For those looking for some killer fun on the go while adding a few wrinkles to the ol’ grey matter, look no further than the free-to-play Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle. This mobile game features everyone’s favorite camp counselor slaughtering undead behemoth, Jason Voorhees, as he chats with his mother’s severed head between (and during) murdering sprees.

 
The game starts off deceptively simple. A few victims are placed strategically around the game screen. By swiping your finger you make Jason move in the direction you swipe. He continues in that direction until running into an environmental object, a victim, or a hazard. Your goal is to figure out the correct path and order to kill the victims in to trigger the “Final Girl” scene (or Final Dude, or Final Geek, or Final Hipster, etc etc). Make your way to the “Final Girl” to trigger a timed press scene. Tap the screen while the cursor is over the solid area and it is bye-bye “Final Girl”. Miss, and they live to see another day.

  
There are a number of locales to traverse to throughout Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle, each with their own unlockable Jason skin. Each local has 13 levels to kill through. Complete all 13, and the next location and skin are unlocked. You begin the game at Crystal Lake, like any self-respecting game based on Friday the 13th should, then move on to a Prison, Crystal Lake Ski Lodge, New York, a Beach Resort, an Abandoned Amusement Park and many more themed levels.

With each kill you make you earn Bloodlust. Fill up your Bloodlust meter, and you are awarded a crate that you can smash open to reveal a new weapon. You can choose to equip the new weapon right then, or save them up to equip later or trade in for a new crate for another chance at a different weapon. Note that weapons are merely cosmetic and range from the traditional machete and wrench, to more wacky items like candlesticks, fish and tea kettles.

 
As the game progresses new conditions and tactics will appear. These range from things that can hurt both Jason and the victims, like campfires and bear traps to kitties that you must avoid killing and the ability to turn lights off and on. If you get stuck at any point, you can rewind back a few moves or restart the level all together. Thankfully, the game does not penalize you for doing so! If you are just outright stuck and need some help just tap on Mrs. Voorhees’ severed head and she will give you a hint or full-on show you how to solve it. All you have to do is sit through a short ad. This may sound like it makes the game too easy, you still have to remember the moves that are shown you – which if it is a particularly elaborate path you need to take, can be easy to forget a step or three.

In addition to the main game there are the Daily Death & Murder Marathon Modes you can play. Daily Death allows you to play once a day. Complete the puzzle for bonus Bloodlust. Solve each puzzle every day for 13 Days in a row and earn yourself a rare weapon (note that good ol’ momma cannot give you any hints on these so you are on your own solving them). The Murder Marathon Mode allows you to see how many “Final” kills you can get in a row before you miss (I’m at a 24 kill streak at the time of this writing).

Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle has a very cutesy, almost South Park-esque visual style. While it offers a PG or R rated gore level given how cute the graphics are already, the “R” rating is nothing too bad. I mean, yes, Jason decapitates, slices, dices, skews, smashes and impales everyone but he is just so adorable as he does it.

This is an easy recommend for me. It is free for iOS and Android devices, the puzzles are well thought out, I love the theme and it never feels like it is trying to bleed you for money. The banter between Jason and his mom’s head is often chuckle worthy plus you can pause the game during gameplay and cue the infamous “ki-ki-ki ma-ma-ma” sound effect at any time.

Looking for more Friday the 13th gaming action? Check out Chapman’s Review of the Kickstarter funded love letter to the movies, Friday the 13th: The Game, that allows one person to play as Jason while the other players run around as camp counselors trying to survive.