slowly starts to step out of the limelight and fewer players queue into lobbies outside of full groups with comms, it will inevitably become more difficult to find a lobby where someone is intentionally choosing Leatherface.
The problem with The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’s lack of proposed content could actually benefit this premise since Leatherface remains one of the few options for a family character, and if new content arrived with new family characters it could mean that even fewer of them would ever get to see a synergy together in a match. Either way, while Leatherface is obviously the mascot of the IP and his iconography would be missed, it is still unfortunate that players can’t plan a team with three diverse family members instead.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
