Friday the 13th FAQ v1.1 (5/24/97) By Mark J. Popp http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~mjpopp/index.html Friday the 13th (NES) LJN *Revision History* v1.1 - Discovered pattern to finding the cabin in the woods. *** Background Strategy Starting the Game Lighting the Fireplaces Navigating the Cave Fighting Jason Contact Info *** *Background* You probably picked up this game because you're a fan of the movies. Few people suspected how challenging Friday the 13th was until they played it for a few minutes. This game is very unforgiving for the following reasons: - the frequent Jason attacks (even his fists will make short work of you, and he always returns more powerful than before). As if fighting him in the cabins wasn't enough, he stalks you on the trail, in the forest, and even in the lake as well! - his army of minions (all the zombies, wolves and bats) appear nonstop. While you're battling one or two, more come out of the ground to have a piece of you (and they usually get it). - instead of a hardened adventurer, you play the role of a camp counselor who has little experience battling homicidal maniacs, so that could explain the poor physical abilities of the characters, namely their jumping ability and stamina. - most of the useful items (such as weapons and medicine) appear randomly, making your search and destroy mission a bit more complicated. You might find the game is more enjoyable with the Game Genie, but frustratingly difficult without it. However, it doesn't deserve some of the lowest ratings ever given to a NES game by gaming magazines. Nintendo Power EGM Graphics & Sound: 3.5/5.0 Reviewer 1: 3.0/10 Play Control: 3.0/5.0 Reviewer 2: 2.0/10 Challenge: 3.0/5.0 Reviewer 3: 4.0/10 Theme & Fun: 3.0/5.0 Reviewer 4: 4.0/10 Nintendo Power avoided a formal review of the game. EGM gave it the lowest rating any NES game has received, next to Total Recall. [To check the rating of any NES game EGM has reviewed visit ]. Most people probably told you to avoid this one, but Friday the 13th can actually be very rewarding if you give it a chance. It just takes a little practice. Don't try to muscle your way through; you need finesse to survive until the end of the day. And since this game keeps you on your toes, you can't say you didn't get your money's worth. This FAQ will provide some useful adventuring tips and strategy for getting through the game, but it will still be a challenge. So if I haven't scared you away yet, let's begin. *Strategy - Starting the Game* Crissy and Mark are the best runners and jumpers. This gives them the ability to defeat enemies, avoid obstacles and acquire weapons at the beginning of the game more easily than the other counselors. While you keep the slower counselors near the children to ward off Jason's attacks (especially around the lake), use Crissy or Mark to get daggers for all the characters. When you find one (usually by jumping randomly or killing monsters) go to the nearest (small) cabin and pass the weapon onto a weaker counselor. Keep doing this until all the counselors have daggers. Now everyone should be strong enough to go out on their own and they will be able to defend themselves better when Jason corners and attacks them. The strongest weapon that the counselors can earn by defeating enemies on the outside is the machete. After you get the machete, the zombies will go down with one swipe. Be careful not to accidentally pick up a dagger that appears on the path if you have a more powerful weapon! You can't get it back. As you stroll around the camp, stop by every cabin to: 1) light the fireplaces, 2) search for weapons (they appear randomly after you have all the fireplaces blazing) and notes (also random but are repetitious, though some contain important tips), 3) pass stronger weapons onto weaker counselors, 4) cure sick counselors, because you may need them to fight Jason or find an item, and you don't want to be carrying around a body bag, and 5) switch to the closest available counselor whenever Jason is attacking someone. While you're on the trails (and in the cave and forest) remember that sometimes it's easier to leap over zombies and wolves than it is to blast your way through them. They have a tendency to multiply faster than you can exterminate them. If you have a turbo button, use it to throw your weapons quickly enough to destroy the hordes of zombies and to pummel Jason. By jumping you'll also be able to find jars of medicine, keys and lighters. If you find your energy getting low, choose a healthy counselor to venture into the woods and find some medicine. It's more plentiful there than on the regular trails. Keep jumping around and killing creatures until you have an adequate supply. Then go to the injured counselor and cure him/her. To find the hidden cabin (which houses a nice supply of powerful weapons after you have the fireplaces going) follow these directions: - Entering the woods from above (going down into the forest): Go right and down the first path. Keep going right and go up the next path. The door to the cabin is here (you'll need a key to get in). - Entering the woods from below (going up into the forest): Go right and down the first path. Go left and down the next path, then go down again immediately. Go right and up the next path. The door is here (don't forget the key). If you find a more convenient path, please let me know. An alarm will sound when a counselor or the children are being attacked by Jason. A timer will also start to count down from 60 beside the counselor or kid icons (depending on who Jason is attacking). You don't want to wait too long because some of the children will be dead by the time you reach them OR Jason will have beaten a counselor to a bloody pulp. When you hear the signal, go immediately to a small cabin (you can't switch counselors