Lovingly hailed as the most violent Sokoban-style sliding block puzzle game ever, Blue Wizard Digital’s “brutally cute” throwback to cult horror films is now available on Steam!

From the product description:

“A killer puzzle game where you control Skullface, a psychotic slasher bent on slaughtering teenage counselors at the title campground. Slide this adorable voxel murderer around hundreds of isometric puzzle levels to squash, flay, and decapitate the hapless teens in this darkly comic homage to 80s trash horror.”

‘Slayaway Camp’ is a clever little block puzzle game that involves sliding around a notorious psychotic killer through various stages or scenes from horror movie “videotapes” with one goal in mind: kill each victim before making a quick escape! The killer only moves in straight lines (either up, down, left or right) and once in motion doesn’t stop until he hits an obstacle such as a wall, fence or even some poor fool – who is then promptly dispatched in delightfully gory fashion.

The first few scenes are very basic and mainly just let you teach yourself how to play, but as you progress deeper into the game the puzzles get much tougher. Some scenes, like the one below, even have to be completed within a certain number of moves. Failure comes often in this game, but to help with that there are ways to rewind unwanted moves, get a hint, or restart a level with VCR-style playback buttons located at the bottom of the screen.

Completing a scene earns coins which can be spent at the Video Store. The Video Store is where you can find the “videotapes” you’ve finished or are currently working through. You can also unlock Gore-Paks (various trophy kills) or purchase mystery killers here, too. New killers are also unlocked with each movie, and any killer can be swapped out for one in your collection at any time.

‘Slayaway Camp’ is one of my favorite videogames released this year. From its many references and homages to both cult and classic horror, to the retro graphics and music that instantly transport us back to the era where the slasher craze was at its peak, this is without a doubt a game made by (and for) people who absolutely adore the genre. The developers don’t hold much back, either. The kill sequences are usually bloody and graphic. It’s all done in good humor, though. In fact, I literally burst out laughing at the reveal of the killer for ‘Slayaway Camp 8: Manhattan Manslaughter’ (which I won’t spoil, but it’s not what you think).

As for the puzzles, a fair number of them are much harder than they look. ‘Slayaway Camp’ is a fun, challenging and all-around great game well worth the $8.99 USD price tag. If you think it might be up your alley, you can download it on Steam.

‘Slayaway Camp’ Game Features:

• 10 gut-wrenching “videotapes,” plus deleted scenes, for over 200 puzzle levels
• Traps! Cops! SWAT teams! Land mines! Rotary telephones! Cats!
• Unlock the NC-17 mode on all movies for even more puzzle insanity (+ censored shower scenes)
• Starring Mark Meer (Cdr. Shepard from ‘Mass Effect’) as “Skullface” and Derek Mears (Jason from ‘Friday the 13th’) as “Jessica”
• Unlock multiple psycho killers, including ones based on cult horror movies such as ‘American Mary’
• Discover dozens of spectacular “Gore-Pak” kill scenes featuring wood-chippers, lawnmowers, Sumerian demon incantations, and more!
• Genuine hair-metal soundtrack by legendary Canadian group GNÜ TRUNTION