While Fatal Frame 1 established the series’ Camera Obscura game mechanic, it was Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly that made the series popular. The sequel has two twin sisters attempt to survive a haunted abandoned village with the signature ghost-bane camera. While there are minor improvements to the gameplay, the main attraction of Crimson Butterfly is the protagonist.
The Crimson Plot
Fatal Frame II sees the same plot of siblings attempting to survive and escape ghosts. This time, the characters resonate with the players more than in the first game.
The Amakura Siblings
Mio and Mayu made a mistake of coming back to the valley of their childhood. This led them into the abandoned All Gods Village, where another ritual took place. Players control Mio in the game while Mayu is the sibling you “protect.”
Mayu is a more memorable NPC than the older brother in the first game since she accompanies you throughout the earlier periods of the game. As you fend off ghosts with the Camera Obscura, you also see Mayu through your viewfinder.
I felt the need to protect Mayu from the dangers of the village. Unlike the bigger brother, the other sibling is more vulnerable than the one with the camera. She will even get attacked by the ghosts and will die if you do not defend her. There is a natural desire to keep “both” siblings safe because of this scenario.
At the start of the game, though, there is a sense of distrust we feel for Mayu. There were two fake outs in the intro video where a figure pretended to be the lost sibling. It was also Mayu who had led the two into the Lost Village. Mayu will also murmur nonsensical phrases as she accompanies you, further driving that distrust.
Conflicting emotions are a part of the game’s experience since there are multiple endings here. One of which involves leaving Mayu behind. Of course, many players want to see both of the Amakura sisters safe and free, which is what made the ending “memorable” to everyone who played the game.
The Lost Village
Following Resident Evil’s lead, Fatal Frame II expands the game from a haunted mansion to a haunted village. It shows you that the game will be much expansive than its predecessor. After playing Fatal Frame 1, the sequel does seem much bigger thanks to the many outdoor areas.
Tecmo’s Ayako Toyoda gave life to the Minakami Village with haunting ambient tracks. Mixed into the soundtrack are random street sounds and murmurs, making you feel surrounded by murderous ghosts looking to add you to their numbers. “The Lost Path” is my favorite track, which drives that Asian horror atmosphere.
With a larger map, Fatal Frame II opens up a more ambient horror atmosphere that you cannot easily escape. However, it was not able to achieve that kind of dread as the first game.
The Camera Obscura Mechanic
Players defend themselves again with the Camera Obscura in the sequel. This is the essential part of Fatal Frame’s gaming experience. While the mechanics are still the same, Fatal Frame II added some new mechanics to make the game challenging.
Basics of Fighting Ghosts
The gameplay is simple. Aim your camera at a ghost until they show within your capture frame, then take a shot. This lets you damage enemy spirits to inflict enough shots until they run out of HP.
There is an incredible amount of depth to this gameplay. When you have the ghost centered in your capture frame, you light up special characters beside it. Lighting them all lets you inflict more damage in each shot. You can also do special shots like the Zero Shot when you are close to the spirit. Another example is the special Fatal Frame Shot that can be taken when you take a shot just before a ghost’s attack reaches you.
You want to pull off as many high-damage special shots as possible. These shots let you save film, a scarce ammunition in Fatal Frame, and get higher spirit points accumulation. Spirit points let you upgrade your camera and unlock special functions.
Another added depth is the type of films you can obtain throughout the village. Rare flims like the Type 90 and Type Zero can significantly reduce spirit’s HP, making them essential for bosses. Unlike Fatal Frame 1, the normal Type 14 is limited, which is the one that does a medium amount of damage. In exchange, there is an unlimited supply of Type 07 that does less damage, making them suited for taking pictures of roaming ghosts.
Obscura Upgrades
Part of what makes Fatal Frame fun is the progression mechanic, where you increase the Camera Obscura’s functions. In Fatal Frame 2 though, you need to obtain Spirit Orbs that are dropped by ghosts. Spirit Orbs lets you open the upgrade option for these functions with the spirit points used to unlock that upgrade.
Fatal Frame 2 New Features
Being a sequel, there are new features that further makes battles memorable in Crimson Butterfly.
The latest special shot you can achieve is the Combo Shot. After picturing a ghost, the camera’s viewfinder zooms in and flashes a blinking red light to indicate a follow-up picture. This opens up a third Combo Shot opportunity if you manage to do a 2 Hit Combo Shot. Combo Shots lets you further do damage with all special characters lit and obtain more spirit points.
