Five Night's At Freddy's 3 - various

Fiiiive Niiiights Aaaaaat Freddy's.... Four calling birds, three french....etc

So we’re back, once again, to the highly popular and frequently shocking, suspense-filled and subtle undertones of child murder and mayhem that is, Five Nights At Freddy’s 3. We’ve had the first, as almost ground-breaking as the Slenderman games and such that prey upon shock scares and the feeling of helplessness compounded by the inability to run away. We’ve had FNAF 2 (Electric Boogaloo), where more robots attacked, a puppet on strings would assault us like Tim Burton’s vision of Pinocchio and now we have FNAF 3, which could be the final in the series, giving us just one robotic killer to worry about.

Nothing new there then.

It sounds like quite the downgrade doesn’t it. We’ve had the horror of 4 robots (plus a ghost), to 11 enemies and now we’re down to just one. But what a one it is as we’re lovingly guided through day one with no challenges whatsoever but some surfer-dude sounded colleague phones us on the first day to tell us that Freddy’s Pizza is now a horror attraction using bits and pieces collected over the last 30 years or so. Day One, being the gentle easing into the nightmare, has no challenges, no difficulties, no threats and lets us get on with learning the new system, the new map, where the cameras are and the fact that things are falling apart and the live feed might go down and need rebooting, the audio might need rebooting too and the ventilation system could cause suffocation.

This just in! Unnecessary pretext!

What this means is that your main weapons are VERY limited in stopping one killer robot, the ill-named Springtrap, which you learn as to why it’s so ill-fated when a friendly revisit from the very first phone-guy makes a call and explains what is so special about Springtrap as a robot. (Hint: You can wear it, but don’t breathe at the wrong time, else the mechanics activate while you’re inside… ok so that’s not so much a hint as a full explanation but oh well, just imagine a tiny violin playing a sad song for you). Much in the same way as the previous games, the robot will travel the area in search of the player and you’ve got to use your powers of weak video cameras to spot where it is, use the audio recordings of laughing children to encourage it to other places and make sure that it’s not in the ventilation ducts to bypass LARGE areas of the map.

It's not even 1am and everything has just gone pear-shaped.

Failure to secure your safety will likely have Springtrap popping along into your office to kill you in some horrifically gruesome fashion or another, either by walking in through the open door (bonus points if he’s stood OUTSIDE THE DOOR STARING IN!) or by using the ventilation system to pop out from behind where your camera system is. It’s a duel, one-on-one, against a literal killer robot and yourself. However, as the day’s progress, the vents need resetting regularly, the audio cuts out after repeated use and the video doesn’t last long before it needs a reboot. Each one of which takes many valuable, tense, nerve-wracking seconds before it can be used again and in doing so, blocks your view almost entirely, just enough for Mr Springtrap to sneak ever closer to your location.

This is Springtrap, he is coming to kill you.

As usual for this game series, there’s the secret backstory which can be found through hidden games that look like the old Atari 2600 series, which not only tell the story further of the purple man and the dead children murdered through the series, but of how Springtrap came to be and there’s the FURTHER mission of trying to liberate not only yourself from the events of the third game but to save the souls of those killed by the purple man back in the previous games that now form the very robots you had to defend against, Springtrap being the exception here, as he’s certainly not powered by a forsaken child (thank you Venture Brothers), but something far more sinister.

Foxy says "Boo" -The power of understatement

Fear not! Or fear more, depending on how you view this, but the original cast of the series are also in this game. We’ve got Chica, Freddy, Foxy, Balloon Boy, Mangle and the Marionette making (almost) guest appearances by explanation of the ventilation system causing “possible” hallucinations. By which I mean, in your quest to hunt down Springtrap on camera, you’ll be haunted by the aforementioned characters of the series in various ways, and in increasing frequency as the days go on. Balloon Boy will pop up on random cameras and then “jump” you, Foxy will just sit there until you look at him and then “jump” you, as will Chica, while Mangle will kill your sound system for a while, Freddy will also get in on the action and the Marionette will certainly demand a full focus of your time. All of which, helps Springtrap get ever closer to getting you in his clutches. It’s a strategy fest and you’ll HAVE to learn how to overcome the hallucinations before they happen if you want to spend the time focused on Springtrap.

