Although this isn't a game that gathered a great deal of press, the few bits of info leading up to its release were enough to hook me. First, it's PS2 survival horror, which we haven't had so much of yet (and I'm still extremely bitter about the halfway point boss fight of Resident Evil: Code Veronica X.) Second, the battle mechanism involves using an antique camera to "kill" the enemies.
The back of the box goes a long way to make the whole camera thing sound gay. In fact, this was really all that anybody talked about, giving rise to the easy-desc of "Resident Evil meets Pokemon Snap." Well, although that's plenty to get my game on, that label no doubt scares off a lot more gamers, who would probably rather just use a shotgun. In actuality, your ghost-killin' camera is nowhere near as silly as it sounds.
I consider that the first test of Fatal Frame. Are you man enough to check out a survival horror game that doesn't fall back on the now-standard formula of mega-weaponry versus advancing zombie horde? The testosterone-soaked among you are probably not, but you're playing Halo and not reading this.
In Fatal Frame, you are Miku Hinasaki, a young Japanese girl with mild psychic powers... namely, the ability to see things like ghosts and grainy flashback sequences. Miku has wandered into the long abandoned Himuro Mansion, on the trail of her brother who's been missing for weeks. Her brother, Mafuyu, entered the mansion to look for his mentor, the novelist Junsei Takamine. And for his part, Takamine was in the mansion with a pair of assistants doing some research for a new novel he was working on. Because you see, Himuro Mansion has a bad reputation; the building's ancient history is cloaked in evil deeds and mysterious rituals.
Basically, everybody who has entered the mansion has not come out. As Miku discovers, the place is crawling with spirits who capture, curse and/or kill anybody they find. The ghosts of Takamine and his partners are some of the first spirits you'll meet (yeah, they're dead), and they set a general pattern... Miku is led through certain areas of the mansion by one of them, doing typical survival horror things like gathering text files and fighting minor baddies. Eventually, the leading ghost turns on you in an effort to either tell you something important or just kill you. By piecing together the ghosts' laments, Miku's flashbacks, and the text bits, you'll gradually uncover the disgusting secrets of Himuro Mansion's history. And how entire generations of mansion guests have fallen victim to the hell hiding beneath it.
Before you jump to any conclusions, let me assure you that Fatal Frame goes to great lengths not to be lame. The game is serious from start to finish. First and foremost, it excels in simple atmosphere like no other game. The camera angles, the shocking cutscenes, the moody audio... the fact that Miku has two speeds: walking and hurried walking. Everything contributes to an experience that oozes a consistance elegance (despite the everpresent subtitle "Based on a True Story.") I scarcely know where to begin.
This is a game to play loud and surround. The music changes frequently, often dropping out entirely, and it's always a Psycho-style violin trilling that instantly sets nerves on edge. As you wander the dark halls, every so often you'll hear muffled whispers or a woman crying, the pattering of quick little feet or the clunk of something closing nearby. Extremely scary shit, that. And the ghosts, oh, the ghosts. Although some fall to typical ghostly moaning or cackling, most types (and there are many, many, many) carry their own special sounds. Like the creepy sounds of ropes stretching for the haunt of a woman who was strangled. But of especial note are the talkies... ghosts who chant a litany of tormented speech.
They raise an important point about Fatal Frame. These aren't just dopey ghost stereotypes; these are the ethereal spooks of people who died... who died horribly and wrongly and they need to talk to you about it. There is a reason why they're bound to the mansion. Their pain makes you pity them, and casts the ghostbusting angle as more of a mercy-exorcism, instead of just kicking the head off another nameless zombie crawling at your feet.
The game also injects life into the expected ol' You Found a Notebook Page, Do You Want to Read It? crap. You'll find a collection of audio tapes, so you can actually listen to the thoughts of the last living people to disappear. It's very Blair Witch and it's a shame the audio tapes run out pretty early in the game.
Graphically, there's good and bad. Miku's in-game model is gorgeous. A seamless, flawless 3D figure. Her animations are fluid, although there are some occasions when she jumps (like on ladders.) Her slow pace adds to your tension, but it gives you time to enjoy one of the game's coolest tricks, her head. Many item pickups are obvious, being little shiny bits on the floor. But some are hidden in piles of junk that will attract Miku's eye. Yes, her head will subtly turn towards stuff you should be searching, and it will turn towards doors and other important areas. Firstly, her turning her head looks extremely realistic and natural - for someone exploring a haunted house with a flashlight and a miniskirt. Secondly, it's extremely useful, especially when you're hard up for health items.
