Spoilers for the first and second games are UNMARKED.
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Main Characters
Miku Hinasaki
Voiced by Rika Wakusawa (Japanese), Rumiko Vanes (FF), Kim Mai Guest (FF III)
"Ever since I was a child, I have been able to see things other people can't."
Miku headed into Himuro Mansion after her brother went missing. She found the Camera Obscura he left behind and learned of the events surrounding the mansion. While trying to locate her brother, she winds up collecting the five pieces of the broken Holy Mirror in hopes of using it to appease Kirie's spirit.
She returns as a playable character in the third game, having been taken in by Yuu Asou on behest of Mafuyu, in case anything ever happened to him. She works as Rei's photography assistant and took over most of the household chores when Yuu died. Miku's grief and guilt over her brother's death cause her to become afflicted with the Tattoo Curse, and she walks around the Manor of Sleep, following Mafuyu's spirit.
Miku appears as a minor character in the fifth game. She left her daughter with a friend and ended up disappearing, though she was last seen ascending Mt Hikami. Her daughter heads to Mt Hikami herself, wanting to find Miku.
- Apocalyptic Log
- Miku's Notes in the third game.
- Miku's Scrap of Paper in the fifth game.
- Big Brother Attraction: Reading her diary in the third game includes an entry where Miku admits to having had feelings for her brother for years. In the fifth game, it's revealed that she acted on these feelings and performed the ghost marriage ritual with Mafuyu, conceiving Miu, a kid with remarkably few issues besides abandonment.
- Brother–Sister Incest: The fifth game reveals that Miku performed the ghost marriage ritual with Mafuyu, which resulted in her getting pregnant by him. This made her daughter a Shadowborn — a child of a human mother and ghost father.
- Big Brother Worship: Headed to Himuro Mansion to find her brother.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Red. Her holly tattoo in the third game is also red.
- Crippling Overspecialization: Her personal functions in the third game are Sacred Stone, which slows ghosts down, and Double, which stacks a second charge on top of the first one, and makes her one of the strongest attackers. However, she cannot equip any of the lenses.
- Death by Childbirth: Played with. Giving birth to a Shadowborn takes a huge toll on the human mother, reducing her remaining lifespan to a few years. Miku survived the birth, but will die soon.
- Glass Cannon: Has the biggest damage potential in the third game, but also the lowest health.
- It's All My Fault: Believes her brother's death was her fault.
- The Magic Goes Away: Her sixth sense went away after defeating Kirie, but it returned by the third game.
- Meaningful Name: Her given name (深紅) can be read as Deep Crimson, fitting with her color theme.
- Mighty Glacier: Due to the Double function in the third game, it takes her longer to fully charge shots.
- Missing Mom
- Her mother committed suicide some years ago.
- Becomes one to her own daughter in the fifth game.
- Mommy Had A Good Reason For Abandoning You: When Miu was three years old, Miku realized that her time was running out and she was likely going to die soon. She left her daughter in her friend's care and disappeared, wanting to spare Miu seeing her mother die.
- Older Than They Look: Looks barely older than her teenaged daughter in the fifth game. Justified, as the Black Box she was locked in had kept her from aging.
- Plucky Girl: Keeps herself smiling, despite everything that happened.
- Psychic Powers: Was born with a strong sixth sense.
- Sailor Fuku: Her clothes in the first game, since she was a high school student.
- She's All Grown Up: Played with in the third game. It's been two years since the first game's events, but Miku is portrayed with more fanservice in mind.
- Stepford Smiler: Kept up a cheerful front in the third game.
- Together in Death: Performed a Ghost Marriage to Mafuyu's spirit in the fifth game to ensure this.
- Virgin Sacrifice: After performing a Ghost Marriage, she was placed into a Black Box to become one of the Pillars on Mt Hikami to keep purifying the Black Water.
- You Don't Look Like You: The localized version of the first game altered
her appearance. Her facial features were modified to make her look older and more appealing to a Western audience, and her clothes lost the sailor uniform aspect into something more mature, which was slightly jarring as her unlockable costumes weren't changed as well. While the Xbox port not only used the altered appearance, the unlockable costumes also used it, her original appearance was used for the third game. - Your Days Are Numbered: Doesn't have long to live after giving birth to a Shadowborn.
Mafuyu Hinasaki
Voiced by Jun'ichi Kanemura (Japanese), Dominic Allen (English)
"So this is Himuro Mansion..."