Atari 2600 styled minigames, if you do well enough.

Combined with creepy ambient sounds and possibly the best designed map of the series with dank corridors that are (in-game at least) meant to be fear inducing as it’s supposed to be a horror attraction now (though not intentionally with a murderous rabbit robot sporting flesh and organs in places), the game is as gorgeous to see as it is nerve-wracking though in some of the cameras it gets very hard to see where Springtrap is unless he’s staring at the camera with his illuminated eyes. And although the same rules apply for the robots not moving when being watched and force static to flood the screen when they do relocate, what little animation is fluid and impressive to behold from Springtrap breaking into the room, to the hallucinations attacking you and even some of the more creepy background events.

Please note: Springtrap staring at the camera on the left.

Fans of the series may be disappointed to hear there’s no 4/20 mode, but with the original five nights concept, bonus 6^th night “hard mode” and unlockables such as images, animations, all the jump scares, radar mode, fast night mode, aggressive mode (and it is… Springtrap effectively SPRINTS at you the whole time) and more; coupled with the hidden games and mini-games as well as the 3 star success (take a breath…) there’s plenty in this game combined with the background lore that will entertain fans and newcomers alike.

Not just one map, there's the vent system to worry about that Springtrap can use to get into your office.

That said, the game does have failings. Namely in that the suspense is almost removed in later days when you’re attacked very frequently by hallucinations that the actual final jump scare of Springtrap killing you is more welcomed than feared. The horror almost has become toned down to be simply annoying and borders on the fringe of being overkill at this point. Added to that, the initial concept of the game and the new mechanics may seem too far a stretch at this point that it’s been observed that many new players to the 3^rd game despite being avid fans of the series’ earlier titles, found they had little clue as to how they were surviving the nights nor how to actively confront and halt Springtrap’s movements.

This is seriously the worst job to have. Ever. Turkey Husbandy would be better.

That said, I’ve enjoyed the series and feel that this is the perfect send-off for it, assuming that no more are made but I’ve no doubt that fan titles are being made or will be made that will piggyback on the success of this series, especially with such a huge and creative fan base that ranges from musical artists composing songs around the series, animations on YouTube and a flood of Let’s Play (read: scare ourselves shitless) videos of fans enjoying/enduring the game.

Five Nights At Freddy's 2 - multiple platforms

Yay, let's go back for more!

So it’s time to head back to the Five Nights At Freddy’s group, that happy and fun place where kids love the dancing animated robotic creatures and everyone else is mortified by the experience. Where pizza and parties are laid out and man-sized robotic animals are freely available to wander the hallways seeking out children to entertain and eyeing every adult with suspicion.

If you're seriously thinking of going back here, you NEED help.

Story wise, it’s another Five Nights At Freddy’s with NEW looking robots and the old ones too. (I’ll stick with this to avoid spoilers before anyone starts telling me otherwise...). We’ve Bonnie Bunny, Chica the Duck/Chicken/Poultry who seems really intent on giving us a cupcake. Freddy himself returns as does the fan-favourite (most terrifying) Foxy the Pirate. While we’re also met with lovely new versions of Freddy, Bonnie, Chica PLUS new robots in the form of Balloon Boy, Mangle and the Marionette.

So you’re now looking at 11 possible opponents, including the rather special, Golden Freddy.

No doors, but you have a torch... Just give me the tank and flamethrower.

