No. Kikuchi-san has stated in interviews that Fatal Frame II drew inspiration from Japanese detective stories of Seishi Yokomizo and both eastern & western horror cinema. (Specifically the Shining, since it is Kikuchi's fav movie) Japanese fans have pointed out the similarities to the concept of the Lost Village and that of the Sugisawa Village in Aomori Prefecture of Japan. (More information on that in the Lost Village section) This story also inspired the videogame Siren. Makoto Shibata has mentioned in interviews that his grandfather's old house was inspiration for some of the structures in the Minakami Village.

What Keisuke Kikuchi has specifically stated on the subject:
"We've taken inspiration from a lot of sources -- horror movies, both Japanese and Western, novels, and so on. Also, actual events, disasters, things like that, and legends and traditions. We've taken the essence of many different sources and put them together. It's not like we found the story and said "here's what we're going to put in the game." What makes the story scary, we've mixed together from many different sources."

- Gamers.com interview

Yes. The term Camera Obscura is a photography term. It is latin for dark room. It is the simplest form of a camera. Unfortunately, it doesn't have anything to do with capturing ghosts.

Yes. The first camera obscura to enter Japan arrived in 1646 in Nagasaki. It was brought by Dutch settlers/traders. In 1788 Otsuki Gentaku translated the term 'Camera Obscura' (called at the time donkuru-kaamuru) as 'shashin-kyo' (photo mirror). In the Japanese version of the game, the camera is called 'Shaeiki'

FF2 is the story of twin sisters Mio & Mayu who, while playing in the forest, are spirited away to the rumored 'Lost Village'. They try to find a way out and escape before they themselves become permenant residents.

Symmetry

Red

FF2 Takes place in 1988. 2 years after the original Fatal Frame.
Yae/Ryozo's storyline in the village takes place 30 years prior to their events at the Himuro Mansion.
It's only a month or two before the events of Fatal Frame III.

No. The camera in FF1 broke at the end of the game. This is actually a prototype that Dr. Aso developed before he went on to create a fully functional Camera Obscura.

9 - 10 Chapters (depending on what mode you play in)

The save points in this game are red butterfly lanterns that are spread throughout the village and buildings. They do a pretty good job of blending in with the surroudings, so keep sharp! If you need to locate the nearest one, check your map, they are marked as a butterfly.

• Extra boss ghost - Utsuro
• New opening screen
• Survival Mode
• FPS (first person shooter) mode (with new camera & viewfinder!)
• Fatal Mode
• Regional ghosts replaced
• shop option
• extra ending - fully rendered FMV 'Promise Ending'
• 4 new costumes- Kagero (Deception) costumes, DOA costumes, flower swimsuits, gold/silver swimsuits, red/blue swimsuits
• LOTS of accessories!

The ONLY difference between regions is language (obviously) & the 'extra' regional ghosts. In the PS2 version, the Japanese regional ghosts were Kikuchi-san, Shibata-san, & Famitsu editors/writers. In the Xbox version, all 6 regional ghosts were replaced with winners from Tecmo Japan's Fatal Frame II contest.

Film worries shouldn't be a problem here as in the last game. However, you do have an endless supply of Type 07 Film, I suggest using that film whenever possible.

It's your sister Mayu. It's one of the harder spirit list photos to obtain. You have to take a picture of Mayu following the crimson butterflies as you exit the Osaka House and follow her to your next destination. The trick is to have your camera ready. Once you cross the second wooden blank on the street as you are about to turn the corner, you'll have missed your opportunity, so be careful!

(Kurosawa House Chapter IV - Master's Room)

1. Crimson Butterfly = Crimson Wing Tome
2. * = Taboo Tome
3. Sacrifice = Twin Tome
4. Repentence = Disaster Tome
5. Kusabi = Ritual Tome

Light Key - Buddha Altar in Master's Room
Shadow Key - Left behind by priest in the Kusabi Cutting Ritual Room

Head - Storeroom with Window near Hallway of Contrasts
Right Arm - 2F Storeroom of the Stairway Room
Left Arm - 1F Storeroom of the Sliding Screen Room
Eyes - Obtained after obtaining other parts & battling Yoshitatsu Kiryu

The bloody ring is a sidequest in the game. If you HAVE it...I suggest you go back to the Osaka house... (save first though..) To get it, you must collect all of Masumi's notes and take pictures of the locations he mentions in them.

Full visual FAQ here?

Costumes | FF2 Spiritlist

The themesong is Chou by Amano Tsukiko.

You will not be able to battle Sae or the Kusabi with the camera until the final battles of the game. I suggest RUNNING AWAY QUICKLY!

The CGI promo movies were just meant to advertise the game, why they weren't actually used in the game, no clue. I do know that SOME of the scenes were shown in the Zero4D amusementpark interactive movie.

There are two endings that can work for the events mentioned in FF3:
Crimson Butterfly Ending
Lingering Scent Ending (YES, it counts as an ending).

• Crimson Butterfly
• Hellish Abyss
• Lingering Scent
• The Promise (Xbox only)

No. Just Japanese.

No. Sorry.

Rank SS is the highest. (It is SE in Europe)

By how much time it takes a player to get through the game completely. A Rank S is just a little over an hour of gameplay.

Check the Ranking points here for this game.

While the first three games were recently re-released in Japan (for under $20) as part of a reprint of the Playstation: the best PS2 versions, there has been no news for a reprint/re-release for the US or European territories at this time for any console system.

Yes. They are the same characters. FF2 deals with their teenage years, FF1 deals with them as adults.

Major characters are described and explained here.

No. They are related to Dr. Aso (through their father, Misao Aso/Amakura), but not to Miku or Sae or Yae.

It failed because Mutsuki & Itsuki cared for each other too much.
(It's mentioned as the reason in game notes.)

The Kusabi is Seijiro Makabe.

This has not been determined

US: Yes
Euro: Yes
Japan: Unknown

Apparently, for older PS2 games, region codes still apply. So sadly, you can't play the Japanese version on your US PS3 without having a Japanese PS3 or have made modifications to your system. Same goes with PAL versions too.

As far as I know, yes, and save for minor issues (lighting, graphics, pauses in FMVs) the games should work? (If you've had a different experience, please email me!)

They are in the first Super Swing Golf game's gallery. There costumes unfortunately, are not unlockables for either Super Swing Golf game that has come out.

Ebay, locale gamestore, amazon.com, playasia.com etc. There are several places, so I would look online.

Amazon Japan, Yahoo Japan Auctions, Playasia.com, ebay. There are several places...just be prepared to look around a bit, and fork over some cash. For ordering on Amazon Japan, check out the Ordering FAQ

I do not wish to sell any of the FF Merchandise I have collected over the years. Also, I am sorry, but I do not buy items on behalf of others.