Mafuyu headed into Himuro Mansion because his professor and some colleagues of his went missing there. While exploring the mansion, he ran into Kirie's spirit and ended up disappearing himself, causing Miku to come in after him.
Mafuyu can be glimpsed repeatedly throughout the game, but not interacted with. He seems to have become possessed by Kirie's spirit, as he and Kirie are seen to separate from each other when the Holy Mirror reflects onto them. He chooses to stay with Kirie at the Hell Gate, leaving Miku to leave the mansion alone.
- Apocalyptic Log: Mafuyu's Notes.
- Because Destiny Says So: By the end, he has realized and accepted his fate and the reason why he came to Himuro Mansion — to make sure Kirie would not suffer alone."I now realize why I was brought here. And I will accept this destiny of mine."
- Big Brother Instinct: Shows a strong desire to protect other people, his younger sister especially.
- Brother–Sister Incest: The fifth game reveals that Mafuyu and Miku get married via the ghost marriage ritual, through which she becomes pregnant with Miu. Must have made things awkward with Kirie.
- I Choose to Stay: Remains with Kirie at the Hell Gate.
- Decoy Protagonist: Only playable in the prologue for the first game, before focus turns to Miku trying to find him.
- A Friend in Need: Felt pity for Kirie's harsh fate and stayed with her to keep the Hell Gate sealed.
- Heroic Spirit: His only reason for heading into the mansion was to find his professor's team.
- Identical Stranger: Looks identical to Kirie's unnamed lover, to the point that Miku initially mistakes him for her brother when seeing Kirie's memories. This similarity prevented Kirie from killing him.
- Missing Mom: His mother committed suicide some time ago.
- Nice Guy: Miku describes him as being sweet and kind.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: His intention to remain with Kirie at the Hell Gate to appease her loneliness and ease her suffering was self-sacrificial, but it led to more problems than solutions. His staying caused Miku immense grief and survivor's guilt, to the point that she willingly followed his spirit in the Manor of Sleep. And even ended up getting herself spiritually married to him and giving birth to their Shadowborn daughter, thus cutting her own life short
- Promotion to Parent: Took on this role after his mother's suicide.
- I See Dead People: Possesses a strong sixth sense, just like Miku.
- Small Role, Big Impact: His main purpose in the first game was to motivate the protagonist and antagonist- Miku only enters Himuro manor to rescue him and Kirie spares his life because of his resemblance to her lover. The biggest and really only thing Mafuyu does is to choose to stay behind with Kirie. But this has a long-lasting and tragic effect on Miku, whose actions in the third and fifth game revolve around her grief with losing her brother and her desire to be with Mafuyu again.
- Together in Death: With Kirie, when he chose to stay behind with her so she wouldn't suffer alone. And then technically with Miku through Ghost Marriage.
Kirie Himuro
Voiced by Yoko Yamamoto (Japanese), Lenne Hardt (English)
"My duty is to keep this gate closed."
Kirie lived in Himuro Mansion and was chosen to become the next sacrifice for the Strangling Ritual. Part of the preparation for this ritual meant having her separated from other people, to avoid having her form emotional bonds with anyone. But she met a young man visiting Himuro Mansion, and his stories about the outside world fascinated her, and she fell in love with him.
She became conflicted over her duty as the Rope Shrine Maiden and wanting to see her beloved again, with this conflict causing her ritual to fail. The Malice was unleashed, and Kirie's spirit was torn into two: one half of her roams the mansion, killing and cursing anyone that crosses her path to suffer her death by the ropes, while her other half remains benevolent towards humans, and even asks Miku for help.
- Apocalyptic Log: Kirie's Diary.
- Barrier Maiden: As a Rope Shrine Maiden, her duty was to hold the Hell Gate closed with her sacrifice.
- Big Bad: Of Fatal Frame, as the corrupted spirit behind the Rope Curse and the many ghosts haunting the mansion.
- Boss Vulnerability: In the final boss fight, she can only be harmed with a full camera charge at all times, which will automatically become Zero shots.
- Break the Cutie: Was chosen at a young age to become the next sacrifice for her family and was isolated from other people for almost ten years, with the only people she interacted with wearing masks to keep her from forming bonds with them. She fell in love with a man and was imprisoned in an attempt to make her forget about him, but she was incapable of doing so. She was then sacrificed, and her ritual failed, ensuring even her spirit suffered.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Torn apart by ropes tied to her neck and extremities, as per the Strangling Ritual's demands.
