Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach Review (Alyssa)
So I finished the game a few days ago and I've finally decided to share my thoughts.
I'll break this review up into a few sections because there's a fair amount to unpack with this game.
GAMEPLAY:
The gameplay overall is very fun and stays fresh over the duration of the game, as new mechanics are unlocked and new areas can be accessed with raising security clearance. The messages you find across the game are fun to read and the collectibles are pretty neat, too.
The map is very expansive and lively, it feels very authentic and honestly makes me wish I got to go there as a kid lol (aside from, you know, the whole disappearances thing). The map as a whole is just very good looking and fun to traverse.
HORROR:
One thing about the game that should be noted is that the game isn't all that scary. Maybe it's the janky AI that removes some of the scare factor or the lively setting that removes some of the horror elements that were there in most of the other Fnaf games. Another major way the fear is removed is the ability to defend yourself with a flash camera or a blaster you win at some point, making encounters far less scary and even hilarious at times.
Although most of the game isn't scary, some moments are pretty tense. There are daycare, sewer, and basement segments that evoke some spooky moments and once you "decomission" some of the animatronics they appear much more frightening, and are also more difficult to evade in some way. It's also pretty scary just hearing the animatronics' loud footsteps going after you.
DIRECTION:
I made this a whole segment because the direction of the games' missions and whatnot are often left incredibly vague or the polar opposite. Sometimes things are told explicitly to you while other ones are left somewhat a mystery or require lots of searching to figure out what to do. I think a lot of that comes down to me not being good at figuring out where to go but I've seen this issue with others as well and I think that could be done better.
BUGS:
It's no secret that this game has a lot of bugs. Like, a LOT of bugs. I've been fortunate enough to not experience many of the game-breaking/softlocking bugs that others have (I think most of those are on the PS4 version of the game if I'm not mistaken, but can still happen on PC).
The bugs range from those unplayable bugs that some have experienced to hilarious ones you might see (more on that later). Animatronics forgetting about you in weird spots or even right in front of you is one of these you can observe as a result of the not-so-great AI of the animatronics (not to mention how a simple elevated platform is enough for animatronics to completely lose you).
Also the animatronics seem to teleport when they're not close enough to you and you're spotted by a security bot, and it's really obvious, sometimes they do it just a few meters in front of you/behind you or even on top of you on occasion, unfairly killing you (also happens when you call for Freddy). This can be annoying for some people but I find this really funny for some reason, as long as it doesn't end up costing you a few minutes of progress.
Not all the bugs are bad, though. The ones that aren't detrimental to your experience or time can end up being really funny, some examples being Monty running at supersonic speeds around the West Arcade, the newly discovered and now infamous "Giga-Monty", animatronics' faces and hands getting stuck through an elevator door if you close it late enough, Freddy breaking the game in his own weird ways, and many more to find.
SUMMARY:
Overall I'd say this game is really fun, but there are a lot of bugs and it misses it's horror element in some areas, which can be good or bad depending on how you look at it or what you like most in Fnaf games.
The game probably should have been delayed another few weeks or a few months to do much more game testing and debugging, but otherwise I would recommend the game to anyone who likes free roam horror stuff or Fnaf in general.
TL;DR
Game is fun, game is buggy, game isn't that scary, game is kinda funny, game is overall good.