in the big cabins), and switch to the counselor that is in the same cabin as Jason. Or if Jason is in the middle of the lake, change over to the closest counselor to row there and save the kids. If you're busy exploring the cave or forest and it's too inconvenient to leave and rescue the kids, just leave them to the maniac. You'll only lose 5 or so, and you can continue the game. However, don't leave a counselor to be killed by Jason: they may have important items or weapons that you won't be able to get back if they're killed! Don't forget once you lose kids or counselors, you can't get them back ever, so don't leave anyone to be butchered if you can help it. And beware of losing ALL your counselors or kids; the game will end then. Get as much done in the daylight as possible. When night descends, more monsters will be around, and you won't see the sun again until you have killed Jason. *Strategy - Lighting the Fireplaces* The six largest cabins in the camp have fireplaces. If all these fireplaces are lit by the counselors, you will receive the flashlight. Also, when the fireplaces are lit, the machete and axe can be found in the cabins that are in the woods, and the torch will be in one of the cabins that is close to the lake. First get a lighter by defeating enough zombies (sometimes you can retrieve this item merely by leaping at the right spot on the screen), then go to all the big cabins to light the fireplaces. These are the directions to navigate a large cabin, light the fireplace and depart: Up, Up, Right (a note is sometimes left here), Up, Left (here's the fireplace), Left, Up, Left (you can see the door from here), Up, Up, Up (out the door). It may take a few searches through the camp, but eventually you can recover a flashlight in one of the large cabins. When you do find it, go immediately to the cave to see once-hidden passageways. This item makes it easier to find Jason's mother. When she has been defeated, you will receive a powerful weapon or item. *Strategy - Navigating the Cave* Don't go in here without Mark or Crissy. There are some jumps (to high ledges) that you won't be able to make without these characters. Don't forget that you need a key to get into the secret areas of both the cave and forest. So if you're looking for these areas and don't yet have a key, don't waste your time. Defeat enough zombies and jump around until you find one. Although most people will tell you to avoid the cave until you have the flashlight, there is an easy way to discover the secret entrance to Jason's mother without it. If you look carefully, the stones below a secret passageway are shaped slightly differently. So you won't need the flashlight at all. Make your way into the cave early in the game and go left. Jump over the two pits and stop. Press up while you are on the second or third rock from the left edge of the platform you are currently standing on, just before you would normally make a third jump. The entrance is there. If you can't find it, just keep pressing up on the platform until you do. Actually, if you use this little trick, you can get by without using Mark or Crissy. Just be VERY careful and don't attempt any difficult jumps. Simply exit the cave the same way you came and you won't. Jason's mother isn't really that difficult; but it's important to avoid her attacks. Just like her son, she moves in a predictable pattern. Follow her as she moves left and right, hurling daggers at her (it has to be daggers or better, I don't think stones will reach her). When she swoops down, move left or right to get out of the way (don't duck!). Repeat. She'll finally expire (for now) and relinquish the machete, the sweater, or the pitchfork (depending on how many times you have killed Jason). *Strategy - Fighting Jason* There doesn't seem to be any pattern (geographically) of Jason attacks. Although, you risk the chance of running into him on the trails if he has recently occupied a nearby cabin. And NEVER follow him after an encounter on the trails or you might end up fighting him again. If you meet him on a path, go to the opposite side from where he entered, wait until he comes to that side, leap over him, run to the opposite side and start shooting. Don't jump over him too soon or you won't have as much time to shoot him. Just make sure you jump over him and avoid his weapons, or it'll be a really short battle. He'll soon grow tired of you and escape. When fighting him in the cabins, duck to avoid his hits. NEVER stand there and toss your weapon at him. He'll beat you senseless and send you to the morgue after 3 or 4 hits. After your first encounter, he'll return with the machete. When you beat him again, he'll come at you with an axe. After that he may decide to use his fists again just for kicks. About halfway through the game, Jason will attack the children in the cabins on the lake more often (making your job more difficult) and towards the end he'll forget about the kids entirely and attack only counselors. After you kill him, he'll be rejuvenated (but so will all your counselors, at least the ones that survived) and stronger than before. Keep hunting him. At this point, if you defeat Jason's mother, you will receive the sweater. This disguise will lessen the impact of Jason's blows and he'll avoid attacking you on the trail. After you kill him again, return to the cave to win the pitchfork from Jason's mother. This hefty weapon will give you the power to go after Jason for a fight to the finish. *Contact Info* Friday the 13th FAQ by Mark J. Popp. My E-mail address is . If you have anything to add to this FAQ, or find any errors, please let me know, and I will update the FAQ. You may freely distribute this FAQ as is, but if you change anything, get my permission before distributing it. This FAQ and others are available at http://www.gamefaqs.com