- Demonic Possession: The Malice corrupted her spirit and left her a husk of her former self, with a visible mass of writhing ghosts staying behind her at all times.
- Ethereal White Dress: All of her incarnations wear white in some form.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: She had fallen in love with a man, whom Mafuyu heavily resembles. This resemblance was the sole reason why she spared Mafuyu.
- Heal Thyself: Regenerates some of her health when teleporting to another location while battled.
- Heel–Face Turn: In all endings, her spirit is freed from the Malice that corrupted her and continues her duty as keeping the gate closed.
- Hesitant Sacrifice: Falling in love made her hesitant to go through with the ritual.
- In-Series Nickname: "White Kimono" for her benevolent half. Her hostile form goes simply by "Kirie".
- Interface Screw: Her mere presence causes the screen to become distorted and monochromatic, making it slightly harder to see. During her final boss fight, the constant shaking from the Hell Gate also makes aiming at her harder.
- Leitmotif: Her chase sequences are accompanied by ritualistic instruments on a beat under heavy distortion and metallic banging noises. The final battle with her swaps it for a more frantic rhythm overshadowing horrifying screams, moans and even growls, presumably from all the victims of the Calamity, or the spirits from within the Hell Gate.
- Literal Split Personality: Was separated into two spirits after her ritual failed. One half is the vengeful spirit corrupted by the Malice, while the other is her younger self, still pure and helpful. The ending has them merge back together, so Kirie can fulfill her duty.
- Love at First Sight: Fell for a visitor to the mansion as soon as she saw him through her window, a feeling which only grew stronger as they spoke.
- Love Hurts: Falling in love caused her to become conflicted between her duty and her human desire to be with her beloved. This conflict caused her ritual to fail.
- Mighty Glacier: Moves around incredibly slowly and is easy to dodge and run from, but one touch from her causes instant death. As a boss, she also teleports frequently.
- Miko: Was chosen as the next rope shrine maiden for the Strangling Ritual.
- Mysterious Waif: The Girl in White. She appears at odd times and gives Miku hints on where to proceed, so she can find the pieces of the Holy Mirror and appease Kirie's spirit.
- One-Hit Kill: One touch from her evil form kills Miku instantly.
- Power Floats: The embodiment of the Malice keeps her afloat.
- Psychic Powers: Had the strongest psychic powers out of the children participating in the Demon Tag Ritual. Since she was the last to be caught during the ritual, she was considered the perfect choice for the next sacrifice.
- Signature Sound Effect: Chimes. Her hostile form is always introduced with the rattling of Japanese chimes as she emerges, while White Kimono is always introduced with a single, solitary rattle.
- Star-Crossed Lovers: She and her unnamed lover. Kirie wasn't supposed to form any type of emotional bond with anyone, as this was a requirement for the ritual to succeed, and he was merely visiting Himuro Mansion for a while. When the priests saw that Kirie had fallen in love, they killed him and told her that he had left, hoping that the separation would dampen her feelings quickly.
- Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl: Her hostile spirit portrays a typical example, with her hair covering her face.
- Together in Death: With Mafuyu, as he chose to stay behind. The Photograph ending shows her lover's spirit reuniting with her at the Hell Gate.
- Violation of Common Sense: Kirie appears as an unbeatable ghost at the end of each night. In order to proceed to the next night, the player must go against the idea of the game, and actively approach Kirie without attempting to fight back.
- Virgin Sacrifice: Was sacrificed in the Strangling Ritual, so her spirit would hold the Hell Gate closed.
Yae Munakata (née Kurosawa)
Voiced by: Akemi Kanda (Japanese, FFII), Bianca Allen (FFI), Kari Wahlgren (FFII), Daphne Alexander (DCB)
"The children... They were only playing Demon Tag..."
Miku and Mafuyu's great-grandmother. She moved into Himuro Mansion with her family several decades before the events of the first game take place. While her husband Ryozo was studying the mansion's history and rituals, their daughter Mikoto found the Camera Obscura and Yae, intrigued, began taking pictures around the mansion with it. She began to be driven insane by what the Camera Obscura was showing her, and her husband soon realized the mansion itself was haunted. Yae's daughter eventually ended up spirited away, which proved to be the final straw for her sanity, and Yae committed suicide by hanging herself from the tree at the Cherry Atrium, much to her husband's sorrow.
