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If there's anything I really like about Fatal Frame as a series, its the hordes of spirits that often throw themselves (literally) at you. For the most part, the distinct japanese flavor of the game influences the spirits, but there are a few I'd like to highlight. This isn't really so much of a rankings list so much as spirits I really like design wise, or concept wise, or just flat out are the scariest bitches this Otherside. This list leaves out the main antagonist ghosts like Sae or Ouse, as I would like to highlight such ghosts in a different article.
SPOLIER WARNING
While yes, the games have been out for years, this is a relatively lesser known game franchise, and as such, its actually quite hard to track any of the games down to play them yourselves as they span several years and different console systems.
That said, I will be mentioning lots of little spoilers, though I have tried my best to save some scared (I even dropped a ghost since her appearance is quite spoilerish ;.;). You have all been warned. Copiously in fact. >>
So let's meet some of my favorite ladies in no particular order.
Watashi (Fatal Frame 4: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse)
I love all the doll ghosts in the series, because creepy dolls are actually one of my favorite types of ghosts. Call it a childhood fear of Chucky, who knows @_@. Its the sounds of their wooden joints cracking and cracking, and the way they move so creepily that makes me love them as a category in the series, and believe me there are a few. But Watashi, the wheelchair bound, life sized BJD from Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, might be my favorite. Most of the creepy dolls in the series come down to 2 types: the doll sized ones, and the human sized ones. But Watashi actually is more than child sized, like the Azami doll in Crimson Butterfly or the dolls in Maiden of Black Water. Watashi is YOU sized, and while she seems to be quite harmless through most the game (her "sister" Kageri is the prime mover [lol] when you encounter them for the most part), when she gets up out of that wheelchair and starts hobbling towards you with her creaking joints and uneven step that makes it hard to keep a bead on her, you can collectively wet your pants.
Did I mention she can teleport? She can teleport.
Yeah. 8D
Stroller Grandma (Fatal Frame 3: Voice of the Tattoo)
Thing is about Stroller Grandma is that she has no knockback. NONE WHATSOEVER. She just comes barreling at you at what looks to be a comically slow speed, then, when you realize that she don't give a FUCK about your Fatal Frame combos, she closes in and KNOCKS YOU THE FUCK DOWN.
There is an optional quest item she holds in late game, and if you fail to kill her and she drains your lifebar (whether you have a stone mirror or not), you lose the opportunity to finish the side quest.
Oh and her stroller?
Yeah, fuck that, I'm out.
Shibata-san said that her appearance was based on an experience as a child, where he was exploring an abandoned house, and saw an old woman pushing a stroller around.
Shibata-san had some freaky experiences, though, and I'm glad yet terrified that he's incorporated some of that into the games over the years.
Ayako (Fatal Frame 4: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse)
THIS BITCH. THIS FUCKING BITCH. If you hate sadistic little girls, then Ayako has all your bases covered in doll limbs and beheaded canaries. Ayako's spirit retained her vicious tendencies she had in life, where she would bully her fellow patients in the old sanatorium, and you can see her ghost torturing Madoka in childhood or dragging a nurse by her hair down the hall. There is, in all seriousness, a modicum of sympathy towards her because of her mental illness, but you'd be forgiven to fogetting that when she's giggling at you from shadowy corners and JUMPING ON YOUR FUCKING BACK HOLYSHIT.
Fan theories also abound in her being related to one of the main antagonists, You Haibara, as they have some similarities and a connection via notes and diaries. What's more disturbing is that she may have been an incestuous product of You and his sister Sakuya, but its a tenuous but tantalizing theory at best. She's quite possibly one of the most effective ghosts in the 4th installment. Her room alone is perfectly twisted and creepy, but beautiful in its own way, with the hanging doll limbs, and swirling golden yellow mood light.
Fallen Woman (Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly)
As one of a few ghosts that have quite the entrance scene (hers is rendered lovingly in CGI), Fallen Woman is both hilarious and horrifying. Her constant screaming is actually pretty funny, but her movements and attacks are some of the most unsettling movement patterns next to doll type ghosts like Azami, Watashi and Shiori. Her broken limbs drag her towards you, and if she cannot reach you quickly enough, she will literally melt into the floor, and then spawn above you, trying to land on you. Her animated slithering and creepy groaning also help in making her quite memorable. Humorously, she was quite the fan favorite on the 2chan boards for being one of the sexier entrants, as her flapping kimono sleeves and cleavage leave quite a different impression on some gamers.
Broken Neck (Fatal Frame)
This ghost, like Fallen, has quite an entrance, as she drops off the roof and immediately attacks. What makes hers particularly creepy is that the view at left is what you see first as she closes into you. You think she's without a head, and you wouldn't be mistaken as beheading was pretty common in the game.
Then she TURNS THE FUCK AROUND AND OMG HER HEAD IS BACKDAFUKWARDS.
Her shocking appearance really creeps me out as the implication of landing right on her damn head and snapping it back to front is a horrifying thought.
I mean...just look at that. LOOK AT IT. The crack from impact alone sets off goosebumps on me.
A broken neck ghost also appears in Crimson Butterfly, and her neck is actually broken sideways, and in the remake (where a number of these higher res images come from, as many ghosts from other installments appear in haunted house mode), you can actually see the twist in her neck rendered. But Broken Back to Front really has just as powerful an impact.
Heh. Impact.
Ok, I'll show myself out. Maybe.
Akira/Koji (Spirit Camera: Cursed Memoir)
I don't know why they ended up changing his name in localization (since there is already a Koji in the game as it is @_@), but this ghost has a special place in my heart. His chapter (or part of it anyhow) was available in the demo I had the pleasure of experiencing wayyyyy back in a purportedly haunted hotel. The ambiance was perfect for hunting down this little ghost in the diary.
