Fatal Frame has always been one of the most underrated horror franchises in gaming. Its classic Japanese style horror made it stand out amongst Capcom’s Resident Evil and Konami’s Silent Hill franchises. 2002’s Fatal Frame II: The Crimson Butterfly is regarded as the best entry in the series, and one of the best horror games on the PlayStation 2.
With developers Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo remastering Fatal Frame’s most recent entries, they decided to give Crimson Butterfly the full remake treatment. This Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly remake succeeds in creating a horrifyingly scary game, but its new emphasis on combat isn’t picture-perfect.
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly follows a pair of twins, Mio and Mayu, as they explore a cursed village where a failed ritual has completely decimated its surroundings. As they look for a way out, they uncover dark secrets about the village, including the ritual itself and their involvement in it as twins. It’s one of the most compelling stories I’ve experienced in any horror game, and the lore behind the village and ritual was so tantalizing that I sat down to fully read every collectible I could find throughout my journey.
It also has a gargantuan twist that flips the story upside down. As someone who’s played the original as a very young boy, it scared the hell out of me. Even though I already knew the twist going into this remake, its impact surprisingly didn’t diminish. Those who are experiencing it for the first time are in for a treat.
You’ll be playing as Mio chasing after Mayu as they constantly get separated in the village. Even though the village is small, the buildings have multiple interconnected levels, making the area feel much bigger. In fact, Crimson Butterfly feels incredibly similar to Silent Hill F. Not only is Japanese folklore a central theme, but the level and puzzle designs are similar. As you find new abilities and keys, you’ll be able to backtrack and unlock new areas, giving Crimson Butterfly a slight Metroidvania feel.
The hallways in the buildings are tight, and it feels like a ghostly wraith could spring up out of nowhere at any moment. The game does a great job of instilling a sense of claustrophobia and fear as Mio walks around. This remake takes some cues from Resident Evil, where there will occasionally be an unkillable apparition that stalks you throughout the halls. In these instances, you’re forced to hide and wait for them to walk away before proceeding. These creatures make the atmosphere even scarier and more oppressive than it already is.
There were a few cases where I got caught by the monster, which forced me to restart from my last save. The issue, however, is that loading times can be pretty long on PS5, making the time between dying and reloading frustrating. On top of that, there are some performance issues, with some stuttering and framerate hiccups occurring semi-frequently.
There are also new side stories that can start by picking up certain collectibles. By completing these episodes, you’ll learn more about Crimson Butterfly’s lore, as well as supporting characters that didn’t get enough backstory in the original game.
Fatal Frame’s gameplay is quite unique, as it takes elements of shooting games, but instead of a gun, players wield a supernatural camera called the Camera Obscura. Here, Mio can collect film like you would pick up ammunition in a shooting game and use the camera to take photos of hostile wraiths, damaging them in the process. Taking shots requires strict timing and patience as the camera focuses on a ghost’s face. If you manage to snap a shot while they’re in the middle of an attack, you’ll be rewarded with extra damage.
There are also different kinds of film, such as the relatively weak but plentiful Type-14 film with long reload times, and the stronger, faster (and rarer) Type-61 film. The variety of films adds a more methodical approach to your typical shooter game and forces you to strategize what kind of ammo to use to kill wraiths.
New to this remake are filters, which have uses both in and out of combat. For example, the Radiant filter can charge up shots for more power, while the Exposure filter can slow down enemies. Between the different film types and filters, every encounter with a wraith fills the air with tension. Filters can also be used to remove specific obstacles, opening new rooms to collect rewards such as Prayer Beads needed to upgrade the Camera Obscura, incentivizing you to explore every nook and cranny.
However, there’s one new mechanic that almost singlehandedly caused me to stop playing: Aggravation. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. I absolutely loathe this mechanic. Whenever you’re fighting enemies, there’s a chance that you’ll aggravate them and they’ll go into berserk mode. It is entirely inconsistent. I’ve gone through many battles where enemies don’t enter this state at all, and others where they’ll enter it twice in a row immediately after dealing enough damage to snap them out of it the first time.
Aggravated wraiths become stronger and tougher to kill. While that isn’t a major issue in itself, what really aggravates me is that they restore HP, wasting the work you’ve done. It’s frustrating and not fun to deal with. When this happens, I usually load my save and start the encounter over again, hoping I can kill them quickly enough to avoid aggravation.
The Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly remake attempts to bring the original PS2 classic into the modern age. It’s a largely successful endeavor with more in-depth combat, expanded lore, and prettier visuals to accompany its thrilling story. While there were some rough spots in the new combat, this remake goes above and beyond by staying faithful to what made it so revered so many years ago, but also trying new things.
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake launches on March 12 for PC, PS5, Nintendo Switch 2, and Xbox Series X|S.
