Well I've avoided it for as long as I can, but the amount of Let's Plays and lore that this game series has had, it just made me want to play the games even more. So we have this game developer called Scott Cawthon who prior to this game, was making numerous other games, many of which were submitted to Steam's Greenlight program. But many of these games were criticized for the fact that gamers felt some of them were unintentionally scary and that the characters look like animatronics. Initially discouraged by this, Scott then used this criticism to be the basis of what would become Five Nights At Freddy's and the first game became a huge success that he then released the second game a few months later, the third game released this year in January just hours after the trailer is released and despite originally having a Halloween release date, the fourth and presumably final game was released just last month. You know, for a series of games that are just simple point and click games, that is impressive how fast the games came out and still look great (Microsoft, Activision and EA, you should take notes. Maybe you too Sony). So let's take on 20 nights (though that depends on if you survive extra nights in each game) and see just how scary this game and its lore, is:
1
So I was trying to think of a good sub title for each game because I think I speak for everyone when I say that having a film or game title with just a number to indicate that its another entry in the series, isn't all that interesting and creative. Its boring and doesn't say a lot. But anyway, back to the review. So in the first game (which in the so called timeline, takes place after 2), you play as Mike Schmidt who has taken on the job of night security at the restaurant Freddy Fazbear's Pizza (which is the game's version of the American chain of restaurants Chuck E. Cheese's). As told by the guy on the phone (who everyone calls The Phone Guy and is voiced by Scott himself), you are tasked to look after the place for 5 nights where your one goal is to survive from 12am till 6am. Now that may sound easy, but the purpose of this is to keep an eye on the animatronics who are allowed to roam freely across the restaurant during the night because otherwise the circuits in their endo-skeletons, otherwise known as their servomotors will lock up. And it has to be this way because of an event that caused a lot of problems for the parent company Fazbear Entertainment. So in order to make sure you survive these nights, you can light up the hallways, close and open doors and camera feeds. Using all of these can help you fend off against the animatronics Bonnie the Rabbit, Chica the chicken (and is also the only female animatronic of the group), Foxy the pirate fox, Freddy Fazbear the bear and a mysterious animatronic called Golden Freddy. If any one of them catches you, its game over and you get stuffed in a suit which kills you. And that is where the jumpscares come in. Each night gets harder, so a strategy is needed to make sure you can survive the later nights, but generally the first and second nights are the easiest, with Night 3 being at intermediate difficulty, Night 4 and 5 being hard and if you survive it all, you get 2 additional nights (both of which are very hard) and a custom mode too. Each of the animatronics act differently with some being unpredictable on their path and what they do and others may miss the cameras all together, making it hard to know when they attack. So that's the first game and I have to say, I never in a million years, thought a simple point and click game could be so successful and get the entire internet delving into its lore. Of all the people that played this game, I actually didn't think it was that scary, but that's mostly because I've seen people do let's plays of this game. I mean yeah I was at the edge of my seat when playing the game and I did get jumped by the jumpscares, but to me, this is more creepy than scary, but that's just me. 9/10
2
Just something to point out here that in all the games, the game time isn't actually 6 hours, its well below that. Just wanted to bring that up. So the second game in the series (but first chronologically) is more or less the same as the first game. This time you take on the role of Jeremy Fitzgerald who like with Mike, has taken on a night security job of looking after another Freddy Fazbear's Pizza restaurant and has to survive five nights. There are no doors and no power consumption this time. You can use lights to check the vents and what's on the camera feeds and what's in front of you and there is a Freddy Fazbear mask that you can use to avoid getting caught by the animatronics. Speaking of which, this time you're taking on a heavily damaged Bonnie, Chica, Foxy, Freddy Fazbear and Golden Freddy as well as toy versions of Bonnie, Chica and Freddy Fazbear, a build a bot female Foxy called Mangle (though the gender of this animatronic is left to question) and two newcoming animatronics called Balloon Boy and The Puppet. So based on that, this will no doubt be much more of a challenge for players, but unlike the first game, you have things to defend yourself against the animatonics such as the previously mentioned mask and a music box which needs winding up and the torch. Also at points in the game, you can play Atari like minigames which delve further into the franchise's story and also some cutscenes between nights, both of which are a first for the series. And again, there are some bonus nights, a custom mode and some unlockable content which can be unlocked by having certain set ups in custom mode and completing them. This game delves further into the game's story and lore with the events of the game taking place in the year of the bite of 87 whereas the minigames introduce the Purple Guy and also explain a bit about the dark past that Fazbear Entertainment has had. Its yet another one of those sequels (or in this case, prequels) that builds upon what was great about the first game and adds new stuff in the process. It is much harder than the first game with more animatronics and the addition of doing extra stuff as well as trying to defending yourself. I personally gave it a try and well, it is pretty hard, but its got more story in it so yeah. 9/10