Lenses:
Finally, there are the lenses. These lenses let you do special attacks or abilities at the cost of Spirit Power Orbs. These orbs are filled by the damage inflicted to your enemies. While some of these features are used in Fatal Frame 1, there are newer abilities in Crimson Butterfly. Here are the abilities you can obtain:
- Blast: Boosts shot damage and triggers Blast Back even outside shutter chances. Costs 2 Spirit Power and upgrades add a slower Blast Back that makes combos easier.
- Crush: Heavy damage lens that can one-shot most ghosts during a shutter chance. Costs 4 Spirit Power and upgrades raise damage even outside shutter chances.
- Slow: Temporarily slows a ghost so shutter chances last longer and timing is easier. Costs 1 Spirit Power and upgrades extend duration.
- Stop: Freezes a ghost’s movement for a short time to create a safe, clean shot. Costs 3 Spirit Power and upgrades increase the stop time.
Zero: Higher damage than Blast and also causes Blast Back. Costs 3 Spirit Power and upgrades further increase damage. - See: Makes hidden or vanished ghosts easier to locate. Adds a directional marker in the viewfinder when upgraded and costs 1 Spirit Power.
- Stun: Intermittently stops a ghost’s movement so you can line up shutter chances. Costs 2 Spirit Power and upgrades extend duration.
- Track: Auto-follows the target so the viewfinder keeps the ghost centered. Costs 2 Spirit Power and upgrades extend duration.
Functions
In addition, you also obtain special functions to your camera. These makes you pull off special shots or avoid ghosts easily.:
- Alarm: Plays a tone at the exact Fatal Frame moment so you can fire for max damage. The viewfinder top also flashes red.
- Evade: Lets you avoid damage when grabbed by pressing the shutter at the right moment to flash-stun the ghost.
- Measure: Shows the nearest ghost’s remaining HP in the viewfinder while it’s in the capture circle.
- Sense: Indicates a ghost’s direction and distance with a signal at the top of the viewfinder. Helps track vanishing targets.
- Switch: Lets you toggle equipped functions on the fly without digging into menus. Great for swapping utility and damage setups mid-fight.
- Zoom: Adds zoom-in and zoom-out controls to frame weak points and fill the capture circle. Works via L2/R2 in FF2.
- Instant: Flashes a red indicator when a Fatal Frame window opens. Helps chain combo shots during Blast Back.
- Save: Increases Spirit Power earned on hits and speeds up charge gain so you can fire specials more often.
Why is Fatal Frame II popular?
If you ask people who grew up with the PS2 or Xbox what their favorite Fatal Frame was, they will likely pick Crimson Butterfly. One reason is the number of PS2 and Xbox owners at the time Fatal Frame 1 and Fatal Frame 2 were released. With more people owning the consoles, Fatal Frame 2 was likely the first installment of the series that they played.
Another reason is the Amakura Siblings. You are more connected with Mayu than with Mafuyu since the twin sister accompanied you in the game instead of being a ghostly reflection.
For players like me who finished the first game, the upgrades and new mechanics were noticeable in Fatal Frame II. The Blast function was my most used lens that I wished was available in the first game.
What can also be the reason why people loved Fatal Frame II than the first game was Amano Tsukiko’s Chou music. This was the first game with a vocal track. It has the same impact as Akira Yamaoka’s track to Silent Hill. I cannot emphasize how often I played this song on my walkman and MP3 player back then.
Final Words: Fatal Frame II Overall Thoughts
I enjoyed Fatal Frame II, which improves much of Fatal Frame 1’s story and gameplay mechanics. However, I did not find it as scary as the first game. Crimson Butterfly still has many amazing haunts and jump scares that have taken me by surprise. But it did not have the same impact as Fatal Frame 1.
Going back to the Lost Village and the soundtrack. I do not feel as isolated and trapped as I was when exploring the mansion when I was going around the Lost Village. Compare the first part of the Himuro mansion and the Encounter to Himuro Mansion. There is a feeling of ghosts peeking at me through the paper doors or windows. The scarier moments of Fatal Frame 1 were then the soundtrack cuts, and there is nothing but DEAD silence.
Although not as terrifying as the first game, it still manages to achieve the right amount of scare and horror ambiance. It also improves upon many of Fatal Frame 1’s gameplay.
If you reached the end, thank you for reading my review. Check out my review of Fatal Frame 1 next!
