The Actual-Life Hauntings that Inspired Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse

My identify is Makoto Shibata and I’ve been engaged on the Fatal Frame sequence since its inception, making an attempt to create the scariest video games potential in a approach that’s distinctive to different horror titles. What individuals won’t understand once they play my video games is that a few of what you see within the sequence – and a few of what you’ll play in Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse – was truly impressed by spirits that I’ve seen (and even touched!) in actual life. To me, zombies and monsters aren’t scary as a result of they’re not actual, however spirits have been a daunting presence in my life since I used to be younger. I wished to deliver a few of my scariest sightings to the video games I created, serving to seize a few of the moments which have stored me up at night time, hoping to do the identical to players around the globe.

Phenomena and Purification

In the Japanese recreation trade, it’s customary to go to a shrine and carry out a purification ceremony when beginning work on a horror title. The function of the ceremony is to stop any non secular phenomena or disturbances in the course of the recreation’s growth, however for Fatal Frame, we thought it will be higher to let the spirits emerge, so we often don’t do the purification ceremony for video games on this sequence. Because of this, some spirit phenomena occurred throughout growth that was straight mirrored within the recreation – just like the time we have been recording sound and a mysterious voice was truly recorded within the background. We tried to take away it from the recording, however ultimately gave up as a result of it doesn’t matter what we did, the voice stored coming again onto the recording , so we truly left it within the recreation!

But the haunting voice isn’t the one spirit we’ve encountered all through the method of making the Fatal Frame franchise. With Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse launching right this moment, I figured it was time to breakdown the non secular phenomena associated to this title.

Man within the Moonlight

The precise supply of inspiration for Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse is from an expertise I had that also offers me goosebumps. In the sport, one of many locations you’ll go to is Rogetsu Hall. This is definitely primarily based on an previous, Japanese-style sizzling spring resort owned by certainly one of my kinfolk. We used to assemble there as a household, and on this one specific night time, my household have been the one company within the resort, so there was no person else round. I wakened in the midst of the night time, and since the within of the resort was solely dimly lit by the moonlight shining by means of the window, the fantasy-like ambiance lured me to wander round a bit. That is, till I noticed a person I didn’t acknowledge standing on the opposite aspect of the hallway, looking the window underneath the moonlight.

There ought to’ve solely been kinfolk round, however this man was undoubtedly a stranger. As I slowly approached to see who he was, the person checked out me, then shortly disappeared. More curious than scared, I went to the spot the place the person was standing. I appeared out the window and gazed on the massive moon. I stood there trying on the moon for some time till I spotted that I used to be now in the very same pose as the person I had simply seen. I began to surprise, was the person a spirit? Was he a imaginative and prescient of somebody’s previous? Or did I simply see a imaginative and prescient of my future? I knew I wished to seize a second like this within the recreation.

Until that second, I at all times thought a certain quantity of humidity was obligatory for spirits to seem, however this was such a low-humidity, dusty atmosphere — so I attempted to not solely recreate this second, however recreate this actual ambiance contained in the resort for Mask of the Lunar Eclipse.

A Ghost Grabbed My Hand

Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse additionally incorporates a distinctive system the place the participant is typically grabbed by a ghostly hand when reaching for an merchandise. This was truly primarily based on a non secular expertise I had in the course of the manufacturing of a earlier recreation, Fatal Frame III: The Tormented. Late one night time, I used to be house asleep once I felt somebody seize my hand. At first, I believed it was an phantasm since I used to be nonetheless in a sleep-like haze, however the chilly hand stored maintain, slowly growing power. “It hurts! It hurts!”, I screamed, and I lastly felt the chilly hand draw back earlier than I noticed it disappear right into a wall. Since I used to be sleeping in opposition to the wall, there was no approach anybody may’ve been there. There was a spirit behind the wall!

And it’s not the primary time I encountered spirits inside this wall. It’s the identical wall that I’ve heard spirits whisper from in the midst of the night time. I keep in mind when engaged on Fatal Frame III: The Tormented, I heard a lady’s voice say: “Let’s go swimming.” It shocked me, as a result of that was going to be the ending scene of the sport. How did she know!?

I wished to incorporate this expertise in The Tormented, the place the principle character, Rei, wakes up and has her hand grabbed by a spirit, but it surely was simply so troublesome to visualise the feeling of getting one’s handheld by a ghost, so we waited and launched it as a part of new system within the subsequent recreation, Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse.

Urusai!

While engaged on the sequence, there was a recurring non secular phenomenon in each title. Whenever I stayed over on the workplace, the spirit of a kid would run round at night time. It appeared like a boy, judging by his footsteps and voice. He would play methods all through the night time, knocking over books and papers on my desk if I didn’t take note of him. When I’d say, “Urusai!”, which implies, “you’re being noisy”, the boy would shortly disappear.

For Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, the unique model of the sport wasn’t made at Koei Tecmo’s studio, however at Grasshopper Manufacture’s studio, so we by no means noticed the spirit of the boy, however that they had this ping pong desk that I used to sleep on once we have been engaged on the sport late into the night, and each from time to time, I’d see the spirit of a lady who would circle across the desk, operating slowly and quietly. If I didn’t reply when seeing her, she would stroll over to the window and sing a track. “Four, 4, six…” Apparently, she was singing numbers within the type of verses. I may by no means hear the tip clearly, however I believed this was a message that they wished me to incorporate within the recreation, so I made a decision to incorporate an occasion the place a lady says numbers as if she was singing them.

Miyamoto-san’s Dream

This just isn’t a narrative about non secular phenomena, however about my desires. I feel all of us have scary desires once in a while, however we often overlook them by the point we get up. I keep in mind desires that go away an impression on me, particularly scary ones, and I attempt to take notes once I get up in an effort to use them in my video games. In truth, there are a number of map buildings on this sequence that I’ve repurposed from unhealthy desires, whereas a few of the spirits are impressed by my nightmares.

The spirit named Kageri Sendo in Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse is predicated on “Miyamoto-san,” a determine who typically appeared in my desires. Miyamoto-san is a slender man who walks round with an individual who seems similar to him, solely in a wheelchair. He is at all times well mannered, and bows again at me once I bow, however the particular person within the wheelchair is what strikes me, as he’s clearly lifeless and crawling with bugs!

Sometimes Miyamoto-san just isn’t current and solely the wheelchair and the particular person sitting in it are left unattended. When I attempt to contact them to see if they’re lifeless, Miyamoto-san angrily runs to me and says, “Don’t contact it!” And then the supposed corpse would begin to transfer towards me.

In Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, there’s a sanatorium and every ground is inhabited by a singular particular person. So, after all, once we had a gathering to resolve which spirits would seem within the recreation, it was Miyamoto-san who immediately got here to thoughts.

At that point, as an alternative of recreating Miyamoto-san as he was in my desires, we modified his character to a lady impressed by gothic horror to make her a spirit that customers would wish to {photograph}. Some of the employees members steered that the character’s identify ought to keep as Miyamoto, nevertheless, I didn’t know his first identify, and he appeared too weak to be a boss spirit, so we went again to the studio and got here up with a reputation that will be extra acceptable for an enemy of the Fatal Frame sequence, Kageri Sendo.

It’s humorous, although, as Miyamoto-san has not appeared in my desires since he appeared within the recreation. Having gained type, perhaps he was glad to some extent?

Because of this, when requested to call essentially the most memorable spirit in Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, I at all times reply Kageri Sendo.

Check out Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse right this moment on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S and make Shibata-san’s hauntings your actuality as three ladies return to the spooky Rogetsu Isle ten years after disappearing throughout a moonlight competition to resolve the thriller of their misplaced reminiscences whereas battling the spirits haunting the distant island. 

FATAL FRAME: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse

KOEI TECMO AMERICA

☆☆☆☆☆
4

★★★★★

Pre-order Bonus
-Ruka/Misaki/Choshiro Exclusive Accessory “Spirit Stone Flashlight Hat” & “Fox Mask”
Note: Bonus content material is likely to be made obtainable later as purchasable content material.

Early Purchase Bonus
-Ruka Exclusive Costume “Marie Rose Outfit”
Note: Added as Limited Time Bonus if the sport is bought by March twenty second, 2023.
Note: Bonus content material is likely to be made obtainable later as purchasable content material.

Unforgettable Horror

“FATAL FRAME: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse” was launched in Japan in 2008 because the fourth recreation within the FATAL FRAME sequence. Following the remastering of “FATAL FRAME: Maiden of Black Water,” the sequence masterpiece is being introduced again to life with upgraded graphics.

■About the Game
A gaggle of youngsters mysteriously disappeared throughout a competition on Rogetsu Isle. Although they have been discovered, that they had misplaced their reminiscences. Now they’ve returned to the island as youngsters. The women depend on the Camera Obscura, a digital camera with the facility to seize and seal away unthinkable horrors, and the faint beam of their flashlight whereas exploring varied places and keeping off the ghosts that assault them as they try to find the reality of their haunting previous.

■Features
-Improved Graphics
In-game films and character fashions have been improved to make the story and characters extra interesting. In addition, the graphics have been improved for every platform. The rendering of shadows and the beam of the flashlight has been refined so gamers can expertise extra sensible horror.

-New Snap Mode
Pose characters and ghosts freely to create haunting reminiscences within the new snap mode. Perhaps chances are you’ll even take surprising spirit pictures accidentally…

-New Costumes
The unique costume lineup has been altered barely, and new costumes have been added. Change the characters’ costumes to expertise the investigation in several methods.

Note: “FATAL FRAME: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse Digital Deluxe Edition,” which incorporates the total recreation, can also be obtainable for buy. Please watch out to keep away from making a redundant buy.