Fatal Frame (it's a bit good innit)

[Strider]

After hearing that Fatal Frame 2 will be coming out on Xbox (complete with juicy extras) I?ve decided to go back to the original game again (a title I have so far not yet completed).

Could this be one of the most terrifying games to come out of Japan? Although I?ve only managed to get through the second night and have had to get used to that archaic control system again, fighting ghosts is a much more rewarding experience than battling zombies. Their ability to shift through objects places a whole new spin on the genre and makes Himuro mansion an even more claustrophobic experience.

And what about the sound, it?s absolutely fantastic. Although I can?t make up my mind if its been beating to the post by Silent Hill, the wails, screams and laughing children have had me on the edge of my seat many a time.

Sure, it?s far from perfect (I?m not really too keen on the English dub) and there?s been many a time when I get stuck and can?t move, but I?ve rediscovered this little gem and got excited all over again. Now if only I could get off the third night?

[hankwangford]

Everyone says this is really scary, but I must be dead inside because I don't feel it. Being outside of the mansion is a little freaky but I hate outside locations in horror survival games in general. The Resi Remake had more atmosphere, especially in those corridors where you could see zombies banging on the window via the shadows on the floor.

That said, I really enjoyed the game, just thought it was a tad unfair in places. Never finished it, because I had half a bar of energy and an impossible samurai ghost to fight, and couldn't be arsed to go back through.

[Strider]

That said, I really enjoyed the game, just thought it was a tad unfair in places. Never finished it, because I had half a bar of energy and an impossible samurai ghost to fight, and couldn't be arsed to go back through.

He's on the third night isn't he?

That's where I got to as well

[SuperBrother]

I loved the first Fatal Frame, totally shat myself a couple of times at the scripted events and the general atmosphere of unease created is quite astounding.
As a few people have mentioned though I got stuck on the last night having run out of decent film/medicines/mirrors and didn't have the motivation to start from scratch playing in a more conservative manner.

I have part 2 sitting in my unplayed pile and will probably pick it up next after I've finished Siren.

[Ady]

I didn't find it at all scary either. I think the poor dub killed it for me.

I also kept running out of ammo, forcing me to restart twice. On the third go, I just gave up.

[marcus]

The blinding ritual is the most horrifying moment Ive seen in a videogame. I found a lot of the people who complained about this, when asked, were playing in the wrong conditions. You really need the lights off, stereo cranked up loud and for an added effect, try to sit in front of an open door - Ive always found that to be very unnerving for some reason. I loved Fatal Frame, ghosts are more scary than zombies, the whole concept was set out to make the player as uncomfortable as possible. Preferred it to the sequel to be honest, not that thats a bad game by any means.

[darkangel]

The first one was very unfair on ammo and health, even to a point where I gave up on a boss I simply could not do because of this.

Although FF2 was good fun, less scary as it was less challenging and you had more ammo etc.

Oh well, you can't have it both ways

[gingerj]

Do u u guys think its worth me purchasing this i'm a big fan now of survival hoorros thanks to ed. But i hate re with a passion as its camera is the worst i've experienced in 3d gaming. So what sort of view are you in ff?

[SuperBrother]

Does part of the fear generated by the first game lie in the fact that you cannot afford to waste ammo or be damaged by the ghosts I wonder?
I do feel that the developers set the difficulty level just slightly too high considering the fact that support items are very limited more often than not resulting in a forced re-start and hours of playing the game over again in an attempt to make the final night playable.

[PeteJ]

FF is easier to control than Resi Evil, however the combat does take some getting used too.

I like the series, but it's never really got the difficulty right. The first was unfair to the point of frustration and the second too easy to the point of apathy. I think this is what is holding the series back from taking the crown Silent Hill has held for several years. Silent Hill is also a better location with a more interesting history also, in my opinion. FF2 did go to some depth in detailing the past though, which was great.

[E. Randy Dupre]

So has anybody finished the first game? Because I gave up with it for exactly the same reasons given above - got to a point where the amount of health pick-ups I had left wasn't anything like enough to get me through.

Also ended up hugely frustrated with the clunky controls. Why can't my character run at a decent speed? Why can't she turn properly? I mean, that's fine in RE and the like, because the creatures you fight aren't particularly agile either. You don't actually need to be able to spin on a dime, bumping into the occasional wall doesn't automatically mean that you're going to suffer health loss. In FF, though, the difference between the player character and the opponents is ridiculous - they're faster than you, they don't suffer from any movement problems, they can even become invisible and float through the scenery, for crying out loud. There's one point in particular where the whole thing falls apart, and that's when you're trying to fight one on a square balcony. You're sheparded around this thing with no left/right movement at all, but the enemy character's ability to disappear into walls means it's impossible to see him coming. That's the point where the entire game suddenly became not fun, for me.

[112]

To tell you the truth i couldnt really get into this game. Ive got to the partwhere i fight the stupid guyin a hut who comes down from the ceiling. Also i ran out of film!

It only got scary when there was a ghost/spirit in the room. My character moved too slow or my liking. I know about the leveling up business which is an interesting spin on survival horror games. But the constant switch from 1st to 3rd person pissed me off a bit. As it was so damn awkward to manouvre the character in 1st person mode.

I may give this another whirl sometime soon but only after silent hill 4! ^_^

112

[hankwangford]

He's on the third night isn't he?

That's where I got to as well

Aye, stupid ****ing bastard is well cheap with that sword. *slash slash* ARGH MY CAMERA DOESN'T MOVE FAST ENOUGH, and now I'm dead.

Marcus: I do play in reasonably well lit conditions at more or less all times but that's down to bad eyesight. Truth is in the same kind of conditions I cacked my pants at some events in Resi Remake (when I didn't at all in the original, save the jumping out of your skin bits when you meet your first dogs and hunters), and cacked my pants all the way through Enemy Zero (which is the scariest game I've ever played).

[Commander Marklar]

Pfft, the goodness must've passed me by on this one. I was too frustrated with the controls to **** my pants, left it on the shelf.