Yae reappears in Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly and is reintroduced as Yae Kurosawa, the twin sister of Sae. The daughters of Minakami Village's ceremony master, she and Sae were originally planned to take part in the Crimson Sacrifice ritual, but the two decided to escape the village beforehand with the help of a previous participant. While Yae did escape with Munakata's help, Sae stayed behind and the failed ritual caused the Repentance to take place. When Yae finally found her way back, her old home was no more and the trauma erased her memories of it.
- Angsty Surviving Twin: Averted, as she had repressed her memories of having a twin sister.
- Apocalyptic Log: Lady's Diary in I and Butterfly Diary in II.
- Break the Cutie: Yae lost her entire village in a disaster that she indirectly caused, repressed those memories, and tried to have a normal life. She was then driven insane by what the Camera Obscura showed and, to top things off, her only child was taken by spirits.
- Death by Irony: The ritual she escaped from in Minakami Village would have her choke her own twin sister to death to appease the Hellish Abyss, but Sae was instead hanged alone at the gate to the abyss due to Yae's absence. Years later, Yae hangs herself after losing a loved one.
- Driven to Suicide: She hung herself after Mikoto's disappearance.
- Ethereal White Dress: In Fatal Frame II, wearing the clean version of the twins' kimono.
- Foregone Conclusion: The second game's reveal of Yae's past and the fact she escaped the Repentance in Minakami Village comes off as especially tragic, knowing she'd eventually be the victim of another tragedy at Himuro Mansion.
- Go Mad from the Revelation: Overexposure to the Camera Obscura and the spirits it showed her drove Yae to gradual insanity.
- Identical Granddaughter: Miyuki (Miku's mother) looks identical to Yae, which causes Miku to remember her mother's death upon seeing Yae's spirit hanging from a tree.
- In-Series Nickname: "Woman Hanging" in I.
- Laser-Guided Amnesia: She lost her memories of Minakami Village as a coping mechanism.
- Late to the Tragedy: When she noticed that Sae was gone when they were escaping, Yae went off to look for her. However, she got lost in the forest and only made it back to Minakami Village after the Repentance had occurred and the village had completely disappeared into the Darkness.
- Leitmotif: Her pained, agonized moans, along with several of her lamentations regarding Mikoto and the Camera Obscura.
- Posthumous Character: She has been dead for decades before the events of the first game, and naturally even further by the time of the second.
- I See Dead People: It's unknown how long she's had the sixth sense and how strong it was. Regardless, it was amplified through usage of the Camera Obscura, and slowly drove her insane. Her great-grandchildren inherited this trait.
- Sole Survivor: She and Ryozo Munakata both escaped the Repentance that struck Minakami Village.
- Survivor's Guilt: Yae tried to avoid this fate by escaping Minakami Village and not going through with the Crimson Sacrifice Ritual. But Sae ended up captured and hanged as a sacrifice, leaving Yae to suffer this fate anyway.
- Teleport Spam: Her hostile form can teleport around Miku and even float upwards, out of viewfinder range, so she can drop right onto her for an attack.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Her running away from the village and getting separated from Sae was the key factor that allowed the Repentance to occur with no interference.
- Virgin Sacrifice: An odd variation. She wasn't meant to be sacrificed herself, but she was part of the Crimson Sacrifice Ritual as the twin meant to strangle her sister for the Hellish Abyss.
Ryozo Munakata
"It was a mistake to live in this mansion..."
Miku and Mafuyu's great-grandfather. Decades before the events of the game, he moved with his family into Himuro Mansion, so he could read up on the secret rituals of the Himuro family. While his research brought fruition, it came at the cost of his daughter being spirited away and Yae's suicide, as he realized the mansion was cursed. Trying to lift the curse, he came across the door to the Banned Path and managed to use the Blinding Mask to open it, but ended up caught by the spirits of the dead and dragged into the cave, where he was crushed by a rock slide.
Ryozo is reintroduced in Fatal Frame II as a student of Seijiro Makabe's. Makabe headed to Minakami Village to research the traditions of the place and Ryozo tried to find out what happened to his childhood friends, Itsuki and Mutsuki Tachibana. Following the instructions of Itsuki's letter, he helped Yae escape from the village when the time came, and took her in when her home vanished into the night.
- Apocalyptic Log: Research Notes in I and the Green Diary in II.
- Childhood Friends: Of Itsuki and Mutsuki Tachibana in II.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Spirited away by the ghosts of the Himuro followers as soon as he opened the gate at the Demon Mouth. Miku later finds his ghost recreating his resting place at the Banned Path, crushed under a pile of rocks.
