"A must have for horror gamers, but not quite as strong as the original"

I am pleased to say that Project Zero II is a remarkable and terrifying game, even with all the expectations placed on it after the original. Perhaps where it falls short is that the atmosphere and gameplay that defined the first one are very similar, and as such The Crimson Butterfly does not have the same high impact as its predecessor.

STORY 10/10
When wandering in the woods one day, Mio and Mayu, twin sisters, stumble across a ghostly village. Mayu suddenly becomes transfixed by a crimson butterfly that puts her into a trance and leads her away despite her sister's desperate calls. As Mio explores the village trying to find her sister, she also finds they are trapped and starts to uncover details of an ancient Japanese ritual involving twins and now Mayu seems to be wanting to act it out. The story is very engaging with lots of twists and turns and I just love that it is so original and mature unlike most modern games, even in the survival horror genre.

GAMEPLAY 9/10
A lot of the game is spent searching for your sister who has wandered off in a trance, often followed by menacing ghosts. Along the way you'll get trapped in various houses and uncover secrets of what went wrong in this village and why it is haunted.

The "battle" system is very interesting and unique to this series because you go around with a special camera, which always sounds lame when you're trying to explain it to your friends, but it really is very terrifying because it's not a conventional "ballsy" weapons and you are forced to get up close and personal with these ghosts who are really very horrendous. Battling is also much more complex than just pointing and taking a picture, so don't let the concept of magic cameras mislead you. The battles are very exciting and very, very tense, probably more-so than the original here. There were times where it was just so tense I actually had to turn the game off, and that's exactly what you want from a horror game.

SOUND 9.5/10
Like the first, the intensity of the fights has almost everything to do with the sound, and it has been executed perfectly. Some of the ghosts plead for help while attacking you, others laugh maniacally, and others threaten you with aggressive taunts. The voice acting is very strange and sounds almost a little contrived, but it works really well in the context as it gives a very surreal quality to the performance which further heightens the creepiness of the game.

CONTROLS 6/10
There are some mild improvements in terms of controlling your movement, but overall they're a bit awkward due to the fact when you switch to view-finder mode the control is suddenly with the right analogue stick whereas in normal mode it is the left. I don't think I got used to these controls, even when I played through a second time.

GRAPHICS 10/10
The graphics are simply amazing and are, impressively, better than the original. The environments are very detailed and creepy, if not a little monotonous at times. There are also some very nice fog effects in this one too.

VALUE 7/10
There are different difficulty levels and endings to unlock and some bonus features, but I cant see the game as being as appealing after playing through it too many times. The true glory is the story and the beautiful graphics, and let's not forget the horrifying atmosphere.

Overall, this game is a worthy addition to any survival horror fan's collection.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/29/07