Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Director's Cut

"Fatal Frame II-Still Scary"

Introduction

The Fatal Frame series started back in 2002. They continued in Silent Hill's footsteps in wanting to scare the player rather than having an action game. They succeed very well. In 2004, they released Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly for the PS2. A while latter they released it with tons of bonus materials such as a FPS mode, four alternative endings, and extra ghosts for the Xbox and called it the directors cut. Given the two choices, it seems obvious if you own an Xbox that you would want to choose this version. More of the story comes forth and so on. On that note, let us begin the review.

You play as two twin sisters enjoying a lovely afternoon in a forest that they used to play in as children. As one sister is reminiscing the other is captivated by a crimson butterfly and wanders off. Coming back to reality the other sister runs after the runaway but ends up lost only to end up in a long lost village. The events of the rest of the game begin here.

Story 10/10

The story is compelling, grasping, and a work of art. Very few games have a full circle story as this game has. As you play through the game, you get bits and pieces of what is going on, background information and so on. The player by the end of the game will feel like they have either watched a great film or read a superb novel. Either way it is great.

Game Play 7/10

Unfortunately, the biggest problem with this game is the camera. When shooting multiple ghosts they can overlap and drain your health because you cannot obtain a picture of them. Another flaw that I have noticed with the camera and the character is that you cannot always move in time to either get your picture or avoid the ghost. Otherwise, the controls are fairly simple and easy to memorize.

Graphics 10/10

I really do not like giving perfect scores because I believe nothing is perfect; however, I cannot think of a reason not to give a 10 on graphics. They are beautiful and very well done. You can see the expressions on the characters faces, the wrinkles, the double chins, everything. I wish more games had the graphics that are demonstrated in this game.

Sound 8/10

The sound is good but not great. The voices are too quite and the background noise to loud. Things are not in proportion so it makes it difficult to hear the characters speaking. Thankfully, there are subtitles. The voice acting is great though, at least what you can hear of it.

Re-playability 8/10

This game has a ton of extras including four different endings, which should keep you hooked for a while. This game has the possibility of being one that if you let it set for a while to be fun to come back to. I hope that Xbox 360 will make this a BC. Serious though, there is so much to do in this game that you will have a good long while before you totally beat it.

Rent or Buy

If you can find a copy of this game, buy it. You should be able to find it under fifty dollars now. There are enough features to keep you busy for a while. If you are new to the survival horror genre or have only played Resident Evil or Resident Evil 4 then I suggest that you rent this game. The thing with the Resident Evil series is that they are survival horror with high action were this game is more thought processed. This game was made to make you jump through mental stimuli and I understand that people can get board with this type of game. If you loved Silent Hill 1 and 2 (please exclude three & four) then this is a definite must have to your collection.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 12/26/05