Tag Archives: Zero

Cover Games, Project Zero

Project Zero 4: Touched by the Moon

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And so it is that we come to the fourth installment in the Project Zero series: a game that never came West in an official capacity.

Known as Zero: Tsukihame no Kamen in its native Japan and Mask of the Lunar Eclipse in the West following an ambitious (and successful) fan-translation project, this fourth game represented a number of “firsts” for the series.

It was the first installment to not be exclusively developed by Tecmo. It was the first installment to leave the series’ original host platforms of PlayStation 2 and Xbox. And it was the first installment to make a number of mechanical shakeups to the basic Project Zero formula, which would become fixtures in subsequent releases. Let’s take a closer look.

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Waifu Wednesday

Waifu Wednesday: Project Zero Protagonists

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It’s a group Waifu Wednesday this week, because the things I’m going to mention apply to the assembled ensemble cast of all the Project Zero games… well, those that I’ve played so far, anyway!

At the time of writing this, I’m closing in on the end of the Japan-only (and fan-translated) fourth game for Wii, but in the meantime be sure to catch up on my explorations of the first, second and third installments.

Or stick around and we can talk about horror game protagonists for a bit!

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Project Zero, Videos

New Game Plus: That One Perfect Shot – Project Zero #1

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Do you beat games? I do.

Speaking to a lot of game-playing friends in person and online, it transpired that relatively few people I know seem to start a game and see it through to completion in the same way as I do — either playing a bit and then endlessly starting again to try different character builds or starting conditions, or simply hopping from new game to new game as they’re released without ever really getting anywhere in any of them.

One of the things you miss out on if you don’t beat games is the fact that many of them have plenty more stuff to do after you see the credits roll for the first time. So, well, I figured given that my YouTube channel is settling into a nice rhythm with its Atari A to Z, Warriors Wednesday and Sunday Driving videos… why don’t we take the time to explore that aspect of gaming specifically?

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Cover Games, Project Zero

Project Zero 3: Sleep, Priestess, Lie in Peace

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For me, a good horror game is hard work.

I don’t mean that it’s a chore to play or anything like that; I mean that engaging with it to the fullest is a genuinely taxing experience from at the very least a mental perspective… and possibly a physical one too.

As I sit here typing this, still somewhat breathless after the genuinely exhausting finale of Project Zero 3: The Tormented, I can confirm that the third installment in this series is emphatically a good horror game.

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Cover Games, Project Zero

Project Zero 2: Float Like a Butterfly

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How do you follow an impressively creepy horror game about ghosts in the Japanese tradition? With more of the same, but different and/or better, of course.

Project Zero 2: Crimson Butterfly began development shortly after its predecessor was completed, and eventually released for Japanese and North American PlayStation 2 players in late 2003, and for Europe the following April. This was then followed by an enhanced Xbox port, which released in Japan and North America in late 2004, with Europe once again bringing up the rear in February of 2005.

Interestingly, the game then got a complete remake for the Nintendo Wii in the summer of 2012; this released simultaneously in Japan, Australia and Europe, but skipped a North American release. It’s this latter version that we’re primarily concerned with today. But first, a bit of history…

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Cover Games, Project Zero

Project Zero: Scream for the Camera

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Tecmo’s Project Zero — also known as Fatal Frame in the United States, and simply Zero in its native Japan — has always stood out.

“Survival horror” is most certainly not what it once was, but even during its heyday in the late ’90s and early 2000s, Project Zero set itself apart by eschewing the blood, gore and violent scenes people had come to associate with the genre.

Instead, it provided a rather more contemplative, supernatural tale with its roots in traditional Japanese spiritualism. And by golly has it held up really well since its original release nearly 20 years ago.

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