“Haunted home” levels are quite common in video games, and not just in horror games. If a game isn’t trying for realism, it’ll almost certainly feature a creepy atmosphere at some point, and it’ll almost certainly be a terrifying home.
It’s understandable why they’re so popular; you can do a lot with the atmosphere, and after spending thousands of hours creating a vibrant game targeting kids, you might want to add a darker level.
There are a few aspects that tie the Fatal Frame games together: ghosts, the Camera Obscura (a ghost-fighting camera), some strange ceremony involving twins, and a spooky structure to explore. With Himuro Mansion, the series’ spooky architecture element reached its pinnacle.
The Himuro Mansion is a terrifying environment, but its major flaw is that it isn’t large enough to last the full game. You’ll be irritated towards the end of your session if you spend too much time revisiting previous regions and solving the same riddles.
Brennenburg Castle appears to be a strong case against ever entering any structure that is still lighted by eerily flickering candles. It’s bad enough that ancient buildings move and settle and make all kinds of bizarre noises on their own, but when you combine an old structure with a few powerful, malicious forces competing for dominance, things get a whole lot worse.
