Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly

"Very under rated game."

Many people overlook this game. This is the scariest game I've ever played. I don't quite understand why many sites gave this game such a low score. They mainly compare it to others. More often, it's rated for how much fun it offers. And these people don't understand the meaning of fun for this game. They claim it lacks the fun quality of titles like ''Ratchet and Clank''. My friend, this is a horror game. And the fun of a horror game isn't blowing @#$% up with a rocket launcher. The game does extremely well in many areas. But mainly, it truly shines in gameplay. Actually, it shines in all areas.

Graphics:10

Quite flawless. I don't see how others game this area a low score. I do understand that it's not as amazing as silent hill. But silent hill doesn't have a 1st person camera mode to show off it's amazing graphics. I can't find ANYTHING to complain about the graphics. Everything looks gorgeous. The way the curtain flows, to how Mayu reacts when she's scared is just #$%&in amazing. The CG graphics looks almost identical to the regular game play. That wasn't sarcasm. The graphics are that good. The lighting, the shadows, the ghosts, the wierd sister, everything looks just looks beautiful. Not short of breath taking.

Sounds:10

Another flawless category. Even though there wasn't much music going on. The sound effects are truly freaky(meant to be). Everytime she opens a door, everytime a ghost lurks near by, everytime Mayu moans, I dont have a word for it, but it's scary as hell. I still get scared hearing the moaning of the same ghosts.

Story:10

I haven't beaten the game just yet. But I'm far enough to tell you it's good. Definitely good. It's a great motivation to continue. You just want to go on and find out what happens next. And everything seems to good so far. I don't see how the story can go wrong in the next few hours. I'm sure enough to give it a 10. Hey, if it's intriuing enough to keep me playing for 7 hours, it's definitely good. And also scary as hell.

Basically, the story revolves around Mio. Her twin sister Mayu suffered an accident along the mountain when they were kids. So Mio feels responsible for this. Which makes her look after her older sister, Mayu. One day, they went back to their favorite childhood playing ground. As Mio talks, Mayu saw a crimson butterfly. Mayu reluctantly followed the butterfly. Mio turned around and saw her sister running. So she ran after Mayu. Then they both lost their way home. Their tracks just mysteriously disappeared. Now they found themselves in''All God's'' village. A forgotten village, whom the entire population was murdered one night druring a ritual. How and why, no one ever knew. It is said whoever follows the crimson butterly will be lead to this forbidden village.(scary, huh? wait until you get 5 minutes more into the game).

Fun factor: 10

Despite the fact that Mio and Mayu runs very slow, I still enjoy watching the girls run :). The slow pace really sets an atmosphere for the game to be honest. This isn't Dino Crisis. You're facing a fear you can't see. I doubt they want to run like crazy. And the fun of ''Survival Horrors'' is surviving the horror. Basically, does it scare you? If it does, then it's fun. If not, then it's not fun. Very simple. There are more than one way of describing fun. For these kind of games, it's how much fear did it put in you. Fatal Frame 2:Crimson Butterly scared the hell out of me. I couldn't even walk to the bathroom. Fearing some girl in a bloody Kimono would eat me. Yes, it's that scary. If you think Silent Hill 3 was scary(it was scary), try this game.

Replay Value:10

Let's think about the resident evil series. It was a Wham Bam thank you Ma'am deal. Beat it once, start collecting dust til the end of time. Silent Hill 3 marked the beginning of a new style. Having multiple endings, added costumes, new weapons, really boosted the replay value.
This game added even more. Gallery, costumes, you can carry your upgraded camera to the next game, multiple endings, I see a bright future. It's just a great inspiration to buy the game. You're not going to want to buy a game only to play it once. Whenever a scary game inspires you to play it once more, regardless of conditions, it's gettin a 10.

Buy or rent?

Are you a big fan of Survival Horror series? If you get scared by movies like Scream, I wouldn't recommend this game to you. If you think you can handle this, go for it. that's what I thought before I got it. It wasn't a mistake. I don't think you can go wrong with this game. No doubt you'll be scared by it, but you'll want to go on. Why? I don't know. It's the magic of survival horrors.
Rent if you're a little girl. Buy if you're not a little girl. That's all I have to say. There is no mistake. This is a game you'll always remember. Especially once you see the girl with the bloody kimomo.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 01/03/04