You’re the night guard once again (a different one, which becomes apparent later on), and you’re tasked with looking after the establishment while the robots casually go wandering around here and there. To help you with this problem, you’re given full power access to the camera system, torch with VERY limited battery life (no Duracell here!) and no doors. Your main defence here in this case is the ability to shine the light at the freely roaming robots that might pause them, or cause them to reset, but also a large head from one of the suits. So if one of the animatronics walks into the office, you can slap on the head and pretend to be one of them. Unless it’s Foxy or the Marionette...

Mask down; I'm safe. Unless Foxy wants in or the Marionette is loose.

To stop you from just leaving the hat on, there’s the case of Foxy and his ability to completely IGNORE your hat/mask and just launches himself at you if you ever miss him winding up for an attack at the end of the corridor. The other big issue that stops you from just slapping masks on and off and flicking the light on an off periodically, is the Marionette. Which cannot be stopped from an attack, doesn’t get blinded by lights and doesn’t care if you’re wearing the mask or not. So we need to switch the camera on and head over to the Marionette’s area and remotely wind up a music box that will placate it. (To the tune of My Grandfather’s Clock, no less...)

The new crew! Despite the overhaul on looks, still rather off-putting.

Initially the game starts off filled with intrigue, the phone-guy is back and talking to us once again despite what happened on day 4 of the previous game and until you find out WHY this is the case, fans will overlook this apparent continuity flaw for the time being.  The cameras give partial glimpses into each of the rooms and from each a small story is told and listed. From identifying the origins to the odd circumstances in the game that leave us with man-sized robots that have a link to the local face-recognition database for identifying ‘predators’. If you stop long enough in the game to consider this, you start to worry what kind of world/environment are we in where pseudo-murderous robots in a pizza shop need access to that level of security.

They use the air-vents too.

Despite the subtext and plot, the game itself is about working out which robot is advancing, how to stop it and where to find out the next threat is going to be coming from. As such, it is VERY easy to be killed on the first day by several different robots and of course, the Marionette. As such, once you recognise the routes and journeys that the robots take, you’ll eventually devolve your exploration down to a very simple method of checking the vents, listening for movement, flashing the light down the corridor and then cranking up the music before “...the old, man, died” starts to play. Eventually something WILL meander into the room and you’ll slap the mask down (hopefully) in time to leave them confused enough to leave and hopefully not get attacked by Foxy in the ever-close window of opportunity one has to flash a light on and stop his One Hit Knock Out attack (though in truth many of the others do this too, but Foxy gives you NO chance beyond that light flash).

You'll cheer louder than the kids do when this happens.

Suspense in the game so thick you can cut it with a 2 by 4, or just batter it about a bit, while the game itself can very quickly engage and then utterly terrify players with the jump scares, suspenseful moments of being inspected by the robots and hoping beyond hope that the cute looking robot (or not so cute if you refer to the ORIGINAL set of robots), doesn’t rip your mask off beyond ending your brief stint into the game. For some, this kind of suspense is too much and in a similar vein to Alien Isolation, there’s little you can do to defend yourself but at least you can fight back in Alien Isolation. In this case, you’re stuck with the idea and notion that you’re simply waiting, defending against the inevitable hordes of robotic horrors until you reach and surpass the 5 days and emerge victorious from the whole ordeal. But then again, much like the first one, why doesn’t someone just quit? Perhaps it’s because quitting and not earning is less preferable to being hunted down by psychotic robots? But it’s all part of speculation that could infer facts about the background and origins, not that you’ll have much time to contemplate them while Bonnie is sticking his face into your own and remains undecided as to whether you’re the threat or not that it thinks you might be.

Hello Foxy...

It all depends on whether you appreciate the scare factors and the fear effects that will determine if this game will be successful for yourself. If you like being terrified and scared of being stalked, live in London, or play this game. If you don’t, then it becomes a very time-based puzzle game with loud noises and sudden changes of images when you fail to hit the pre-requisite conditions to move onto the next level. Personally however, I’ve enjoyed every minute of Five Nights At Freddy’s 2 and gleefully look forward to giving the 3^rd game a run for its money.

