Game #1: Fatal Frame 2 Crimson Butterfly

Have you ever wanted a twin? At all? Even once? And how about butterflies? Do you like them? Well, if you ever start to play Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly, you'd say NO to both my questions.

 

Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly starts off with 2 whiny twin sisters Mio and Mayu Amakura. It turns out that Mayu has a leg injury that causes her movements to lack. As it it weren't enough, Mayu gets distracted by anything shiny. Like a glowing red butterfly, for example.

 

So off Mayu wanders into the forest, trailing after the innocent (?) little creature. Going "ZOMAHGAWD", Mio runs off after her sister. As soon as Mio passes an ancient stone...mark...thingy, day turns into night and the forest changes shape. As if things couldn't get any weirder, when Mio touches Mayu's shoulder, she sees something...weird. A girl who's face is filled with fear and sadness. This causes Mio to take her hand off her big sister and wonder "What the ___ just happened?!!"

 

However, unable to be herself without Mayu, Mio goes deeper into the forest, against the players screams of "DON'T DO IT!!!". Because, people, we all know she's gonna do it. If she would have thought things through, there would have been no game. So off Mio goes, and soon she finds her sister on a peak over a small village. Mio stops, calls her name, and as Mayu turns around a flurry of red butterflies fly away (out of nowhere, I may add). "The Lost Village..." Mayu whispers, and the two sisters cuddle each other close.

 

Recalling a myth about a village trapped in never ending night, the twins walk down a dark path. However, just before arriving to where they need to be, a figure is caught walking in the distance. A local? Maybe. Mio and Mayu walk off to the house to check. Near the front door, Mayu places a hand on Mio's shoulder. Like a loving sister should, she holds her sister's hand. And then Mayu walks in front of her just as she strokes her hand....wait. So Mayu's NOT behind her?! A faint "Are you leaving me again?" is heard before Mio turns around to see no one. Strange.

So Mio decides to ignore the breaking and entering law and waltz right on into the house. There the girls walk into a small room and investigate. What do they find? A really old camera. What's it do? Beats Mio. But Mayu seems to not like the camera at all, and when Mio reaches out to touch it, Mayu flips. But Mio's fingers already grace the camera by the end of Mayu's sentence, and a creepy cutscene plays. Realizing it's BAD, Mio lets go...only to hear footsteps outside the door. Suddenly, a woman is standing in front of the door...and she's transparent. A GHOST?! Heck ya, buddy. You can't shoo her away, so how to make her leave? Why, snap her mugshot of course! Mio takes a picture of the creepy ghosty lady, and she fades away. "Camera Obscura..." Mio mumbles, and that's when the twins' adventures begin.

 

Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly takes the old trick of "BOO! Something just jumped out at you" to a whole new level. Not all ghosts are gonna stand there and let you take a picture. Some are going to get agressive, and it will take many photos to make them go away. However, you can tell what kind of photo op your in for by looking at the bulb on the lower right section of the screen. This little doohickey is called a "filament", and it reacts differently to certain paranormal circumstances. A light blue colour signals that it's a nice ghost that wants to offer you a progressive hint or extra points. A light crimson colour says that it's an angry spirit who has some choice words for you. While one photo will take down a blue spirit, several photos are required to vanquish a red spirit.

 

Of course, how many photos it takes depends on the type of film you have equipped. For example, if you have a "Type 07", it could take up to 40 pictures. Possibly more. However, if you have a "Type Zero", the ghost should be KO'ed in about 3 photos max.

 

Mayu doesn't just play the suicidal, annoying older sister. She can pick up on paranormal entities MUCH easier than Mio can. In fact, Mayu will often say something like "Mio, look!", thus pointing out a hint. However, she wont do it for everything, so keep your own eye out too. At all times.

Like all games, Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly has it's down points. For one, it's predictability. After you pass level 3, ghosts no longer seem to scare you. The same ghosts appear in the same places at the same times. You no longer shriek or throw the controller out the window. You just go "oh, it's you again," and do your thang.

 

Course, the constant face-to-face battles make up for that. No matter how predictable the ghosts get, it doesn't change the fact that they get up in your face during confrontations. It gets to the point that you scream 'WHY YOU ALL UP IN MAH BIZZNAZZ!!" at the TV. And then the friendly white coats come and take you to your favourite padded room.

 

If I may go back on topic, the graphics are pretty good as well. Mio's eyes gleam at the mere mention of her sister. Sad, yes? Yes, but we really don't care. And the ghost facial features are amazing as well. They tilt their heads, open their mouths, and sometimes speak! I mean, nothing gets better than that! Well, a pound of bacon would be better, but whatever.

 

Surprises are aplenty in this game. Sometimes, the filament doesn't even react at all when theres a photo chance. Like for example, a certain photo on a certain level will have a boy jump out at you. You'll scream most likely. I know I did.

 

Photos can be taken in 3 categories: Normal, Shutter Chance, and Fatal Frame. A "Normal" photo is just a...photo. It doesn't really have anything special to it, so don't get too excited. A "Shutter Chance" can occur frequently. A red circle inside the camera will flash if you can take a "Shutter Chance". This knocks the ghost back, thus giving you some breathing room. Finally, a "Fatal Frame". This can only be taken if you like exchanging breath with the ghost. In other words, it has to be right on top of you. If you've found the proper function, an alarm will go off. The minute you hear the alarm, snap the photo. Not only does the picture do substantial damage, it also knocks the spirit back. Fatal Frames are the best. Sometimes, you can take a chain of Fatal Frames, but you have to have quick film in order to do so.

 

All in all, a good play that will not dissapoint. And hey! No Panic Meter! WOOHOO!

　

KODA'S RATING:

GRAPHICS: 1010

ORIGINALITY; 1010

GAMEPLAY: 910

OVERALL: 910

　

KIRRAH'S RATING

GRAPHICS: 910

ORIGINALITY: 1010

GAMEPLAY: 1010

OVERALL: 910

Author's Note

Reviews

[TLK]

This seems to be a complete and well-researched look at the game. (I do wonder why it was posted 8 years after the release of the game, though!). Are you having any luck in becoming a video game journalist, if that is your desire? I am aware that it is very hard to get into the field and, even once you are professional, the money isn't very good.