Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game – Upgrade System Explained

Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game is a new asymmetrical survival-horror game where players can take control of the Slaughter family and a team of survivors. After every match, players stock up on XP that can be used in a variety of ways. Given the specific sub-genre of this game, the upgrading features are surprisingly nuanced. There is a number of ways to unlock certain perks and build up characters. Just like with DBD and other games of this type, characters come with their own skills that can really spice up matches.

So, every character in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game comes with their own skills tree that can be unlocked down specific paths. It is kind of pre-setted to where one perk is associated with another. Jumping around this skill tree won’t be possible. In any case, both the survivors and the killers come with their own respective skill trees. In fact, it’s somewhat similar to the skill tree found in Diablo IV. It is not as elaborate as that title, of course, but the fundamental idea is still there. There’s a lot to look into with building up a character and doing so can make all the difference during any given match.

With that said, both the killers and survivors come with their own respective abilities. Whether it is; poisoning, trapping, radar, repairing, stealth, etc. Leatherface’s main ability is the use of his chainsaw and destroying obstacles, for instance. Hence, every assigned ability with a character can be spruced up to make them even more effective. This is done through the use of the Ability Tree, which is a different feature from the Skill Tree. So, it’s important not to get confused between the two.

How To Use The Skill Tree

So, given that the skill tree comes with pre-set paths to take to upgrade a character, what happens if you don’t like your build? The answer is that players will be able to re-spec their entire skill tree and try a new build. Players are free to experiment with various perks and see what works best for them. This isn’t written in stone. Generally, XP in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game is universal between all characters. So, players can use any character to gain XP, then use it to upgrade another character. It is also worth pointing out that the character of Grandpa comes with his own skill tree of sorts.

Given that he is his own character, the developers have given him his own set of upgrades that can be utilized. Grandpa is an important character in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game and he should be treated as such. Naturally, skills can be enhanced by unlocking various perks within the skill tree. The kicker here, is that some nodes are marked with a ‘question mark‘ that offers a random upgrade of sorts. So, it will take some time before a player finally builds their character the way they want.

How Attribute Points Are Used

Attribute Points will be available for all characters and they can be used to upgrade a character’s attribute. These are basically stats that are associated with each character. Everyone has a different ‘feel’ to them because of their attributes which are separated into the categories of; Savagery, Harvesting, and Endurance for the killers. Thus, survivors come with; Strength, Toughness, Endurance, Proficiency and Stealth. So, stats can be tweaked with Attribute Points to help out with gameplay prowess. Players can only use a total of 30 Attribute Points for their characters.

Therefore, players will need to really think twice about how they want to enhance their characters. Attribute Points can be unlocked within the Skill Tree itself. They are basically like a perk in itself that can be stocked up. Again, it will take a little time to really stack a character to match a playstyle that someone wants. This process is slow and grindy for Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game for a reason. The developers want players to keep coming back and having something to shoot for.

How To Use The Ability Tree

The Ability Tree is another page to access that is similar to the Skill Tree. Players will need to take XP that they accumulated by playing matches and upgrade various perks that are associated with a character’s ability. Letting the Hitchhiker’s traps become more deadly, or Sissy’s poison more efficient are a couple of examples on how the Ability Tree works. The main thing about this that unlock all the perks therein is a little more flexible in comparison of the Skill Tree.

So, players can unlock a perk, then find a new perk on a higher level. There are only three levels to use with the Ability Tree. So, players can go straight up the tree, or shift diagonally to unlock another node, if they wish. It’s up to them. This is probably the most important perks in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game to unlock, so players will really need to think ahead and figure out on how they want to play. Try and be honest with yourself and stick to upgrades that will suit you as a player, as opposed to unlocking something that you generally will never use.

Conclusion

It is pretty surprising that the upgrade features in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game has the depth that it does. This game is set up to deliberately be a slow process toward building up characters. That’s pretty much the point to play and half of the fun. There is more here in this asymmetrical-horror game than just outwitting each other. The full version of Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Game will be available on August 18th for PlayStation, Xbox and PC.