3
So if this game took place 30 years after the previous two games, would that make the year 2017 or 2020? Well I'll leave that for theorists and those who love the lore to decide. So this time, your a night security guard at an attraction called Fazbear's Fright which is based on the ancient legend of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza which has since closed its doors after a lot of criticism and what happened with the Purple Guy, the Phone Guy and of course, the bite of 87 (presumably). The attraction has not yet opened, but you are asked to watch the place at night a week before its opening to make sure nothing goes faulty. After the first night, it is revealed that the people who made the attraction, have found one fully functional, but heavily damaged animatronic who they call Springtrap and like before, its up to you to stop him from catching you. This time around, there is only one animatronic who can give you a game over and is real, while others will appear as hallucinations, but won't give you a game over, but can still jumpscare you and/or screw stuff up. They are Freddy Fazbear (original), Chica (also original), Foxy, Mangle, Baloon Boy and The Puppet. You still have cameras to watch Springtrap's movements which this time, can let you seal vents to prevent him getting to the office, but some of these camera feeds will trigger a phantom animatronic to appear in the office and screw stuff up. Those stuff you may be wondering are the audio, the ventilation and the camera systems which need maintaining throughout each night and can be done so by rebooting them individually or all together (the former is the highly recommended choice here). And like the last game, this game also has minigames with Atari like graphics, the majority of which are hidden in the attraction and can be activated using certain methods with some available on all nights, others on certain nights, and some on only one night. These are required to be completed in a certain way to get the Good ending whereas just playing the game like playing the last couple of games, will get you the Bad ending. There are also some minigames that occur between nights which go into some more detail about the Purple Guy and his intentions. This game has been seen by many as one of the weakest entries in the series because of how complicated it is to find these hidden minigames and that most of the jumpscares act as annoyances more than anything else. But it has been praised for its more darker turn than in previous games, of which I can agree on. Its again not easy, but with the nights' game time being a lot more shorter than before, you'll do just fine as long as there are strategies in place. 7/10
4
Its been said that this is the last game of the series, but knowing Scott like we do, it probably won't be the last we hear of Five Nights At Freddy's. Last game yeah, but not the last we've heard from the series in general. It all changes this time. This time, you take on the role of a little boy who hates Freddy Fazbear and his friends and for 5 nights, he has nightmares of the gang and defends himself in his room from them. Unlike previous games, there are no cameras this time and how you get through the game, all depends on how your hearing is. The original animatronics are back and bring a few friends with them. They all have much scarier appearances than ever before, making their jumpscares even more of a threat. So in the boy's room, you have 4 areas in which you can flash your torch upon which are the left door, the right door, the bed and the closet. You'll be tackling Freddy Fazbear, Chica, Bonnie, Foxy, Golden Freddy (later revealed to be called Fredbear), Springtrap (in the form of a plush toy) and a new animatronic called Nightmare as well as Chica's cupcake. Its recommended that you use the torch and your hearing to get through the nights as they will be your greatest weapons in this game. Like with the third game, there are some minigames between nights with Atari like graphics which go into the story of this little boy and his abusive older brother who always takes him to a Fazbear Entertainment restaurant (whether its the family diner or the pizzeria is left in question) with the plush toys he has, being his only friends. Also before each night (except for Night 1), you get the chance to skip a couple of hours if you successfully get Springtrap on the X before the time limit or before he jumpscares you, but if you get a game over in those nights, you miss that opportunity. And just like the third game, there is some bonus content as well as some extra nights just like earlier games. Also no Phone Guy this time, but if you're one of those people that like to delve into the game's files, you may hear something like Phone Guy if you have the right software for the job. As the presumed final game of the series, this one is one that has the internet split on opinions. Some liking it for its sad and emotional storyline and change of gameplay, while others not liking it for its confusing gameplay mechanics. For me, this was one scary game and anyone attempting it should go with caution that is not only scary, but it can also test you and push you to the limits. I personally think its ok. I wouldn't go and say its the absolute best entry in the series, but it does manage to end the series the way its mean't to end and leaves people to question the lore that the series has given us. 8/10
So there you have it. I was brave and got through at least 20 nights of jumpscares and survival and through it all, it was a fun experience and something that may have been done before this game series came around, but not to this extent. Well worth your time if you enjoy games that have you at the edge of your seat and you just want to survive. And don't worry about its confusing story. We can leave that to those who enjoy the lore and try to make sense of it (good luck MatPat). 8/10
No comments:
Post a Comment