Five Nights at Freddy’s Review

Sometimes gaming provides moments of nostalgia, other times hype, but there can be no denying the excitement when a cult classic franchise get’s an overhaul and arrives on the console you possess for the very first time.

It’s exciting when you hear the news of a game that you’ve heard all about, perhaps watched, followed or even played on a different system becomes available right in your living room. Sometimes there’s no better feeling for a gamer, I am still waiting for wrestlefest to grace my TV, and if that ever became a reality, I can assure you the hill’s will definitely be alive with music round my way, so I can firmly appreciate people’s excitement on the news’s that the legendary Five Nights at Freddy’s series was coming to consoles.

Being a parent to three boys, I have heard all about FNAF. My lads have been talking about it on the way to school for the last two years at least, and my youngest has teddy’s and even a lunch box with the characters on them, and all his class know the characters. So imagine there joy when I told them that the game would be coming to Xbox and that I would be reviewing it! They were over the moon, and that’s the sheer beauty of gaming and how it can put smiles on faces and leave a lasting impression.

So, what’s Five Nights at Freddy’s all about you ask?

Well in a nutshell it’s a survival game, very atmospheric and has been developed from a point and click (the original) to a user-friendly Game pad operation.

Welcome to your new summer job at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, where kids and parents alike come for entertainment and food as far as the eye can see! The main attraction is Freddy Fazbear, of course; and his two friends. They are animatronic robots, programmed to please the crowds! The robots’ behaviour has become somewhat unpredictable at night however, and it was much cheaper to hire you as a security guard than to find a repairman. From your small office you must watch the security cameras carefully. You have a very limited amount of electricity that you’re allowed to use per night (corporate budget cuts, you know). That means when you run out of power for the night- no more security doors and no more lights! If something isn’t right- namely if Freddy bear or his friends aren’t in their proper places, you must find them on the monitors and protect yourself if needed!

Can you survive five nights at Freddy’s?

Five Night’s at Freddy’s features Monitor cameras, ensuring the safety of equipment and animatronic characters. The game is packed with atmosphere, Jumpscares and loud noises, even little distractions to put you off the task ahead.

The pause feature in the game is of great importance, as you contemplate your strategy and more importantly the night is not spoiled by an untimely phone call or knock on the door.

The game also features some replay value in the form of extra modes which become available after completing your first week, and if your finding things a little tough there are some wonderful cheats available to aid you, however it will cost you, with the disabling of achievements.

And should you prefer the analog stick or directional D-pad then the choice is yours, what ever your most comfortable with.

These little extra’s enhance the game, thus making it more compelling and user friendly in your efforts of survival.

Five Nights at Freddy’s is a survival horror, atmospheric game. Players take the role of a security guard at the restaurant Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. The goal of the game is to survive the night shift without being jumpscared to death by the five animatronic animals that live inside the facility. These characters are wonderfully named Freddy Fazbear, Bonnie the Bunny, Chica the Chicken, Foxy and the very elusive Golden Freddy.

Your on your own between midnight and 6am, survive and you progress to night two, in the hope of surviving the working week (5 night’s), as you have probably guessed, the game features progressive difficulty, as you survive each night, the next night is considerably more of a task to come out alive.

So, what do you do as said security guard?

Well as the guard you sit alone in an office with access to a network of security camera’s watching the movements of the animatronics. At night these animatronics spring to life, as the character’s roam the rooms and hallways of the pizzeria with distinct movement patterns. However, to make things more difficult these movements only happen off screen, a sort of weeping angels from “Doctor Who” style.

The camera feeds at your disposal are barely lit and distorted at times, and the kitchen for example only offers an audio feed, so you will need your ears as well as your eyes, as you try to track the movements of these scary mechanical bots.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s is a simple game to get to grips with, the controls are child’s play and easy to use.”

Unfortunately for you the night guard, the cameras don’t cover all areas of the building, most notably the two hallways that lead directly to where you are located. As you can’t move, you only have a limited defence, that defence is the two doors either side of you and the light’s in the hallways just outside the doors. Closing the doors and turning on the lights in the hallways to check for animatronics uses the limited power available to you. Leave the doors shut to long, or be heavy handed with the lights, then your power will be depleted in no time, it’s all bout power management if you which to survive the night.

Should you consume all the power in the place, the cameras will become inoperable, the doors firmly open and lights will fail. If this does indeed happen, Freddy will eventually appear in the doorway with burning lights in his eyes, whilst a music box rendition of “Toreador March” plays. After this the office will be robbed of any form of light and Freddy will jumpscare you, thus resulting in a game over message, unless your lucky enough for the clock to turn 6am. If you fall foul to any of the animatronics, you will be able to restart from the beginning of that particular night.

Five Nights at Freddy’s is a simple game to get to grips with, the controls are child’s play and easy to use. The level design is very atmospheric, and the sounds and movements through the security camera’s build the tension for some excellent pulsating heart pounding movements. As you get ever closer to the end of the night with your energy running, do you stick or twist in terms of closing the doors or risk leaving them open.

Difficulty wise the game sits nicely, with an excellent rise in difficulty as you go through the nights and features some lovely cheat options should you find it a little challenging.

Theirs is a bonus for completing the main five nights, with an addition of a 6^th, and some extra features, but If I revealed a little more then I fear that I will be spoiling the surprises.

Overall Five Nights at Freddy’s is a joy to play, easy to pick up, full of tension and yes it will have you jumping out of your skin, not just at a jumpscare, but at the severe frustration of nearly making it through, but I promise you, it will keep you coming back for more.

I’m glad I have experienced it, and I now know what the kids have been banging on about for so long! Best played in the dark.