- Curiosity Killed the Cast: His interest in researching the secret rituals of the Himuro Mansion led Mikoto to be kidnapped by spirits and his wife committing suicide. By the time he noticed what was going on, he had little time left himself.
- Foregone Conclusion: Like Yae, his escape from Minakami is all the more tragic given he'd die a horrible death later down the line.
- In-Series Nickname: "Folklorist's" in I.
- Leitmotif: His anguished cries for his daughter and the Blinding Mask he was looking for before his death.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Realized what a terrible idea it was to move into Himuro Mansion once his wife hung herself.
- People Puppets: He has an ability that makes Miku walk towards him against her will using some kind of ghostly aura, after which he'll grapple her and deal damage. In Battle Mode, it can also leave her wide open for an attack from another hostile ghost. Button mashing is the only way to break free of it.
- Teleport Spam: His battles in I have him teleport in and out of range of the camera, closer and closer towards Miku so he can then make a dash towards her for massive damage.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: He played a minor role in it, but his intent on helping Yae and Sae escape from Minakami Village allowed the Repentance to occur. In a similar vein, his moving to Himuro Mansion destroyed his family.
- Wham Line: His final Green Diary entry in II is signed with his full name, so players who know of the first game's story can be sure it's the same Munakata that Seijiro Makabe's spirit was referring to.
Mikoto Munakata
The daughter of Ryozo and Yae Munakata, and grandmother of Miku and Mafuyu Hinasaki. As a child, she moved into Himuro Mansion with her parents as Ryozo was researching the lore behind the Himuro area, until Mikoto started mentioning having an imaginary friend. As the mansion's curse started to take its toll on her family, the spirit of Kirie's remaining purity spirited her away, which helped Mikoto escape with her life.
- Guardian Entity: The young version of Kirie acted as one for her, protecting her from the hostile spirits and leading her to safety after the curse began killing her friends and family.
- Minor Major Character: Mikoto appears in a couple flashback scenes, some photographs and even has a rendered portrait used in Miku's "Correlation" section in the Files, serving as a major driving factor for both Yae and Ryozo's grief over losing her, but she's never actually met in the plot itself, nor do we see her aged, if she's even still alive at all.
- Not-So-Imaginary Friend: She befriended the "Girl in the White Kimono", who her parents assumed was an imaginary friend.
- Sole Survivor: The only known case of someone escaping Himuro Mansion's curse, prior to Miku breaking it.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: She found the Camera Obscura, and gave it to her parents... causing her mother to go insane, and the Hinasaki family to be burdened with the cursed camera and powerful psychic abilities.
Junsei Takamine
Voiced by: Matt Lagan
"Ropes are beginning to appear on my photo... I'm running out of time."
Mafuyu's mentor and a famous novelist. Facing a low period in his career, he headed for Himuro Mansion with a team of three for research, hoping to write a best-selling novel based off Japanese folklore. Unfortunately, the ghosts were very much real, and Takamine found himself with a Dwindling Party as both his editor Koji and assistant Tomoe died to Kirie's hostile spirit. While he did attempt to break the curse as it caught up to him and was halfway through a possible lead, it was too late. Kirie trapped him in the Narukami Shrine and he was torn apart by the Rope Curse.
Takamine's disappearance is the primary reason for Mafuyu's visit to Himuro Mansion, although it's Miku who has to confront Takamine's ghost, turned hostile by the Malice still in the manor.
- Apocalyptic Log: The Black Notebooks and Blue Tapes.
- Ceiling Corpse: This is how he meets his end, in a Cruel and Unusual Death.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Cursed by Kirie, Takamine was torn apart on the Narukami Shrine's ceiling, turning him into a Ceiling Corpse.
- Curiosity Killed the Cast: He purposefully headed into a mansion that was connected with a terrible massacre and a family that disappeared while living there, all for the sake of research for his book.
- Disc-One Final Boss: As the final encounter in Night 1, since this indirectly solves Mafuyu's own quest in Himuro Mansion, making the game strictly about finding him and breaking the curse.
- Einstein Hair: As a ghost.
- In-Series Nickname: "Novelist's".
- Interface Screw: One of his attacks turns the environment dark, making it difficult to see him.
- Leitmotif: His distorted groans of pain from the Rope Curse taking his life. In battle, he'll occasionally punctuate it with his own screams of agony.
- The Mentor: To Mafuyu Hinasaki, Kei Amakura, and Yuu Asou.
- Mentor Occupational Hazard: In terms of gameplay, his ghost is the first dead folklorist you meet in the franchise.
