Fatal Frame Puppet Show - The Case of the Crazy Twins
Hello again, everyone. It's Cloudman here again, and we are once again visiting...
Last time in the Dark Room, I covered the first installment of the Fatal Frame series, which set the groundwork and paved the way for future installments. Two years after the release of Fatal Frame, Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly was released in Japan, November 27, 2003, (December 10, 2003 in the US, April 30, 2004 in Europe, and a year later on Xbox), featuring a new cast, story, and... location. So how does the sequel compared to its predecessor?
Story
In the 2nd installment, you take on the role of Mio Amakura, a young girl who is out in a forest sitting with her twin sister, Mayu, where they used to play as kids. Mio recalls a moment when they were playing and running together, when sudden Mayu slips and falls, causing an acciddent which has carried on to the present, walking with a limp.
As the two are sitting together, suddenly, a crimson butterfly appears, which Mayu starts to follow. Mio gives chases, calling out for her to wait, when suddenly they are both whisked away to a lost, forgotten village, covered in a never ending night sky. With no way of leaving the village, the sisters must explore it and find a way to escape.
Oh yeah, twins baby...
Gameplay
The gameplay of Fatal Frame II remains largely the same as the previous game. The Camera Obscura returns as the primary weapon, but a few changes were made. One of the more noticable ones being the function of the characters on the bottom on the camera. Their function and location were moved, placed around the center circle of the camera. Also, rather than the camera charging to build power, more of the characters will light up the closer the ghost approaches you. So the camera's power becomes stronger only when the ghost comes closer to you. More of the ring will light it as ghosts approach you. I find this to be a bit of a bummer, as the risk/reward is basically gone, only having the risk part of it.
Look at my new wonderful redesign : D
Another change to the camera is upgrading it. Points are still required to enhance the camera, but in addition to that, spirit orbs are also required. There are slots for each part of the camera, which require a spirit stone in each of them to perform the upgrade. Without them, you cannot do so. Now you must be sure to be on the look out for these as you progress through the game.
Gotta find those stones...
The film types were also went through a change. New types were introduced, such as Type 07, 61, and zero, while type 37 and 74 were removed, being only present in the first Fatal Frame. This time, the order is 7, 14, 61, 90, and zero. They still retain the same colors from the first, except 07, which is a faded grey color. Oh, and can't forget the other new addition, the Zero film, a yellow color. It's similar to type 07 with a slow reloading, but is the strongest film in the game, able to take out some ghosts in one hit. However, I would recommend you save it for stronger ghosts ; )
Lock and load, baby
There is one more new addition to the gameplay aspect: the shutter chance. It is a brief moment in time when the ghost makes an attack. A quick moment before it attacks, a small light in the top center will begin flashing. If you take a shot at this moment, it will do maximum damage ad well as push the ghost back. It is difficult to pull off though, so timing is very important. Well, I guess the risk/reward system is there afterall, haha.
Quick, now's your chance...!
...And that just about covers the gameplay aspect. Let's get on to the goods
The Goods
One of the biggest noticable changes in Fatal Frame II is its graphical upgrade. The visuals look better from its predessessor. The buildings and decorations look better, character models look great, and cutscenes look a lot better. It's a visually much better game than Fatal Frame 1. There is also much more vibrant color as well.
Looking better than ever...
Another excellent point of the game is the setting itself, the village. With the shift from a mansion to entire village, this opens up more opportunities for good scares right? One building full of spooks is enough, but a whole village full of frights? Sounds like an improvement, right? Well, no... At least not here. It's actually had the opposite effect. The village setting managed to take away some of the fear aspect of the game. And that's just the start of the many issues with Fatal Frame II.
Welcome to the village, the biggest draw and flaw of the game
What Went Wrong?
Honestly, Fatal Frame II isn't a very good game, but how could this be? The first title was so well crafted and set the bar for future titles. What went wrong?
Well, the first main issue that stuck out to me was that it is too bright and colorful. Many times while playing it, the same thoughts came across my mind. "There is so much lighting in this game, and everything looks very colorful." Also, there is little to no sound playing in the background. Sometimes silence helps enhance a fearful atmosphere, but it just doesn't work here. It's not scary. I hardly ever felt a sense of dread while playing. I just continued forward through the motions. The great atmosphere set in the first is completely gone.
Another issue are the enemy ghosts. They don't appear threatening at all. They look almost like real people, but given a white color. Hardly any sort of distortions are present on them. They don't appear terrifying at all. Ghosts also move quite slowly, the basic enemies taking their time to approach you, becoming quite a bore when you battle against them. Some enemies even come across as comical. It becomes more of a joke than anything remotely scary.
Come oon baaby, let's doo thee craab
A new addition to the game that also takes away from the horrific theme is the introduction of a 2nd character, your sister Mayu. In moments of the game, she accompanies you, following right behind you. This breaks the fear aspect almost completely. Often, you feel the most afraid when you are alone, but when you have someone following you, you feel safe, and that's what happens here, destroying that fear. Sometimes you can even use Mayu as a meat shield, taking the hits from the ghosts and making it easier for you to defeat them. Granted it doesn't happen often, but it's another major flaw in the game.
Take the hit for me, will ya?
Possibly the biggest issue with the game is the village itself. It's too spacious. When you are attacked outside, there is plenty of space to back away and get a good position to attack. FIghting becomes less of the threat and more of a chore. Also, the outside area feels very much like a safe area, giving yourself a break. A good horror game should rarely ever give a moment of relief, and that is what the village does. Mix this with all the issues I noted before, and you have a game that fails to deliver.
Conclusion
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly is often regarded as the best one in the franchise, often said to be one of the greatest horror games in the genre and one of the greatest ever made. And you know what? I never understood why...
When I first played it, I felt a sort of dread while playing it, but that shortly went away. After I beat all the games in the trilogy, there was always this lingering feeling that the 2nd one wasn't that good. I wasn't sure why that was the case, until recently when I played it again. All my concerns turned out to be true. So I never understood why it is seen in such high regards. It's not very good, especially in horror. I wondered how this happened. Then I came across this line.
According to director Makoto Shibata, many players were too scared to finish Fatal Frame on the PlayStation 2—hence, the main reason the installment is called the scariest in the franchise. Shibata stated that, for the sequel, "We shifted our attention tomaking the storyline more interesting,to encourage such players to overcome the scariness in wanting to see the end of the story."
Okay, fine. Fair enough. The main issue is that, even when trying to make it more accessable with a more interesting story, it still fails at that. The story is not very interesting and the end only leaves you feeling unsatisfied. So in the end, there isn't anything that redeems Fatal Frame II. It is a failure of a follow-up to Fatal Frame.
If you aren't very good with horror games, Fatal Frame II:Crimson Butterfly would be a good place to start, as it isn't that scary. I'd say it's a goo entry level game, but compared to the first, it doesn't even hold a candle.
YOU DECIDE
Fatal Frame II is available on PS3's PSN, Xbox, and Wii U (Japan and Europe only)
Thanks for reading!
See you next time, when I take on Fatal Frame III: The Tormented : D
If you missed out on my previous review, you can check it out here!
The Dark Room: The Beginning of Nightmares - Fatal Frame
Dance my pretties!
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