Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen

Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen

Developer(s) Grasshopper Manufacture
Publisher(s) Nintendo
Director(s) Makoto Shibata
Goichi Suda
Producer(s) Keisuke Kikuchi
Artist(s) Takashi Ito
Kazuma Norisada
Yasuo Inoue
Writer(s) Makoto Shibata
Masahiro Yuki
Goichi Suda
Composer(s) Masafumi Takada
Etsuko Ichikawa
Series Fatal Frame
Platform(s) Wii
Release date(s)
Genre(s) Survival horror
Mode(s) Single-player

Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen (零〜月蝕の仮面〜, lit. Zero: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse), informally known as Fatal Frame IV in North America and Project Zero 4 in Europe, is a survival horror video game developed by Grasshopper Manufacture. It was published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console only in Japan on July 31, 2008. It is the fourth installment in the Fatal Frame / Project Zero series.

Gameplay

For more details on this topic, see Fatal Frame § Series gameplay.

Following the premise of the previous installments in the franchise, the player must fight off hostile spirits using the signature Camera Obscura, along with the new Spirit Flashlight, a "torch" that uses moonlight to exorcise spirits. The player uses the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to aim the camera and flashlight, creating a more realistic and tactile experience.[2] Not all spirits encountered are hostile, and the player will be able to tell the difference depending on the color of the glow of the on-screen Ghost Filament. As with the previous titles in the series some photos of "seals", or "mists" on doors, may offer clues to progressing further in the level. A new filament, the Item Filament, was added, used to direct the player towards items they may pick up. The more accurate the aim/distance to the item, the brighter blue the filament will glow.

The currency for upgrading in Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen is spirit crystals - blue for the Basic Functions and red for the lenses, for both Camera and Flashlight. There is a shop at which various healing items and films can be purchased for points.

The Ghost List returns from the previous three games, as does Mission Mode, although the ghost list cannot be completed because of a bug in the game.[3] A new addition to the series is the Doll List; there are a total of 79 Hōzuki Dolls (鬼灯人形 Hōzuki Ningyō) in red kimonos scattered around the island that, when photographed, unlock costumes and lenses after clearing the game.

Plot

In 1970, five girls were kidnapped by Yō Haibara, a suspected serial killer, from their rooms in a mysterious sanatorium on Rougetsu Island, located south of Honshu.[4] They were eventually rescued by Chōshirō Kirishima, a detective pursuing the criminal, but all five girls lost their memories in the process. Ten years later, two of the girls, Marie Shinomiya and Tomoe Nanamura, died mysteriously. Fearing the same fate, the three remaining girls, Ruka Minazuki, Misaki Asō and Madoka Tsukimori, all now 17 years old, return to the island to recover their lost memories and learn the truth about the events that occurred 10 years ago. Choshiro also returns to find Ruka in her mother's request.[5]

Characters

Development

The game was developed with the help of Grasshopper Manufacture,[7] with Nintendo also playing a role in the game's development. Directing was shared between Makoto Shibata, who has previously been involved in the direction of the Fatal Frame / Project Zero series and Goichi Suda, commonly known as Suda 51, from Grasshopper Manufacture.[8] Although the game appears to be a joint effort between Tecmo, Grasshopper and Nintendo, the latter published the game and this is the final Fatal Frame / Project Zero game to be developed by the former before their disbandment. Initially the project was delayed, apparently for the release of Grasshopper's No More Heroes, which was subsequently released toward the end of 2007. Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen was eventually released in Japan on 31 July 2008.

Official Nintendo Magazine had announced that Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen was going to be released in Europe in February 2009. Nintendo later released a statement saying that this was false, and that although a May 2009 release for the game was initially envisaged, all localization and release efforts have been canceled for Europe.[9][10] Nintendo decided not to publish the game in North America or Europe.[11] However, a team of developers released an unofficial patch to allow it to be played on U.S. and European Wiis with English text and subtitles. The fan translation was developed to make use of the Wii's SD slot, allowing only the use of original copies of Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen. The patch was released 17 January 2010.[12] Also, in 2011 a Facebook campaign was launched called '100,000 for Project Zero 4 to be released Worldwide' in an attempt to have the game officially released in the west.

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
Edge8/10[13]
Famitsu34/40

Famitsu rated Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen 34/40. Edge gave the game an 8/10, praising its "unprecedented horror interaction".[13]

By 7 December 2008, the game had sold 63,489 copies in Japan.[14] As of 22 December 2008, it has sold 73,449 copies in Japan.[15][16]

References

  1. ↑ "Nintendo Homepage Sales Calendar" (in Japanese). Nintendo. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
  2. ↑ "unknown" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2008-07-29.
  3. ↑ 『零 ～月蝕の仮面～』お知らせとお詫び (in Japanese). Nintendo.co.jp. Retrieved 4 July 2009.
  4. ↑ "零 〜月蝕の仮面〜". Nintendo.co.jp. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
  5. ↑ "零 〜月蝕の仮面〜". Nintendo.co.jp. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "零 〜月蝕の仮面〜". Nintendo.co.jp. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
  7. ↑ "Tecmo Planning Next Fatal Frame for Wii news from 1up.com". 1UP.com. 2007-09-25.
  8. ↑ Bozon (30 January 2008). "Fatal Frame 4 Preview". IGN.
  9. ↑ "Sorry guys, Fatal Frame IV isn't coming to Europe either". Gonintendo.com. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  10. ↑ April 10, 2009 2:25PM PDT (2008-07-31). "Fatal Frame shuttered in US, EU". GameSpot.com. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  11. ↑ "Fatal Frame Never Coming to America?". Wii.ign.com. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  12. ↑ June 16, 2009 at 12:20 am (2009-06-16). "Want Fatal Frame 4? No Problem, English translation on the way!". Gossipgamers.com. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Edge: 94. November 2008. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  14. ↑ "Nintendo Wii Japanese Ranking". japan-gamecharts.com. 2008-12-21.
  15. ↑ "Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse". Famitsu data. Garaph. 2008-12-22. Retrieved 9 June 2012.
  16. ↑ "Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen for Wii". GameRankings. 2008-07-31. Retrieved 2013-03-27.

External links

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