The rooms she wanders can be the main problem. Some areas look like Miku walked into a PlayStation One game (the outside rooms, mainly.) And I suspect the designers did a good job of hiding low quality textures and models under all that inky darkness anyway.
The ghosts are impressive. They phase in and out of view, twist and warp as they float towards you. They have a variety of moves and attacks, from the slow and steady Broken Neck to the zippy Wandering Monk. Yes, they can follow you through rooms if you don't outrun them and yes, they do float right through walls. If you're daring enough to let them get close to you before snapping their picture, you'll get some very cool photos of tortured faces and grasping spectral hands.
And about that camera deal. Honestly, I was expecting something much more overt. The Pokemon Snap comparison conjured up images of Professor Oak criticizing my photos based on a centered subject, a nice pose, and a good close up. Fatal Frame may be considering all of this, but you needn't worry about it. When you use the camera (which can be re-assigned on your controller to R1, so it feels just like targeting an enemy in Grand Theft Auto 3 or readying your weapon in Resident Evil), you're thrown into first-person mode, as viewed through the camera's lens. Incidentally, having this first-person option is helpful even in just looking around a room, not just useful in ghost battles.
Obviously, you're being chased by ghosts here though, so you can move the camera in all directions and walk Miku around as well. The center of your camera is the hot seat. When a spirit is in the center, your camera will "charge" and if you squeeze the shutter while the baddie is nicely centered, you'll do damage based on the camera's built-up charge and the type of film you're currently using. If you don't catch him in the center of the frame, it's a miss. When the ghost's life meter is exhausted, consider him busted. Each photo is worth points, based on who knows exactly what, and these points can be spent to upgrade your camera, making future ghost fights easier.
So really, your camera and film are just a metaphor for a gun and bullets. And you improve your camera RPG style instead of finding new weapons in the course of the game. In that respect, it's not as photo-centric as I had thought... but you do have the option to save your favorite photos in an album for later viewings. ("Oh, look, there's that nice little dead girl playing hide and seek under the back porch. And here's a view of a Headless Priest, attacking me with blue flame orbs!")
The camera is also a key part of the mansion's puzzles. For example, taking a picture of a locked door will reveal where you have to go to find the key. There are also tons of hidden unique ghosts, who don't attack you at all and are just there as kind of a point-increasing, item-collecting mini game. I'm not spoiling too much by telling you that this mystical camera also figures into the plot as well.
There are four types of film for your camera, each offering an increased level of exorcismal power. You have to manage your film and health carefully, or risk getting raped in the Third Night. Prior to playing Fatal Frame, I had read several reviews saying that the game punishes you for item management and virtually abandons you by the end of the game with no film and the nastiest of nasties. Well, I didn't find this to be the case. Yes, I ran out of Spirit Stones frequently (special items that allows your camera to use powerful functions during ghost battles), but by conserving film and making heavy use of the near-infinite cheap film, I was fine. There were several points (during the end of Second and Third Night) where I was very close to death.. but I was never strapped for film. You just can't flounce about Himuro Mansion taking tourist photos.
The mansion itself - although built to your usual survival horror construction code - feels much more natural than, say, Resident Evil's ridiculously structured Raccoon City. There are secret doors, one-way doors and locked doors, but it manages to create an overall feeling of an actual ancient Japanese mansion... albeit one that's been added-on a couple of times. Only once or twice did I ask myself "What the hell did the Himuros use *this* room for?" Compare that to the Raccoon City Police Station whose police chief has reserved the entire upper level for his art collection.
Even though each Night (read: level) resets the traps, items and populates different ghosts, I did not mind the backtracking one bit. In a less skillfull game, this would have been boring. In Fatal Frame, you're just as apprehensive on your tenth pass through the Fish Room as on your first.
It all goes back to the game's incredible sense of style and mood. We truly are at a turning point in video game history, where games can be appreciated as much (and more) than movies. Fatal Frame belongs aside such games as Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Grand Theft Auto 3, and Ico in terms of storytelling, realism and personal involvement. Remember getting all excited about games with cinematic qualities (Tomb Raider, Resident Evil)? We're finally there.
