FATAL FRAME II: Crimson Butterfly REMAKE

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Lost twins, a village where night never ends, and a camera against the dead.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Stores: Steam
Price: Paid
Rated: Very Positive on Steam (87% of 4,238 reviews); OpenCritic 76, 70% of critics recommend; Metacritic 74 on PS5 and 80 on PC; PlayStation Store 4.15 of 5 from 4,608 ratings
Players: 1
Made by: Team Ninja (Koei Tecmo)
Released: 2026

On PlayStation: one of the PlayStation horror games.

Visit the game's site Steam Koei Tecmo Europe PlayStation Store Xbox Nintendo eShop (Switch 2)

What frightens Twin sisters Mio and Mayu wander into an abandoned village where night never ends, haunted by vengeful spirits looking for the twins who once fled their ritual. The only way to fight them is to look at them through an old camera and take the shot as they come for you, and a few cannot be fought at all.
Content: violence, gore, suicide themes, jumpscares.

FATAL FRAME II: Crimson Butterfly REMAKE is Koei Tecmo's full remake of the 2003 Japanese ghost horror game. Twin sisters Mio and Mayu are lost in Minakami Village, an abandoned place sealed in endless night, and Mio must keep her sister close and find a way out, fighting the dead with the Camera Obscura. The remake adds a reworked camera with focus, zoom and filters, a dodge, the option to hold Mayu's hand, new areas and side stories, and six endings.

About FATAL FRAME II: Crimson Butterfly REMAKE

Crimson Butterfly, also known as Project Zero II, first came out in 2003 as the second game in the Fatal Frame series. This full remake by Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo came out on Steam on March 11, 2026 and on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2 the next day. A free demo covers the opening, and its save carries over.

Twin sisters Mio and Mayu return to a forest they played in as children, soon to be flooded by a dam. Mayu follows a crimson butterfly, and both end up in Minakami Village, abandoned for years and stuck in a night that never ends. Its ghosts are looking for twins: long ago the village held the Crimson Sacrifice Ritual, and twins who fled it left it unfinished. As Mio searches for her sister and a way out, she learns the village's past through notes, visions and the spirits themselves, and meets people such as Itsuki, a young man shut away in a storehouse.

You fight with the Camera Obscura, which can photograph the impossible and seal away spirits. Raising it puts you in a first-person view through the lens, and the closer the ghost is when you take the picture, the more damage it does. The remake lets you focus, zoom and switch filters, adds a dodge, and spends prayer beads on upgrades. Film and healing items are limited, a beaten ghost can come back stronger, and a few spirits cannot be harmed, so you have to run. Even picking up an item carries a small chance that a hand grabs yours.

The game runs over nine chapters, all in the village, with puzzles along the way and six endings to find. TechRadar's reviewer played close to twenty hours and found the difficulty uneven. It is slow, atmospheric Japanese horror, built on dread, sorrow and sudden apparitions, and suits players who liked Maiden of Black Water or anyone who wants a classic ghost story with modern visuals.

How to play FATAL FRAME II: Crimson Butterfly REMAKE

Explore the village as Mio, searching houses and shrines for notes, keys and items.
When a ghost appears, raise the Camera Obscura, keep it in the frame and focus the shot.
Wait until the ghost is close to take the strongest shot, then dodge before it attacks.
Spend prayer beads on camera upgrades, and use film and healing items carefully.
Keep Mayu with you, holding her hand to lead her through the dark.

Screenshots

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake screenshot: Mio, seen from behind, walks toward a lantern-lit gate of an old Japanese house at night

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake screenshot: close-up of the twin sisters Mio and Mayu, dark-haired, side by side in a dim room

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake screenshot: one twin bends to take the hand of her fallen sister on a tatami floor strewn with books and papers

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake screenshot: a pale, open-mouthed ghost of a man appears beside a rope as Mio looks on

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake screenshot: the Camera Obscura viewfinder, its red capture circle around a screaming ghost, with the film counter in the corner

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake artwork: a dark wooden hall hung with paper charms and glowing lanterns, leading to a candlelit altar

Tips

Shots taken at the last moment do the most damage.
Check corners with the camera; some spirits and secrets only show through the lens.
A defeated ghost can return glowing red with full health and harder hits, so keep film in reserve.
Some spirits cannot be harmed by the camera; when one appears, run.
Pick up items quickly and be ready to pull away: a ghost hand can grab yours.
Read every note to follow the village's story and find puzzle answers.