The Texas Chain Saw Massacre News

Grapple Rework

Players have seen changes to our close encounter system already. Earlier in the life of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, we made the decision to remove the ability for another Family member to instant kill a victim involved in a close encounter with a teammate. We had made that decision because we felt it was unfair to Victim gameplay.

With community feedback and our own internal thoughts, we’ve decided to rework grapples in a way we feel makes more sense. Each character will now have a grappling value assigned to them to determine their effectiveness in a close encounter. As a reminder, Victim players are able to change their build for close encounters/grapples through their Strength Attribute point allocation and via certain perks.

"With this grapple rework, we aimed to make the close encounter mechanic feel more natural. We wanted the one hit kill removed, because that didn't feel fair if a Victim had full health to be one shot by a Family member jumping in. The flip side is, it doesn't feel fair to be Hands or Johnny and lose a close encounter to Connie. So with that in mind, we felt this made sense for the characters size, attributes, etc. Now when you enter a close encounter to fight back against the Family, you'll be doing so from a more informed position on how risky that just might be, and whether or not you might want to avoid that encounter or jump in on the attack."

-Mattshotcha, Brand Strategy

Additionally, this mechanic will now have a button cap to ensure that even if a macro is used for accessibility purposes, the button taps per second allowed will still be within the realm of human possibility.

"To put this into perspective, Johnny and Hands will be a challenge, unless you have a built-for-grapples Leland, Ana, Sonny, or Maria. But keep in mind, Victims can build for better grappling, while the Family cannot. Think of this new factor like the existing stun duration factor in game. Family has a variety of different stun durations and the Victims can add to the time they leave a Family member stunned."

-Mattshotcha, Brand Strategy

Players can expect these changes to roll out on October 22nd.

Thank you for reading!

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre's new game mode sees player count double on Steam

Even if a game is very nasty indeed, it's nice to see it do well. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a grim title filled with absolutely excruciating murders, and it just launched a new mode, at least for players who have bought the game's content pass. Even though it has a limited release right now it's done wonders for the game's Steam player numbers, with them more than doubling.

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Patch Notes - September 26th, 2024

The September 26th, 2024 patch will feature bug fixes and the release of ‘Rush Week.’

These are the bug fixes for our September 26th, 2024 patch. It’s scheduled to begin rolling out on console and PC at roughly 8AM EDT. This patch will also include the release of our new, FREE game mode ‘Rush Week’. Folks who have purchased the Content Pass will gain access to ‘Rush Week’ four days earlier. It will be free to everyone on Monday, September 30th, 2024.

As a reminder, in addition to the default cosmetics of Pajamas, Cheerleader, and Nightie, everyone who plays 'Rush Week' will unlock the Towel and Laundry Day cosmetics for FREE, for life! But you gotta be quick, as the offer only lasts until our October patch when the two cosmetics will move to the shop at $1.99 each.

PATCH NOTES Changed: Base Game - Fuse Box Spawn on The Mill

We have changed a potential spawn location for fuse box, to prevent it from spawning too close in proximity to the valve tank
Added fusebox spawn in the Mill Ground Floor
Removed fusebox spawn in the Overgrown Exterior

Fixed: Base Game - Connie’s Focused SFX

In both public and private matches, all players could hear Connie use her Focused ability
Players will no longer be able to hear a Connie pop their Focused ability

Fixed: Base Game - Lockpicking Exploit

Victims were previously able to bypass tool break progression by exiting and reentering the minigame after hitting a checkpoint
Tool break progress will fill and deplete normally now

Fixed: Base Game - Ripstall Cooldown

The Level 2 Hands Ability Tree upgrade, Reduce Ripstall Cooldown, did not give the correct cooldown
With this fix, the cooldown will be 72 seconds if Reduce Ripstall Cooldown has been equipped

Fixed: Base Game - Family Members Stunned

If any 2 Family Members stand near a hiding spot while a Victim bursts out of it, it would result in one Family player being permanently stunned for the rest of the match
This has been fixed so that the stun is the correct duration when a Victim player bursts out of a hiding spot

