I'm kind of burnt out on asymmetrical horror games, but Halloween: The Game is getting me to make an exception. Coming from IIIFonic and Gun Interactive, the duo behind the charming, janky Friday the 13th, I went into it expecting the same level of amusing nonsense. There's a lot to like, from its clear adoration for John Carpenter's source material to the sheer dread of encountering Michael Myers. I want to recommend it, but in its current state on handheld PCs, I can't quite commit to that yet.
For many players, you'll likely opt to play on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, or a decent PC. With crossplay enabled, I've been hopping between bouts of terror in Halloween: The Game on PS5 and my Asus ROG Ally Z1E. Both versions of the new horror game are rough around the edges in different ways, but I'm genuinely surprised by how disappointing it is on a handheld PC.
There are a few factors to consider. One of them is Unreal Engine 5, a consistent headache for developers trying to squeeze modern visuals onto less powerful hardware. I'm not saying it automatically makes UE5 the villain here, but it gives Halloween a particularly demanding foundation. The PC version also uses technologies including AMD FSR, Intel XeSS, and Nvidia DLSS, which are usually viable solutions across different hardware.
That's important when you're playing on something like the ROG Ally Z1 Extreme. It's a powerful handheld, but it still has limits compared to a full-sized gaming PC. I'm not expecting every game to be perfectly optimized for handhelds, either. But there are plenty of big-budget games, like Cyberpunk 2077 and 007 First Light, that run surprisingly well on devices like the Ally, so it's fair to expect Halloween to offer a decent experience too.
The problem is that Halloween feels like it's asking too much from the Ally, even when you lower the settings. I'm not expecting 60fps or console-level visuals, but I do expect a reasonably smooth and consistent experience. Right now, that's where the game falls short. Even with all graphical settings at low and in-game frame generation enabled, it barely squeaks past 25fps. This is with a higher TDP, too. At a lower resolution, things improve marginally, but at a massive visual cost.
In-game frame generation doesn't do much, leaving third-party plugins like Decky-LSFG to bear the load. This does improve things, letting me bump some settings up to medium, with a framerate in the 50s to low 60s. Input lag isn't terrible either. But I shouldn't have to resort to this. If Halloween struggles this much on my ROG Ally Z1E, what does that mean for the Steam Deck? The warning signs aren't exactly subtle. The Steam Deck is less powerful than the Z1E, so I wouldn't be buying Halloween on Valve's handheld expecting miracles.
The issues extend to desktop PC players, who are already blasting its unoptimized performance on the game's subreddit. It's frustrating because this is exactly the sort of game that feels made for handhelds. Matches are bite-sized, ideal for playing in quick sessions. I don't want to commit to sitting at my desk setup for some games; playing on the couch or in bed is good enough. And more importantly, it's because the game has a lot of potential.
Halloween is a really good time with a full squad. Running around Haddonfield trying to convince NPCs to escape while avoiding Michael Myers has made me laugh more than any comedy movie I've seen this year. IIIFonic doesn't take it too seriously. It lets Halloween: The Game be stupid and nonsensical, whether that's running over Michael with a bicycle or attempting to talk to other survivors using proximity chat. It's that combination of horror and absolute stupidity that makes the game work.
Of course, it has some teething issues. I'm not a huge fan of the skill checks in spectator mode. In practice, they keep players engaged post-death and award buffs to other players, but once they're maxed out, the system continues. I don't want endless fluff taking up my screen while I'm watching the match unfold. It also needs to make onboarding better for survivors, as the campaign is a glorified tutorial for playing as Michael. It's one of many aspects IIIFonic needs to consider as it updates the game.
Yet, for all its obstacles, you get that same feeling of playing Friday the 13th. Halloween also isn't afraid to embrace some of the sillier parts of the series. Rare items like amulets, for example, can protect you from the first attack Michael makes. It feels like something straight out of the later movies, where Michael is carrying a curse from a mysterious cult. I wouldn't be surprised if IIIFonic digs into the Rob Zombie movies, for better or worse.
Dare I ponder whether a Nintendo Switch 2 version is possible? It'd be great if that was the case. In its current form, I can't wholly recommend Halloween: The Game. While it has its charms and affection for the series, it just isn't worth the asking price if you're primarily a handheld PC player. As Sheriff Leigh Brackett put it, "Everybody is entitled to one good scare." I just wish it didn't give my ROG Ally one every time I tried to play it.