- Most Writers Are Writers: He wanted Himuro Mansion to inspire him for his next novel.
Tomoe Hirasaka
Voiced by: Bianca Allen
"I never should have come here. I should have trusted that sixth sense of mine."
Takamine's assistant and secretary. She went along with him to Himuro Mansion, though she was hesitant to do so due to the urban legends surrounding the area. Thanks to her weak spirit powers, she was capable of seeing the spirits in the house and suffered from visions, which only worsened with herself becoming cursed and discovering Ogata's body as Kirie's influence encroached on the team.
Tomoe was killed by the curse before she could warn Takamine and tell him how Kirie's benevolent spirit taught her how to break the curse. Miku has to face her corrupted spirit twice as she searches the manor.
- Apocalyptic Log: The Red Notebooks and Red Tape.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Red, used for her tapes and clothes.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Succumbed to Kirie's Rope Curse at the Abyss by the water wheel, strangled and slaughtered.
- Go Mad from the Revelation: The manor's spirits and her ability to hear them slowly drove her to madness.
- Ignored Expert: As she herself says, she had a very reliable sixth sense that told her Takamine was leading her into danger, but she chose to disregard it.
- I See Dead People: Had a sixth sense of her own that allowed her to feel the presence of spirits and have visions related to them. While weaker in comparison to other examples in the series, it was still enough for the corrupted ghosts in the mansion to drive her insane. Tellingly, her Red Tapes are the only ones with ghostly voices in-between her lines.
- In-Series Nickname: "Assistant's".
- Leitmotif: Her desperate sobbing, completely distorted, with occasional whispers about Kirie and her cries of lamentation.
- Subordinate Excuse: The Zero novel hints that she had a romantic relationship with Takamine.
- Wake-Up Call Boss: The first ghost that might have players consider using stronger film, as she's far more unpredictable than Ogata and, at least in her first encounter, is actually capable of killing Miku in one hit with a certain attack.
Koji Ogata
Voiced by: Matt Lagan
"Let me out! Let me out of this mansion!"
Takamine's editor. He went along to Himuro Mansion as a part of Takamine's group, but didn't seem to like the idea of going inside it. The Rope Curse caught him first out of the three, with Kirie chasing after him into a closet, where he was promptly dismembered.
- Apocalyptic Log: The Research Scraps and White Tapes.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Kirie's curse tore his head and limbs off in a tiny closet.
- Hope Spot: Figured hiding from Kirie in a closet would be enough for her to miss him. It wasn't.
- In-Series Nickname: "Editor's".
- Leitmotif: His cries for help and distorted ramblings about ropes.
- Madness Mantra: "Ropes...! Ropes...! More ropes!!"
- Peek-a-Boo Corpse: His spirit flops in front of Miku in a closet to show how he was found.
- The Goomba: Like the Bound Man, his attacks consist of simple bum-rushing and occasionally teleporting, but he's otherwise easy to deal with.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Not much information is given about him in comparison to Tomoe and Takamine, especially since he's Miku's own Warm-Up Boss and doesn't appear again, being the first ghost to be sealed away by the Camera Obscura.
Lord Himuro
"Nobody leaves here alive!"
The last head of the Himuro family and the overseer of the family's rituals. Presiding over Kirie's own Strangling Ritual, he and his four Priests tried to prevent her from getting in contact with the outside world, as well as the young man she fell in love with, but even with his death it was too late, as her ritual failed.
When the Calamity occured, the Malice spewing from the Hell Gate drove him insane and he proceeded to slaughter every family member and guest in the mansion that wasn't already dead from the Malice itself. In the end, after waking up from his frenzy and realizing what he had done, he walked towards the Grand Hall and committed suicide before the family altar.
- Ax-Crazy: Driven insane by the Malice and went on a killing spree.
- Cool Mask: The Mask of Reflection, which changes its expression depending on the wearer's true nature. Lord Himuro wearing it turned the mask into a demonic face reminiscent of an oni mask.
- Driven to Suicide: After sobering up from his gigantic fit of insanity and realizing he had killed every single person in attendance at the mansion, he went to the Grand Hall and killed himself with his sword in front of the family altar.
- In-Series Nickname: "Family Master".
- Interface Screw: The ghostly heads that surround him can be sent to attack Miku individually. If they succeed, the screen will become HEAVILY distorted and the viewfinder will be harder to control, meaning it will be next-to-impossible to focus on Lord Himuro in time for a counterattack unless the player manages to stay unharmed until the effect is over.
