The only console game
on this list, Fatal Frame is often referred to as
a survival-horror game, but fear not true believers for there is nary
a plasma blaster or BFG in sight. Instead, your ‘ammo’
is rolls of film of varying reload time that and your ‘weapon’
a camera that is used to capture the spirits of the ghosts.
While all three of the
Fatal Frame games come highly recommended, it is the second game of
the trilogy that seemed to haunt JA
reviewer Aya the most:
“The atmosphere
of the game is out of this world! Fatal Frame 2 was
created to scare and, trust me, it will do so! The ghosts of the sacrificed
twin sisters attacking uttering in echoing, eerie voices, “I
don’t want to kill you”, “Why do you kill?”
A long haired woman crawls out of a box, like Sadako/Samara from The
Ring. Even the final “boss” – usually a weak point of
even the best survival horror games – is impressive and menacing.
Everything, everywhere emits a pure haunting feeling, creating an
intense, unsettling atmosphere that will have you glued to your seat,
with your heart beating faster than you ever though it could! Fatal
Frame 2 does not rely on cheap “jump off your seat”
horror either. The feeling it creates goes deep into the player’s
mind and is not easily forgotten. Great sound, graphics and visual
effects add to all that, producing a survival horror game that will
refuse to fade from your memory. This is a game that is essential
to be played in a dark room with powerful speakers or headphones!
There are some things
in which certain cultures excel. For example, when it comes to sports
cars, the Italians stand out. For basketball, you can’t beat
the Americans (well, unless it’s the Olympics). Well, when it
comes to horror, leave it to the Japanese! And with Fatal
Frame 2 the Japanese have outdone even themselves. I waited
several days after finishing the game before writing this review,
so that the initial enthusiasm would subside and I could be objective.
Now I can honestly say that with Fatal Frame 2 we are presented with
what is probably the scariest, most haunting and most unsettling of
survival horror games!”
10.
