When The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (TCM) released in 1974, it was years before the slasher genre took hold of the horror world for decades. But by the time its sequels started to pour in beginning 12 years later, it was after horror buffs had met the likes of Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, and Freddy Krueger. In that new world, the marketing folks behind TCM needed a monstrous mascot to lean into, and thus Leatherface was elevated from one (admittedly standout) member of a vile family of killers to its centerpiece, eventually even garnering a prequel movie simply titled Leatherface.

Every modern take on the franchise since the underrated 2003 reboot has focused on the Ed Gein-inspired villain, often excluding any inclusion of his family at all. But Gun Interactive and Sumo Nottingham's upcoming video game is based on that original movie, so it can't just be a Leatherface game. It has to be a game about the Slaughter family. After a few hours with the game during the weekend's tech test, it seems they understood the assignment.

Anecdotally, it seems the desire to be the powerful slasher at the heart of the franchise is a problem a lot of asymmetrical horror multiplayer games must account for. In Friday the 13th, players often preferred being Jason, while Dead By Daylight seems to have similar issues with players exclusively queuing as some of the many killers on its roster, rather than their potential victims. In TCM's unique 4v3 setup, players may prefer being the killers over the survivors--time will tell--but within that team of killers, one might expect players to demand to play as Leatherface himself given the spotlight he's enjoyed over the last 40+ years. Perhaps in the early days or weeks after launch, that will hold true. But in my experience, Leatherface's family members, the Cook and the Hitchhiker, are just as viable as the big man--in fact, I may even prefer one of them.