- Katanas Are Just Better: His weapon of choice, the same katana he used to slaughter every single person in the manor when the Calamity occurred.
- Leitmotif: A drum beat amidst his angry voice telling Miku to die.
- My God, What Have I Done?: When he snapped out of his killing spree and realized he killed every single person in the mansion. It drove him to kill himself out of guilt.
- Off with His Head!: Everyone he found in his insane rage was decapitated by him.
- Offing the Offspring: He was among the ones to kill his daughter Kirie by operating the Rope Altar during the ritual, along with four of the family priests.
- Unstoppable Rage: The failed ritual, coupled with the Malice's influence, drove Lord Himuro to kill every single person in his path.
Hostile Ghosts
Blind Demon
- "My eyes! My eyes!!"
A shrine maiden, tasked to perform the Blinding Ritual. The Blinding Mask was put onto her face and stabbed out her eyes, to use her blood to weaken and temporarily blind the spirits at the Hell Gate, in order to proceed with the Rope ritual. She was supposed to participate in the next Demon Tag and pick the new Rope Shrine Maiden after Kirie, but died before she could fulfill that duty.
- All for Nothing: Due to Kirie's ritual failing, the Blind Maiden's own ritual was essentially a waste.
- The Cameo: She appears in the Haunted House mode of Fatal Frame: Deep Crimson Butterfly as a possible encounter.
- Eye Scream: As part of the Blinding and Demon Tag Rituals, her eyes were pierced with a ceremonial mask so her blood could settle the Hell Gate enough for Kirie's ritual to finish the job.
- Handicapped Badass: As her name indicates, she's blind and is therefore unable to go straight to you as the other ghosts can. That being said, a single step will alert her to your position and she'll immediately teleport right behind you, only a few inches away, in fact, giving you a small window of opportunity for the Zero shot. And if she does grab Miku, she'll deal considerable damage, which only gets worse in later encounters.
- In-Series Nickname: "Blinded".
- Leitmotif: Women screaming nonstop.
- Miko: Just like Kirie, she was a shrine maiden.
- Recurring Boss: She appears as an encounter seven times during the 2nd Night.
- Virgin Sacrifice: For the Blinding ritual.
Long Arms
"Give me back...! Give me back my daughter!"
An old member of the Himuro family who was killed when he opposed his daughter becoming the next Rope Shrine Maiden. His spirit haunts the mansion, desperately searching for his long-dead daughter, leading him to kidnap any child he encounters. His wandering cost three children their lives when Ryozo and Yae moved into the manor.
- Body Horror: He's balding and crawls around on the floor, hunched over with his abnormally long arms hanging in front of him.
- Child Eater: He kidnaps children, having taken and killed Mikoto's friends while they were playing tag.
- Creepily Long Arms: His defining feature. It's never mentioned why they are so long, but he does use them to attack Miku when encountered.
- Irony: He's tormented by his child having been taken away from him and now inflicts the same pain on other parents by spiriting away their children.
- Leitmotif: Ragged breathing and incoherent mumbling overshadowed by loud ritualistic bells.
- Papa Wolf: He died trying to prevent his daughter from becoming a sacrifice.
Demon Tag Children
Clock Boy (left), Girl in the Well (top right) and Crawling Girl (bottom right)
A trio of young children killed by the Man with Long Arms while playing a game of Demon Tag. They were Mikoto Munakata's friends in life, and continue to play even in death.
- Apocalyptic Log: Child's Writing, a scrap of paper left by the boy in the clock talking about his crush on Mikoto.
- Boss Room: The three of them are only fought in the areas where Long Arms dragged them to their deaths. The Crawling Girl fights in the Doll Room, the Girl in the Well at the Backyard, and the Boy Hiding at the Fireplace Room. The latter especially makes use of his area as part of his strategy, one of the few ghosts in the game to actually do so.
- Creepy Child: A standard for child ghosts, especially since they act as if they're still playing.
- Facial Horror: The left side of the Well Girl's face is horribly disfigured due to Long Arms dragging her down on the well's stone wall.
- "Get Back Here!" Boss: Boy Hiding. He'll teleport to the rafters at the Fireplace room and run on them to try and trick you into looking at one spot before he swoops down for a hit.
- In-Series Nickname: "Crawling Girl", "Boy Hiding" and "Girl in the Well".