Fixed: Base Game - ‘Tracker Tagged’ Perk

The Family Perk ‘Tracker Tagged’ would lose functionality mid-match and not highlight Victims after landing a hit
- The description for the Tracker Tagged Perk reads as follows: “Hitting a Victim highlights them for all Family members. Highlight duration is 2/3/5 seconds.”
The perk will now always highlight Victims for the proper duration for all Family Members after hitting a Victim

Fixed: Base Game - Maria’s Eye Color

Hazel, her eyes are hazel
Nothing to see here

Fixed: Base Game - Sonny Star Sign Ability

When using Sonny’s ability, other players were able to see visual effects
The effect will now only be visible to Sonny

Fixed: Base Game - Family Melee Attack Exploit

The team has patched an exploit where Family players could deal double damage with a single melee attack

Fixed: Private Matches - Crashes

If the host of a private match had the store open while the lobby countdown transitioned to the loading screen, the title would crash for them
The game will no longer crash in this scenario

Fixed: Private Matches - Consecutive Matches

Players were not able to play consecutive private matches as they would encounter an infinite loading screen if four or more players were present
This has now been fixed and players will be able to play back to back private matches regardless of player count

Fixed: Private Matches - Family House - Blood Moon Basement Lighting

We fixed a shader issue on the Family House - Blood Moon map variant that resulted in the basement area being too bright
Players can view this fix in private matches

Fixed: Private Matches - Spectator Overlay

When hosting a private match as a Victim, proximity and hiding spot overlays would not be present for the host in spectator mode
The correct visual effects will now show for the spectating player

Fixed: Private Matches - Family Stamina

Family melee attacks were incorrectly consuming stamina in private matches
Attacking as a Family Member will now consume the proper amount of stamina

Fixed: Private Matches - Attack Animations

Repeated attacks by a Family Member in private matches would have identical animations
Family Member attacks will now smoothly alternate between animations

Fixed: Private Matches - Bone Shards

An issue has been fixed where the host of a private match was able to collect an infinite amount of bone shards from bone piles

Fixed: Private Matches - Fuse Box Minigame

Fuse box minigame would not complete properly resulting in the basement door not opening and the minigame remaining visible to the player
Fuse box minigame will now function as intended when completed
Quick math, on the other hand, can still be difficult

Fixed: Private Matches - Character Levels

Character levels were not displaying accurately to non host players
The appropriate character level will now show for all players when in a private lobby

Fixed: Private Matches - Star Sign Ability Effects

We fixed an issue where the host of a private match could see the Star Sign Ability effects of other characters during a match, regardless of the side they were playing on
Every character is bound to its own set of abilities and will not see the effects of other characters' Star Sign Abilities during private matches

Fixed: Private Matches - Attribute Points

A fix has been implemented where Attribute Point changes made in the Character Loadout weren’t applying correctly during a private match
The fix made Attribute Points properly reflected in the functionality during a private match

Fixed: Private Matches - Radio Voice Over

An issue has been fixed where the host couldn’t hear the radio voice over when loading into a private match
Radio voice over is now audible for all players when loading into a private match

Fixed: Private Matches - Softlocked

We have fixed a bug where softlock occurred for the host of a private match if they loaded into a match with the Options Menu opened
The host of a private match will now be able to enter a match without getting softlocked

Fixed: Private Matches - Leatherface Destroying Doors

We fixed a bug where the host of a private match would see a Padlock appear after Leatherface destroyed a door
A padlock will not visibly appear after Leatherface destroys a door in Private Matches

Fixed: Private Matches - Victim Execution Sound Effects

We have implemented a fix where a sound effect that is normally played after a Victim dies was present during the Loading Screen when starting a private match
Victim death sound effects will now only play after a Victim is executed

Fixed: Private Matches - Non-Functional Lobbies

We have resolved an issue where players would get stuck in a non-functional private lobby while attempting to leave immediately after creating it
Players in a Private Match Lobby can now proceed to the main menu without any issues

Fixed: Museum Mode - Photo Opportunity Mode Invisible Collision

When entering Photo Opportunity Mode after finishing Museum Mode, players would encounter invisible collision in the Front Field area
This issue has been fixed

Fixed: Museum Mode - Stuck Spots

In Museum Mode’s Photo Opportunity Mode, if a player tried to change Family Members while standing on top of them in the Car Graveyard, they would get stuck out of bounds
This issue has been fixed

Fixed: Museum Mode - Camera Stuck Spot

The camera in Museum Mode would get stuck in the map environments when attempting to switch characters in a staged photo opportunity in the Basement Area
Player camera will no longer get stuck while switching characters

Fixed: Museum Mode - Inverted Functionality

An issue with inverted functionality in Museum Mode has been fixed
Inverted Look Functionality will now perform in Museum Mode as it does in the base game

For any existing or persistent issues, please use the support site.

