Criminal Origins (Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location Review)
Foreword
If you were to ask me what my absolutely favorite game in the Five Nights at Freddy's franchise before I started making these reviews, I would've said without a doubt that Sister Location was it. One of the main contributing factors was the story and how direct it was with the narrative. While the fifth installment is still a really great game, do I still hold the belief that it's the best one? Before I dive in, it's time to go over that review rating scale:
10) Big Boi Lovings - A perfect score. Any negatives are insignificant.
9) Marvelous - A nearly flawless piece of media. A few gripes prevent it from being perfect.
8) Recommended - An excellent piece of media that should not be skipped, despite a few complaints.
7) P. Good - Above average. Some of the problems are a touch painful.
6) Hard Enjoy - Despite the issues that are present, I want to be a fan of the media - even though it hurts.
5) Aight.- Average. The experience is overall hit or miss but does nothing to "wow" or warrant hate.
4) Inoffensive- The media is not an enjoyable experience but also not a painful one.
3) Condemned -Enough problems are present that I regret consuming the media.
2) Poopie Bad Stuff - Terrible. I could hardly find any enjoyment, though it didn't cause an angry rant.
1) Dupid - I hate it. You probably know I hate it because I would not have been quiet about it.
The Story
Sister Location serves as on of the most pivotal games in the entire franchise, at least in terms of lore. The game opens with two men talking with each other in a interview style – possibly an interrogation. One of them is labeled (according to fandom page) as a “Mystery Board Member”. They admit that the robots are remarkable on a technical level, but there are a few design choices that are befuddling. A second man, who has an English accent, goes through a list of abilities that a “she” can do. The board member responds “With all due respect, those aren't the design choices we were curious about, Mr. Afton.”
With a single opening cutscene we are introduced to so much. We were given a name drop for someone that we can reasonably assume to be the creator of, at the very least, the animatronics that we witness in this particular game. As I did in my Five Nights at Freddy's 4 review, I will go into a lore dive after I explain a bit more of Sister Location's apparent story.
The game puts us in control of a maintenance worker, presumably a man named Mike, descending down a maintenance elevator into an underground / basement level parts and services. Being guided by a hand unit, which has Mike's name literally written on it, the player performs some basic tasks, mainly just checking to see if all the animatronics are where they are supposed to be.
Quick interjection – Hand unit, and his voice actor, are phenomenal. This is the start of the corporate, training video character that adds an infinite amount of charm and comedy to the series. A light hearted tone that shines a light on the brutally honest billion dollar company that couldn't value it's workers any less. It's funny, if not hitting a tad close to home. A great addition that, for the most part, becomes a main stay.
Upon the second night of routines, we meet “The Baby” animatronic. Circus Baby is the “Freddy” of the Sister Location. She serves as the main storyteller of this game, speaking cryptically about what goes on and her own desires. She has a benevolent and helpful appearance, gaining the player's trust by guiding them through deadly obstacles – warning you to hide and, at points, to do the opposite of what Hand Unit commands us to do, ultimately protecting us.
As the story progresses, Baby trusts us enough to describe how she feels trapped, like a prisoner in this place. She yearns for freedom and will do anything to attain it. It is also important to note that there are death mini games that tell a hidden story, as well as a voice of a little girl that plays in between nights. The little girl, who is named Elizabeth, is the daughter of Mr. Afton and appears in the death mini games. Fair warning – the story is going to get a bit... weird.
During a final confrontation with Baby, we learn that through a process called scooping, she has merged consciousness with the other animatronics in the facility named “Ennard”. With your help, specifically by use of your body, they could quite literally steal your body and use it as a skin suit – allowing them to blend in with society and finally be free. She ensures you that “You won't die” and, with a flash of metal, all the bones are removed from your body and Enanrd proceeds to escape into the outside world.
However, after completing the extra content, we learn that Ennard cannot keep Mike's rotting corpse from... well, rotting, and decides to abandoned it and escape into a sewer system. After a few haunting moments, Baby's reassuring call of “You won't die” repeats louder and louder before Mike stands up – fully conscience and back in control of his body. The game ends with only one additional bit of lore to be obtained.
If the player completes an incredibly hard custom night, they are given a final ending cutscene. We see the burnt down remnants of Fazbear's Fright – the location from the third game – and hear the voice over of Michael. He is speaking to his Father and is, presumably, explaining how he found “her”. It's assumed he is talking about Baby, who had helped free at his father's request. He then let's his father know that, despite his injuries, he is alive and that he is going to come find him. We see Springtrap spring to life and thus ends the game.
Speculative Lore Time!
The events of Sister Location paints the full picture that Five Nights 4 had begun to sketch. We learn, that Mr. William Afton is the creator of the animatronics. He is, simply put, the mechanical genius behind the machines. We play as his son, Michael Afton, who you may remember is the bully older brother from Five Nights 4. The entirety of the Five Nights series is the story of the Afton family.
