What’s the buzz with The Texas Chain Saw Massacre?

As media got their first look at Sumo Nottingham and Gun Interactive’s
upcoming The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, hear what they had to say!

“There’s lots to explore: creating your own loadouts,
personalising characters, and unlocking new abilities.”
Stephen Talby from PushSquare
interviewed Kelvin and Darren on why the story of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
lends itself perfectly to a multiplayer gaming experience.

Darren said: “It’s like a prequel. This isn’t just a
bunch of random characters — everything was driven from story, even though it’s
an asymmetrical multiplayer game and not a single player campaign. There’s a
backstory to this whole game. We spent a lot of time in the pre-production
process coming up with these characters. Who are they, where do they come from,
what state are they from”

He continued: “It’s the same with the family as well. So,
looking at what they did in the film and their abilities helped drive some of
those gameplay aspects. Hopefully what we’ve done is made a game that’s
completely driven by the IP and not just, anyone could make this with any IP
and just reskin it.”

“I can’t handle horror, but The Texas Chain Saw
Massacre might just draw me in”
James Law of GInfinity
Sports caught up with Project Design Director Kelvin Moore on how the game
takes the horror genre and makes an engaging, exciting play for a range of fear
levels.

“The game we’re making is purely based on the
original 1974 classic, which kind of kicked off the slasher horror. Even
watching it now, it’s such an intense kind of experience. You know, it’s set in
broad daylight, and didn’t rely on night time and jump scares.”, says Kelvin.

“It’s about friends and strangers outsmarting each
other. It’s going back to playing hide and seek as a kid.”

Scaredy cats, rejoice!

“It’s better than a single-player experience because
you’re playing against the best AI characters out there – other humans”
Ed Smith of PC
GamesN was joined by Kelvin and Executive Producer Darren Campion to
discuss what players can expect from this thrilling asymmetrical game.

“We start off with the victims in the basement. You’ve
already been captured. You have to work through a series of stealth mechanics
while being hunted by Leatherface, who starts in the basement with you. And
then as you kind of broach out the family members start to appear, the
Hitchhiker and the Cook, and then basically, they want to kill you, you’ve got
to escape”, says Kelvin.

With three killers to manage rather than just one – presents
a significant challenge in balance. Darren said: “the goal is to ensure that
no-one always prefers playing a killer or always prefers playing a victim.
Through extensive focus testing, each team has to offer varied but balanced
experiences.”

“The team has seemingly gone the extra mile in the
quest for Authenticity”
Jordan Andow at The
Outer Haven spoke to Darren and Kelvin around how the team has worked with
the original look and feel of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in this game.

The duo explained that the development team have “[captured]
thousands of photos for the environments in the game. Things like actual
flowers from Texas [and] also [captured] audio of Texas native
birds. Authenticity doesn’t stop there. Edwin Neal, the actor that played
Hitchhiker in the 1974 movie, is back to voice the character for the game.”

Jordan summarised: “Authenticity is something the team at
Sumo Digital Nottingham is very clearly proud of. From the looks and sound of
it, they absolutely should be!”

Over in the US, the team at Gun Interactive met with games
industry media and gave them their first ‘hands on’ experience with the game.

“The movie license hasn’t just been slapped onto this
game. Instead, it feels like an excellent pairing, and I can’t wait to play
more.” [IGN]

“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre game is a new and terrifying
take on asymmetrical horror” [GamesRadar]

“These two sides combine nicely to create a fun
cat-and-mouse rhythm.” [Polygon]

“I’m most impressed by how much the otherwise serene
Texan farm works as a playground for escape attempts and murder.” [Game
Informer]

“This multiplayer title has a chance to breathe some life
into the neglected horror franchise.” [ComingSoon.net]

Keep up to date with all things The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
on the official website.

Sumo Nottingham is looking for people to join its fantastic
team. Check out Career Opportunities for more information.