Expect this, a lot.

Five Nights At Freddy's 2 - Steam

Boo... Scared already.

So we're back for another round of pizza-bear induced atmospheric horror with inevitable time limit countdowns as we play another hapless guard running the night shift in a building filled with homicidal animatronics creatures. From the first impression, it's a step up from the original game but carries over quite a few of the original elements.

Ooh some context! What indeed could go wrong?

What's returning? Well the original cast returns including the phone calling individual from the first game (voice by the creator so why not?) As well as the idea of a limited level of power, cameras installed in strategically helpful places save for them actually being no help to you at this location in time aside to give you an idea as to what's coming close and what will soon be ripping you apart.

All in place and all ready, the fun will begin shortly.

What's new? There's a LOT more different enemies to fend off. You've the original 4 (5... if you get that far) Freddy the Bear, Bonnie the Bunnie (with no face and looks even more horrific as a result), Foxy (with his own set of rules again) and Chika the du- chic- bird looking one. While now we've also to contend with new Freddy Bear, new Bonnie Bunny, new gender switched Foxy, a puppet/marionette (this one will be a REAL bastard), new Chica, golden Freddy and a non-attacking kid with a balloon that does kill your ability to use lights.

Are you in there? Don't move, you're being inspected.

So we've a new set of mechanics to learn. There's no doors to hide behind or lock, so you will HAVE to keep a watch on the cameras but this time they don't use your power. You will have to shine your torch down the main corridor to stop various bot attacks (which the balloon kid WILL ruin if you let him) and you've got to listen for approaches from the main ventilation panels leading into the room. You also have an empty puppet head of Freddy to wear that will stop the enemies from attacking you, as the game explains, they'll think you're one of them. Except for Foxy who doesn't buy your bullshit and the marionette who has a very different agenda.

Additional views and scenes build in a slightly abstract form of plot and explanation.

So you're thinking, "I'll just wear the head and leave it at that" Well, no. Foxy for a start doesn't care if you're wearing it or not and can only be stopped by shining a torch on him when he begins his unavoidable attack. The marionette on the other hand lives in another room entirely and is lulled to sleep by a windup music box that stops him from coming out. If it winds down fully and you don't restart the music, you WILL be caught by the quite creepy looking little git.

The old group are still here. Despite their look, they're still active in there.

But is there a point to this, is there a plot? If you listen to the phone calls at the start of each day, you can steadily piece together an idea that this is a new location (relatively new... bear that in mind) and that you're here but there were problems before hand. You've got to do X, Y and Z to stop the machines from running around and doing all sorts of nastiness to you. Despite that, this game brings to the forefront another claustrophobic atmosphere that is so thick you could cut it with a spoon.

And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you.

As the night progresses, the ambience increases, the attempts by the machines to "visit" you increases in severity while the timer left on the windup box gets shorter with each passing night, making you switch to the camera more often and leave yourself open to more vulnerable incidents. It becomes soon a routine of near obsessive, compulsive disorder level. You'll scan the vents, check the light down the hall, then rush to the camera to check JUST on the marionette and rewind the timer before slipping quickly back to check on vents and hallways once again. At which point, you're not interested in the game anymore and just trying to beat it and unlock the extra modes.

You may not see it as often, but you'll love this screen.

The sounds and graphics are impressive to the point where we appreciate the time spent on making the graphics but it's the same system as it was before, we don't see anything moving until it attacks and everything "blink shifts" from place to place either when you're not watching or in the one micro frame of gameplay when your light isn't on them. The ambient noises and effects act as clues but the haunting background clashes of sounds (for want of a better phrase) build towards a crescendo as the game approaches that all important 6am time. It's fun for a while but eventually you're just repeating patterns to avoid the sudden kill animations and even those aren't that shocking this time around.

Over, is the game.