The Checkpoint 04.28.08: Does Anyone Want Fatal Frame On A Next Gen Console?

Posted by John Curry on 04.28.2008

One of the greatest games ever still has not found its way to a next gen console. The Checkpoint examines why it should be.




Is it just me or is the Fatal Frame series one of the greatest, most enjoyable games to ever be created? The entire Fatal Frame series is one of the only reasons I have to keep going back to my Playstation 2. Yet this game still has not been brought to a next generation console. Yes I heard at the Tokyo show that there was a Fatal Frame in the works for the Wii entitled The Mask of the Lunar Eclipse. Yes this does make me happy but is the Wii really a next generation system, no. The Wii is nothing more than Playstation 2 graphics with an enhanced version of the Power Glove. Why not the power and graphics of the Xbox 360 or the Playstation 3, couldn't the game achieve much more on these systems than on the Wii? Don't get me wrong, if the Wii version came with a special camera that had the power such as Silent Scope, the arcade version, to take the game to the next level I would be all over that like "white on rice in a glass of milk on a paper plate in a snowstorm" but I don't forsee Nintendo being that adventurous.

My simple adoration for this game series is not enough to warrant its revival on a next generation system. There are many reasons for this series to grace the shelves of our stores.


Reason 1: The Game is Scary as Hell.




The first time I ever played Fatal Frame, I sat down in front of my Playstation 2 with the lights off and the sound turned up as there really isn't any sound except the ones you make. At first I was wondering what exactly I bought as I walked through the house with the only visibility being what I shined my flashlight on. I found a camera known as the Camera Obscura as I began the game, and some simple film. As I progressed through the game suddenly my controller began to vibrate. I couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, until all of the sudden my controller began to vibrate uncontrollably. I pulled out my camera and in front of me flashed this woman who had been hung, her neck cocked to the side, her face the palest white ever seen. I admit I peed a little. This game scared the hell out of me. This would not be the only time the game would do so. Every sequel I picked up was just as scary as the last, even though I was already prepared for the paranormal. This is one of the few games that actually keep me feeling nervous of what is going to happen next.

Reason 2: The Storyline is Wonderfully Executed




The storyline for this game is well thought out and executed beautifully. From the creation of occultist artifacts that allow people to communicate with the dead to the recurring nightmares experienced by simply owning a piece of the artifacts, the story flows from one sequel to the next. This game would be just as popular if not more as when it was first released considering the growing interest in paranormal shows such as Ghost Hunters and Most Haunted combined with the popularity of Japanese horror. There are few games that have a storyline as good as the gameplay, and the Fatal Frame series is one of them.

Reason 3: The Game is INNOVATIVE

Tell me another game where you solve the mystery of the game's storyline with only a camera and smaller objects. You can't. Every game that personifies the horror genre focuses around a weapon such as a gun or sword. Not in the Fatal Frame series. Your only weapon is ingenuity and the ability to use your camera to take the best shots you can without dying. If that isn't innovative I don't know what is.





Reason 4: The Game is Worth the $59.99 Price

Last week I wrote on the Checkpoint about the things that pissed me off about video games and the price of games was one of them. I received a lot of comments from readers, many from outside the United States, as well as from some of my own colleagues about the necessity of the prices and the comparative cost analysis of games outside this country, which I greatly appreciate. I think the biggest point I failed to make is that not all games are worth $60 regardless of how much went into them. There are certain games that warrant the price and I have no complaints about paying them. Games such as GTAIV, Gears of War, Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Call of Duty 4, and just a handful of others. In my opinion, which has been often revered and more often than that despised, Fatal Frame is one of the series that is worth the cost of $60. This game makes me happier to be a gamer than anything short of a Hellraiser game where I can play as Pinhead in a The Darkness style game.



While these are simple reasons, the combinations of the four are more than enough to warrant the revival of the Fatal Frame series. Think of how good the game was on the PS2. Now think of how GREAT it could be on the Xbox 360 and PS3. The improvement in the graphics could be the greatest thing to hit the next gen consoles yet. The amount of therapy involved for the players would be enough to fund all of the counselors in America. So to the creators and makers of Fatal Frame I say, "Please, Please don't limit yourself to the Wii. Fans of the game want to see it on our 360's and our PS3's. Don't hold out on us. If you make it for the 360 and the PS3, I promise I will do the Truffle Shuffle. I will I promise."