Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse (2023), Worth to Buy?

We have gone years without a new Fatal Frame experience, only to receive remastered versions of the two most recent entries within a few years of each other. However, when it comes to Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, the West never officially saw this release, giving us a chance to experience a brand new entry regardless if it predates Fatal Frame: Made in a Black Water. We believe this game could have easily been held back by its roots to the Wii, but this remastered effort does an excellent job of preserving this experience for overseas fans.

Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse has players control three protagonists throughout the story. There's very little interaction between these characters, but they are each connected somehow and find themselves on Rugetsu Island searching for their memories. The star of the show is Ruka, who follows her childhood friends Masaki and Madoka to the island. Each of these girls was part of a strange ritual that happened on the island 10 years prior. They've decided to come back to search for answers as to why the island is calling to them after the people of the island were all mysteriously killed.

Letters also assumed the role of detective Trishiro, who saved the girls and returns in search of a suspected kidnapper that took Ruka and four other girls when they were very young. Trishiro ended up rescuing them, but the kidnapper never got away. The story goes to some dark places, but throughout the campaign, we'll piece together exactly what happened through flashbacks as the girls get their memories back. The segmented delivery of the story can be very confusing. While the crucial scenes take place in cutscenes, most of the lore is found in various diaries and texts spread throughout the island.

While it can be dense reading, these texts reveal further insight into the relationship of the characters and also hints at future puzzles. We also never felt confused about where to go next, which we can only attribute to good game design, but we also think this has a lot to do with just how small the explorable areas are. Two large buildings make up most of the environment. However, as you switch to each character, you find yourself in the same rooms over and over. The back-and-forth design wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the character's running speed being more of a quick walk. So, by default, we'll memorize the entire map pretty quickly and rarely have to open up the menu map, but it's there if you need it.

You aren't explicitly told where to go most of the time. Instead, the game uses ghosts to lead you through the right directions. If you have a quick reaction, you could take a picture of these ghosts using camera obscura for extra points. However, sometimes traveling through rooms that aren't required during a specific chapter have a few bonuses, including hidden curses and items that benefit in-game unlockables. The slow-moving chapters pad the game's run time further. We will say that there's an added layer of difficulty here, even in normal mode. Even the game over screen takes ages to show up, and the autosave feature is tied to simply running by the save lanterns placed around the building.

That said, there aren't many of them, and the game isn't so nice about including a save point before a difficult fight. So, there were times where we lost about 20 to 30 minutes after dying. While we still overcame the obstacles, we think we can all agree these girls can be a little faster. Throughout exploration, spirits will do their best to take you out. That's where the real crux of gameplay takes place. Using the Camera Obscura to put spirits to rest, when encountering an enemy, you can switch to the first-person view to take their picture. There's a risk-reward system where taking a picture of the enemy right before an attack triggers a Fatal Frame for added damage. This is required for late-game encounters, so you better master it.

We will say that the final boss is highly underwhelming, but there are a few enemies who put your skills to the test. Understanding their movements and how they attack to prepare for a Fatal Frame can be seen as a puzzle, making encounters more fun than simply shooting them with a gun. That said, Toshiro doesn't even have a camera and uses a flashlight, which is a lot quicker than a camera, making his sections more action-oriented. Each character can upgrade their weapons using blue and red orbs found throughout the environments. Reaching for these items can be lost if you're not paying attention because a ghost hand can come out and grab you. These orbs can increase damage and spirit energy to unleash a few special shots using various lenses. It's all pretty straightforward and fun to customize your lens to take advantage of the effects.

One of the biggest enemies in the game, though, happens to be mobility. Although much more accessible than using the Wiimote, navigating this game is challenging. The character movement is stiff, making most encounters all the more difficult. Still, there's a quick turnaround, but sometimes, we found it easier to move around in the first person. Further items require you to master movement because they are hidden. Players need to shine the flashlight on them to reveal, so it's nice that the game has an indicator that shows you how close you are to a hidden item. Still, sometimes it doesn't matter if we searched every corner of a room; the item never appears, so we had to remind ourselves to just move on.

Graphically, we were impressed by the character models. Each character looks terrific in-game and during cutscenes. The girls' lack of ghost-hunting experience shows in their timing and movement and reactions, but still, they press on. However, the textures in the game are incredibly dated. Most simply look like brown or gray messes, which has us looking forward to a proper new entry in the series. One of the best features is the sound design, which really sells the horror experience. With the girls' audible breathing, the creaks of the old structures, and screams from unseen nightmares, this game deserves to be played with headphones.

While your first time through will be for the scares, New Game Plus is there for the collectibles, allowing for higher difficulty and access to upgrades or a different ending. Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse is an excellent, beautiful horror experience that works on modern platforms. From a game design perspective, it works brilliantly to guide the player through the nightmare with minimal confusion. However, the gameplay hurts the pacing with slow-moving characters, control issues, and a repetitive structure, making you spend too long getting through it all.