Having successfully built the animatronics and receiving universal praise and success, William Afton had all that he could ever want. He then loses two children – the crying child from Five Nights 4, and Elizabeth, his daughter murdered by Baby (as revealed during the death mini games). These events turn William Afton into the serial killer we know as Purple Guy.
At William's request, presumably before he dies in the Springtrap suit, Michael travels to the Sister Location to play out the scenes of the game. Somehow surviving the events of the game, and presumably learning about his father's horrendous deeds, vows to find his father and promises to confront him. This vengeful vow sets up the events of the next game, Pizzeria Simulator. Once we get to my review of the sixth installment, I will give an overall lore dump and share my thoughts of how the series pans out.
For now, allow me to praise the story of Sister Location. I absolutely adore the narrative and what this game did for the series. It desperately needed a game that had a plot driven center and it delivered. I am a sucker for the creepy little girl trope, so it has that going for it as well. I believe this game told a compelling story in a satisfying way while also expertly delivering lore of the connected universe. Clearly, it earns itself a
10/10
Big Boi Lovings
The Gameplay
Sister Location is a departure from the standard Five Nights formula. The traditional gameplay the other four installments had is present, but only through a secret ending. The new mechanics is a welcome change of pace. The game is mostly played through a point and click adventure style gameplay. We are mostly pigeon holed into a linear path with a few moments of divergence. With simple clicks we can either travel along a path or take part in a simplistic mini game. While it is fresh and exciting, it does ruin the replay value for the game.
While the previous installments all had almost an arcade style, “one more try” mentality, the gameplay in Sister Location serves as just an obstacle to progress the narrative. I want to be clear that this isn't a huge misstep on the game's part, but once you know the story inside and out – there is little reason to revisit this one. The gameplay in Sister Location, in my opinion, is the weakest out of all entries.
There are some several strong scenes that I would like to highlight. Rebooting the systems while avoiding Freddy and performing maintenance on his hulking form are some of my favorite moments. Seeing this literal bear stalk you from the shadows while you try to be as inconspicuous as possible and being up close and personal with him adds a great deal of horror and kept me thoroughly engaged.
I would also like to highlight a moment that I absolutely despised. I will point out, this may have been a me issue, since I do not recall seeing anyone else having this problem. During the scene where you are attempting to remove a computer chip from Baby, she requires you to put in a random string of numbers. This number sequence has to be entered quickly and accurately. For whatever reason, I was unable to do this correctly despite my best efforts. I could not have been moving too slow, since I was pressing each button within at least a second of hearing it. If I was miss clicking the button, then it must have been pixel perfect. The only explanation I can think of is that I was not fast enough, which would mean that you are given a fraction of second. With such a small margin of error, you would think the game would allow you to retry immediately. This is not the case. Frustratingly, the checkpoint for this scene requires you to crawl through Foxy's room and into the parts of service room. Every. Single. Time. This would take about 30 to 45 seconds each and every time. You are then subjected to a monologue from baby that seems to also take about a minute or so to finish. Again, it is entirely possible that I simply sucked at this segment, but I feel it should not have been as difficult as it was.
All of that being said, I still believe the gameplay for Sister Location is decently done and I award it a:
6/10
Hard Enjoy
The Visuals
The games graphics and visual design is on par with the rest of the series. There are plenty of shadows and moments of low lighting that add to a great and fearful ambiance.
The design of the robots themselves are sleek and clean. This is the most well put together these bots have ever been. We also get plenty of chances to get up close and personal with the animatronics.
I will add that in the first, second and third game there is a weird fish eye lens effect. As you pan from one end of the room to the other, it feels as though you are looking at a concave cylinder. It is a touch distracting, and I can't help but notice that the 4th game didn't have this effect (chalk that up as another point for Five Nights 4). Ultimately, I wouldn't say this acts as a negative for the game, as it earns a:
8/10
Recommended
The Audio
Arguably my favorite quality of this game, the audio design is fantastic. We are given a lot more voice acting in Sister Location. My two favorite parts, as somewhat mention before, are Hand Unit and Baby.
Hand Unit, played by Andy Field, is one of the funniest performances I have ever heard. Incredibly charming and corporately depressing, it is a treat every time I got to hear him.
Circus Baby, played by Heather Masters, does an amazing job. I can not stress how much I enjoyed her performance. Full of mournful and creepy undertones, it is easy to be both fearful and empathize with Baby. And I have to mention just how incredible her monologues are. She easily has some of my favorite lines in the game.
I should also mention that sound is also used as a gameplay mechanic. You are required to carefully listen for where the animatronics are as you move about the facility. And of course, there is still the metallic industrial sounds that play over the soft, scarce music. Overall:
9/10
Marvelous
The Final Tally
What I once would argue is the best this series has to offer, has certainly fallen from that esteemed position. Regardless, I still really enjoyed Sister Location and award it a:
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