The best part of Koji's chapter was solving his puzzle, where you had to literally shift the diary sideways to fix his drawing, and then notice something dripping down onto it....only to look up. His attacks are pretty quick, and hard to get a bead on, but his backstory is pretty sad in addition to being fairly spooky.
And if a ouija board or kokkuri-san or any like game spells out "behind"....do yourself a favor and just run forward, even if you have to dive out a plate glass window. You'll thank me for the advice.
Hakome/Twisted Guardians (Fatal Frame 5: Maiden of Black Water)
There are a lot of priestess characters throughout the game, and what I like about most of them is the animations that make them look as if they are floating and swimming through the air like its water. The Hakome are the unfortunate ones, who have a weak power and as such are forced into their black boxes, or reliquaries.
And by forced, I mean they literally force these women into small boxes, breaking their limbs, and have to endure the effects of the black water. Unable to withstand the water and the pain, their spirits become tainted and they lead others into doom. Their bodies are twisted, and they straddle that fine line between looking beautiful and looking downright frightening. They touch on the fear of being mutilated or broken then drowned all in one conveniently pretty package.
The slightly transparent veil they (and my other favorite ghost who didn't make the cut) wear is masterfully rendered, boasting quite the power from the Wii-U. Even as cannon fodder, normal enemies, they're not easy to fight even on normal levels, but they're some of the more terribly beautiful enemies in the series.
Chitose Tachibana/Crimson Kimono (Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterly)
Chitose is a fan favorite, with her tragic story and cute animations. Her hostility isn't outward as other spirits, though she attacks more out of despair and desperation. Her sorrowful but beautiful face that peeks out of the darkness she inflicts on you is such an impact that hits you square in the chest....of course, that's before she leaps out of the dark to grab you.
Her telltale jingling of her bells that tells you she's there also comes off as both scary and cute, and her entrance cinematic underneath the floorboards as you crawl under a tearoom is a really great jump scare.
As mentioned, Chitose is actually a fan favorite, despite the fact she has the tendency to hide in closets, which is classically a terrifying prospect as you navigate her house; this was to the point that Shibata-san said that instead of making playtesters wary and unwilling to open more closets (a few of which are covered in writing pleading for help, and one actually traps you in it for a bit), they would actually actively search EVERY closet to find her.
Pretty powerful stuff if it makes you want to go looking for a creepy little girl ghost, but that's how strong Chitose's charm is. Because of that, a lot of extra care seemed to have been put into her remake render, and she even had her own screensaver when the original game came out.
Blinded (Fatal Frame)
Iconic from the first game, with her incessant "My eyes...!" scream of pain, Blinded comes from another category of ghosts that are blind/visually impaired. A few ghosts in the game actually are blind, and this plays into a mechanic of not moving while you get a bead on her. If you make a noise, or just after taking a shot of her, Blinded tends to teleport behind you, or come RACING at your face like a hungry face-hugger. The worst fight against her is just after a
cinematic introducing how she came to be, where the room you're in is a tiny square with a pillar in the center. A tough fight to be sure, with tight quarters,and that makes Blinded such an effective ghost.
Having a mask with big ass spikes where the eyes are shoved onto your face has to be a horrifying experience, and while the cutscene leaves it to your imagination, its more than effective in its sound and implication. But if you think having a blinding mask forced on is bad, wait til you check these chicks out....
Engravers (Fatal Frame 3: Voice of the Tattoo)
These priestesses are the scariest ones in the game, and that game has frickin' IMPALING as part of its theme. Not only are they blind, like Blinded, but they also have needles coming out of their hands. And ROPE WOUND AROUND THEIR EMPTY EYE SOCKETS.
The engravers are in the service of the Kuze shrine, and blind themselves as well as presumably insert the needles into their own limbs so that they may perform the tattooing ritual properly, in addition to actually also keeping them dependent upon the Kuze family, never leaving ever again. A sad but also extreme image, to be sure. Their shocking design really leaves an impact on you, and drives home that pain = spiritual strength.
Tall Woman/Hachishakusama/Miss 8 Feet Tall (Fatal Frame 5: Maiden of Black Water)
Last but not least, Tall Woman makes an appearance for this article, taking the MOST DISTURBING GHOST OF THE CENTURY award home. She's exactly what it says on the tin, boys; this nearly 2 story tall ghost makes her presence known with her immense height as well as creepy laugh.
She has the tendency to appear when you're on the second floor of the building, which makes her appearance of her torso all the more shocking since, I dunno, you're like ON THE SECOND FUCKING FLOOR. It makes for humorous pics, but only after you're long and far away from her.
What makes her design so interesting besides her lanky ass size is the western clothing as well as the little sun hat she has, like "kawaii desu ~<3", and its like NO YOU GET THE FUQ AWAY WOMAN OMG D8.
She's based on a 2chan urban legend called "Hachishakusama", or "Miss 8 Feet Tall", which would account for the appearance, and lack of information in-story for her. In fact her own spirit list entry only lists her as an urban legend, which is the closest the series comes to a "true story" element.
One of the best portions of the game is the security camera monitoring chapters (there are 2), where you have to man the shop's cameras to watch for spirits invading and then have to go and deal with them. By the time you see Tall Woman show up, chuckling darkly to herself, that's about the time you kinda wanna nope the fuck out of the place. GOOD LUCK, YURI, MIU. SEEYA.
NOPE. NO THANK YOU. GOODBYE AND GOOD FUCKING LUCK.
--Dio (10/27/19)
Image of Stroller Grandma's baby from the BCL forums' user Homuranagi.
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