Rei: Beni chou (2003) (VG)

Director:

Makoto Shibata

Genre:

Horror | Action | Mystery

Plot:

In this sequel to Rei Zero (Fatal Frame), a young girl named Mio and her twin sister Mayu try to escape a haunted village with the help of the Camera Obscura, a camera with the power to see the impossible.

Plot Keywords:

Twin | Village | Sequel | Twin Sister | Camera Obscura

Cast

Walter Roberts	...	Promotional Movie Narrator (voice)
Leigh Allyn Baker	...	Miyako Sudo / Additional Voices (voice: English version)
Michael Bell	...	Seijiro Makabe / Kusabi / Ryokan Kurosawa / Head Priest / Villager / Additional Voices (voice: English version)
Robin Atkin Downes	...	Masumi Makimura / Man Killed by Kusabi / Puppetmaster / Villager / Additional Voices (voice: English version)
Kim Mai Guest	...	Mayu Amakura (voice: English version)
Sam Saletta	...	Itsuki Tachibana (voice: English version)
Kari Wahlgren	...	Mio Amakura (voice: English version)

Also Known As:

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly (USA)
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly - Director's Cut (USA) (reissue title)
Project Zero 2: Crimson Butterfly (Europe: English title)

Country:

Japan

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital (Xbox version) | Stereo (PlayStation 2 version)

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Japan:15 | USA:M

Company:

Tecmo

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In one of the trailers of the game (an unlockable feature in the game itself), Mio is shown running freely and wildly during the animated scene. However, in actual game play, Mio constantly runs at a very slow jogging pace, even when she's not around her sister.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Rei: Gesshoku no Kamen (2008) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Image Song

Take a picture, it'll last longer

I figure that the word on this fantastic video game needs to be spread, so hopefully this'll help in some way. I send this recommendation to anyone who enjoys playing video games like Resident Evil and Silent Hill and also enjoys being frightened really badly.

Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly is hands down the scariest game I have ever played. The combination of murky graphics, fantastic 5.1 surround sound and a story guaranteed to give you the creeps make this one of the best games you can buy. The game is available on both the Xbox and the PS2 but if you had to pick one or the other I'd say go with the Xbox version as it gives you more bang for the buck with cleaner graphics, full surround sound and more unlockable features. PS2 owners need not worry as the game is still worth a purchase.

The game revolves around twin sisters who become trapped in a spirit infested village deep in the forest. You find a mysterious camera early on that allows you to exorcise the spirits when you take their picture. It may sound silly but it works very well in the context of the game. The game has its roots in Japanese culture so if you enjoy Japanese horror films like Ringu, chances are you will really dig this. There are many frightening moments in this game and a lot of it is due to the sound setup in the game. The game manages to keep you unnerved through out with its subtle use of ambient sound. This has to be the one thing in the game that makes it an instant classic. It's a hard feeling to describe but just imagine sitting alone in your house with dim lighting and you're playing the game, feeling a little spooked by the sound of creaking boards all around you from the house that you've just entered to investigate. From behind you, you suddenly hear the sound of a child giggling. Not a nice kind of playful giggling but more the kind of giggling that you hear from someone who wants to do you harm. That's the kind of game this is. Ghosts come out of nowhere to grab you, crying out endlessly of the pain they are in. The design of the spirits is very impressive also. The spirit of one woman in the game, who happens to be the victim of a suicide attempt, comes at you as a sliding, twisted mess of broken arms and legs, her eyes dead white as she reaches for you.

The story in the game is really well told and is actually quite large if you factor in all the little tidbits of info you get from finding journals and notes along your path. The history of the village is one of horror and pain and every spirit in the game serves to add to the story of what exactly is happening behind the doors of the empty houses.

The only negative thing I can say about the game is that the controls take a little bit to get used to but with practice, becomes second nature when you need to whip that camera out in a hurry. At any rate, you can't let this one slip by you, especially if you like the feeling of being scared because this one will definitely do it to you.

RATING: ***** out of *****.