Thank you for reading the patch notes. Keep the conversation going on our official subreddit, r/TXChainSawGame, Tiktok, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

DBD rival The Texas Chainsaw Massacre slashes price permanently

The world of asymmetrical gaming is one of the toughest nuts to crack. For every Dead by Daylight success story there's eight Evolve-style commiserations, and it's often got nothing to do with the quality of the title. One game that's bucking the trend is The Texas Chainsaw Massacre which has carved out a nice niche for itself in the year since launch. That niche might be about to get bigger too, as it's just slashed its price, permanently.

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'Rush Week'

‘Rush Week’ takes its inspiration from the late 70’s Giallo-inspired Slasher films. The love for that subgenre of cinema gives you a clearer vision for the horror film that you can cast yourself in with this 1v6 multiplayer mode.

Taking place after the events of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Johnny is off wreaking havoc to unsuspecting Victims. Landing at the Omega Sigma Theta Sorority House, we set our scene with Johnny attempting to break in. The goal for the Sorority Girls? Survive and make it out alive.

Johnny and six new playable Sorority Girls will be randomly assigned at the start of the match. This two-story Sorority House features multiple spots to run and hide in, including a locked basement that can be explored. Traversal is similar to the original game, with multiple windows that can be jumped out of, ladders to climb, and even an attic area with its own unique escape option.

While the Sorority Girls will not have any perks, there are key items scattered throughout the house to help them escape. A pair of car keys can be found to unlock a car where you can radio to the police to get help. Secondarily, players can also complete a fuse objective to use a phone in the house to call the police, as well. If the police have been called successfully, players have a limited amount of time to survive in the Sorority House with Johnny. There is an Attic Pole that can be used to make your final escape via an attic hatch, but be warned, at most only two Sorority Girls can escape through that exit. Johnny players can also break the ladder to prevent their escapes.

The Sorority Girls can buy themselves time by using various weapons and distractions like the wrench, the knife, and the pepper spray, as well as an all new mechanic using perfume that can be thrown at him to reveal his location.

Johnny’s objective is to Hunt. With each execution, he will get stronger, making him more lethal the longer a match goes. Within ‘Rush Week’ there will be a Fear system in place where if a Sorority Girl has a high level of Fear, Johnny can smell that fear and find them easier. So, it’s important for the Sorority Girls to complete objectives in order to lower their amount of fear or Johnny is going to get them.

‘Rush Week’ kicks off our new era of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. With the blessing of Kim Henkel himself, we are exploring and creating within the world of Texas while still adhering to the authenticity of our game.

“Being able to explore our own canon in ‘Rush Week’ let me answer the question, why isn’t Johnny in the first Texas Chain Saw Massacre or any of the other films? Being able to create a new time frame for Johnny to exist lets us play around with that idea. This new game mode takes place five years later and gives you a clue as to what Johnny is up to in his new life on the run.”

-Ronnie Hobbs, Creative Director, Gun Interactive

“The goal with Rush Week was to create a unique, and new way to play Texas, while also exploring one of the new family members. Internally we asked the question “If Johnny is in our game, why does he not appear in the ‘74 film? Where did he go?” This game mode allows us to explore that storyline a bit. At the same time it allows me to selfishly incorporate a film genre I love; Giallo. If you haven’t watched a 70’s era Italian horror film, please do. There’s really nothing else like it, and honestly Giallos crawled so western slashers could walk. It was fun to be inspired by that film genre, while also looking at other very early slashers and figure out a way to make it work within the world of Texas. I can’t wait for players to check it out!”

-Wes Keltner, CEO and President, Gun Interactive

Enjoy 4 days of Early Access to this brand new game mode by purchasing the Content Pass for $19.99 USD. Upon purchase, Content Pass holders will be able to jump into ‘Rush Week’ while also unlocking Execution Pack 4.

Keep your eyes out for a trailer coming soon.