REVIEW - FNaF World

   If we look through history, most of the biggest and most ambitious ideas come from humble places (As if Apple’s garage origins weren’t already testament to that fact.) Likewise, some of the most innovative and effective gameplay concepts came from independent or “indie” developers. 

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   In 2014, a man named Scott Cawthon released a game called Five Nights at Freddy’s, (FNaF for short,) a simple horror game that quickly became a pop culture hit. Shortly thereafter three more sequels were released, each expounding on a different aspect of the lore and furthering the game’s overall story. Fast-forward to less than a week ago, to the release of Scott’s newest game “FNaF World.” This particular game has been hyped and anticipated since its announcement, and now it’s finally time to see what it would have in store!

   Sadly, the excitement was short-lived. The game itself, which was removed from online retailers due to bad reviews, was grossly unfinished and clearly wasn’t yet ready for primetime. Massive chunks of the game were missing, including a proper overworld, most of the dialog and story, and almost all of the explanatory text. What, I asked myself, are Bytes and how do I use them? What does this attack do? Nothing was explained, so playing was a serious pain.

   However, I was skeptical about the actual initial and lasting appeal of the game before it came out. I’d like to reverse-engineer this feeling in this article, and cover how the concept could have been handled differently. 

   Firstly, I’d like to pose a question: What was the main game mechanic of the original Five Nights at Freddy’s? I’d argue that it invented the Fixed-Perspective Survival Horror genre, with elements like resource management and protecting oneself from encroaching monstrosities, while also remaining fixed in place. Rarely did you ever see a game that force the player to survive horrors while not being able to run away and fight, yet FNaF showed us how it was done. Adding unnerving, yet childish antagonists, the game managed to scare me more with still images and pre-animated sequences than a thousand Resident Evil titles could with pristine graphics and more complex gameplay. 

   Interestingly enough, FNaF World is a classic turn-based RPG game that sheds its horror roots in favor of a colorful, friendly look. While there is the promise of a story, the game features no connectivity to the original FNaF games, aside from the cavalcade of animatronic characters you can choose to play as (Or, more accurately, the several iterations of the original four characters). 

   So, why is it called FNaF World if, animatronics notwithstanding, there is no connectivity to the original story? If the game is going to be completed in the manner Scott promises, then why didn’t he just put out an RPG with a totally different story and characters? The characters feel almost painfully crammed in for recognition’s sake, like an unlucky security guard into a Fazbear suit. In fact, the only appeal the characters had was their decrepit appearance and false innocence that masked sinister intentions. Strip that away and you have something with an almost bland design and an overly-friendly attitude. 

Crazed animatronic Chica from FNaF 1. As you can see, while the appearance isn't of some grotesque monster, the way it acts and appears is unsettling to the point of fear. Rather a stark contrast to the FNaF World redesign shown below

   So, in summary, FNaF World is a brand name unnecessarily stapled onto a generic game style, not unlike the sandbox-turned-cutscene that was Minecraft: Story Mode. While the mechanics are, (or will be, I suppose) functional, it would benefit from a reformation of the story and characters as a whole. Perhaps the game will be fun when it is finished, but for now, the fans will have to wait a whole lot longer than five nights for the next installment of their favorite franchise. 

   If you want to discuss the merits of FNaF World or give ideas on how it could be improved, don't hesitate to continue the discussion below or at our Twitter, @GamerGweek!
   Written by Spence