Five Nights at Freddy's (video game)

Did You Know?

• Scott Cawthon conceived the idea for Five Nights at Freddy's based on criticism of his previous game, Chipper & Sons Lumber Co., whose characters were called unintentionally frightening.
• The homicidal animatronics were influenced by the mascots found at Chuck E. Cheese party venues.
• Cawthon developed the game in six months using the Clickteam Fusion 2.5 game engine.

Gameplay

Five Nights at Freddy's is a survival horror game played from a point-and-click perspective. The player takes on the role of Mike Schmidt, a night security guard employed at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, a family-friendly restaurant. The objective is to survive a shift running from midnight to 6:00 a.m. without being killed by the restaurant's animatronic characters, which become hostile and roam the building after dark. Mike is stuck in a security office with no weapons, relying on a set of security cameras to monitor the animatronics' positions across the pizzeria. The camera feeds let the player track their movement, though most of their travel happens out of sight, and each of the four animatronics behaves differently. The office has lights that can be used to check the hallways on either side, and if an animatronic is spotted there, steel doors can be closed to block its entry. Failing to stop an animatronic from entering the office results in an attack and a game over. All of these actions—using cameras, lights, and doors—drain a limited supply of electrical power. If the power runs out completely, the cameras stop working, the doors open, and the lights go dark. At that point, the main animatronic, Freddy Fazbear, appears while the "Toreador Song" plays, leading to a game over unless the shift ends before he strikes. The player must carefully manage power usage, using these tools sparingly to ensure enough electricity lasts through the night. The game is split into levels called "nights," each lasting about ten minutes of real time. As nights are completed, the animatronics grow more aggressive and the challenge increases. The main game includes six nights total: the five standard nights plus an extra sixth night.

Plot

Mike Schmidt starts his new security job at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza by listening to a recorded message left by the previous night guard, whose name is never given. Over the next several nights, more recordings play, each one filling in details about the restaurant and its history. The former guard explains that the four main animatronic characters—Freddy Fazbear, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy—are programmed to roam freely at night because leaving their servomotors idle for too long would cause them to lock up. He warns that if any animatronic finds a human after hours, it will mistake that person for an animatronic endoskeleton and try to stuff them into a spare costume, which would kill them.

Through these messages, the player learns about dark events tied to the restaurant. One recording refers to "The Bite of '87," an accident that supposedly cost someone their frontal lobe and led to a ban on animatronic movement during business hours. Camera feeds also reveal newspaper clippings describing a man who allegedly lured five children into a back room and murdered them. The suspect was arrested, but the children's bodies were never recovered. Later, customers complained that the animatronics gave off bad smells and had blood and mucus leaking from their eyes and mouths.

On the fourth night, the recording strongly suggests the previous guard was killed by an animatronic while making the message. The fifth night's recording is nothing but distorted noise. After finishing the fifth and sixth nights, Schmidt receives paychecks. Completing the sixth night unlocks a seventh "custom night" where the player can adjust each animatronic's AI difficulty. If the player finishes that custom night, Schmidt is fired.

Reception

Critics generally liked Five Nights at Freddy's. On Metacritic, the game earned a "generally favorable" rating. Reviewers found it genuinely scary, with several calling it a notable horror title. Gamezebo described it as a "brilliant horror experience" that played on the fear of the unknown, while GameSpot praised its ability to frighten without relying on graphic violence. A GameRevolution critic said it was the most terrifying game he had ever played. The gameplay mechanics were also well-received. PC Gamer noted that despite a simple setup, the mechanics combined to create a frightening experience, a point GameRevolution agreed with. Nintendo Life highlighted the accessible controls and praised the game for establishing a tense mood from the very start. TouchArcade, however, felt the gameplay could feel lacking if the atmosphere didn't scare the player, likening the controls to "a game of red-light, green-light." PC Gamer added that once players memorized the animatronics' behavior, some might find little beyond the ambience to hold their interest. The sound design earned particular praise. GameSpot pointed out the absence of music during gameplay, noting that the silence became panic-inducing when broken by animatronic noises. GameRevolution found the quiet unnerving, saying random sounds during play enhanced the atmosphere and built tension. Gamezebo called the sound design excellent, recommending headphones not just for a better experience but to hear the animatronics' approach.

Legacy

The financial success of Five Nights at Freddy's attracted a massive audience, largely thanks to Let's Play videos on YouTube. By 2015, it ranked among the most frequently uploaded games on the site, with prominent creators like Markiplier, Jacksepticeye, and PewDiePie boosting its visibility. This popularity launched a media franchise, starting with a sequel, Five Nights at Freddy's 2. The franchise later expanded into books, beginning with the 2015 novel Five Nights at Freddy's: The Silver Eyes. In 2017, Blumhouse Productions secured the rights for a film adaptation. After multiple delays, filming finally started in 2023, and the movie premiered in theaters and on Peacock on October 27, 2023. Creator Scott Cawthon stepped away from game development in 2021 following controversy over his donations to Republican Party politicians, and he plans to hand over franchise management at some point in the future.

The fan community has developed intricate theories about the game's storylines. Fans dissect and argue over the franchise's complex narrative through social media, fan-made content, and wikis. Cawthon occasionally acknowledged certain theories, including one from YouTuber MatPat. The FNaF community remains a significant subculture on platforms like TikTok and YouTube. Cawthon stayed in touch with fans through his personal website, the official site, and Steam forums.

The game's success inspired a huge number of fan-made games. So many Five Nights at Freddy's fangames appeared on the Game Jolt platform that it created a dedicated category for the franchise and its clones. Polygon later noted that some fans became more connected through these fangames than through the main series, with some choosing to play imitations instead of supporting Cawthon. Artists also produced music tied to the lore, most notably The Living Tombstone, whose first FNaF song appeared in the closing credits of the film adaptation.