- Leitmotif: Distorted (and stock) child laughter. The in-between cries depend on the ghost attacking you:
- The Crawling Girl asks to be taken away and whispers about how long she's been waiting;
- The Girl in the Well cries for help and for Mikoto to come find her;
- The Boy Hiding taunts Miku repeatedly, acting like he's still playing a game.
- Super-Scream: The Crawling Girl can briefly paralyze Miku with a scream attack.
- Puppy Love: The Clock Boy had a crush on Mikoto.
- Recurring Boss: Only the Crawling Girl, who is fought twice. The first fight takes place during Night 1, serving as Foreshadowing of the upcoming chapter.
- Undead Child: Child ghosts that continue to torment Miku through their playing.
Tokitada Kyuki
The bonus boss of the game and a ghost that only appears when playing on Fatal difficulty in the Xbox version. His ghost entry calls him the Armored Warrior's Spirit, though his name and background are mentioned in a note left by one of the Headless Priests.
A samurai serving the Himuro Family Master, he fell in love with one of the Rope Shrine Maidens and tried to stop her from taking part in the ritual, but was stopped and ordered to commit Seppuku for disgracing his duty as a protector. His restless spirit, believing breaking the seal on the Hell Gate would reunite him with his lover, appeared to Kirie in her dreams and instructed her to fail the ritual on purpose. While it did fail, he was never reunited with his beloved.
- Greater-Scope Villain: Implied to be among the causes of the Calamity occurring, because his spirit wanted the Holy Mirror and the seal on the Hell Gate to be broken, believing it would release his lover's spirit. He appeared in Kirie's dreams and encouraged her to break the Mirror, leading to her ritual failing.
- Implacable Man: The only ghost that doesn't get pushed back by a Zero Shot, and will continue his attack patterns despite them. A flurry of quick shots with strong film works a little better to take him down.
- In-Series Nickname: "Armored Warrior".
- Katanas Are Just Better: Uses one in the exact same manner as the Family Master.
- Leitmotif: Shares the same ambience sounds as Lord Himuro, among other details.
- Love at First Sight: With the Rope Shrine maiden whose ritual he observed.
- No Name Given: His name is only mentioned in one of the notes of the Headless Priests in the Xbox version.
- Optional Boss: Appears at the Abyss when playing on Fatal difficulty in the Xbox version exclusively, and actually has to be defeated to allow the player to save on the final night for that difficulty. He behaves similarly to Lord Himuro, but he cannot be pushed back by critical shots, and will continuously approach the player. Since Tokitada is invisible, the player must pay closer attention to hearing him, and has a small timeframe of him being visible and susceptible to the Camera Obscura.
- Palette Swap: Functionally, he's the exact same ghost as Lord Himuro, but looks way more decrepit and zombie-like, with a visibly-rotting face and ragged samurai armor.
- Retcon: No mention of Tokitada is made in the original game for the Playstation 2. He was added in the Xbox version and given a full story that also added another reason as to why Kirie's ritual failed.
- Seppuku: Forced to commit it when his attempt at freeing the Rope Shrine maiden failed, as he had brought dishonor upon himself.
- Spell My Name With An S: Tokitada might be a mistranslation, since the kanji for his name 時定 is usually read as Tokisada.
- Star-Crossed Lovers: Was in love with a previous Rope Shrine maiden and tried to free her before going through with the ritual. He was unsuccessful and she ended up being killed, with him being forced to commit suicide. He wanted to break the seal on the Hell Gate to free her spirit and be reunited with her, but he never saw the woman's spirit again.
Headless Priests
Abyss Priest: "Kirie...! Why did you become attached to this world?! You'll only suffer...!"
Four priests who served under Lord Himuro during Kirie's Strangling Ritual, charged with overseeing other ritualistic practices in the mansion and tending to some parts of it. They were among the first to die when the ritual failed, with all four ending up beheaded by their lord at different parts of the mansion.
- Apocalyptic Log: Priest's Writings.
- Attack Its Weak Point: All four can only be targeted and damaged when their heads become visible.
- Body Horror: The four of them were beheaded, so their ghosts have necks that vanish into thin air until their heads appear.
- Dirty Business: In life, at least, some of them hated the things they had to do to a ensure a successful sacrifice, including killing Kirie's lover.
- The Dragon: All four to the Family Master.
- Four Is Death: The Strangling Ritual demands that four priests join the family master in using the Rope Altar to kill the maiden tied to it.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: The priest fought at the Cherry Atrium has two swords going through his torso.
- Leitmotif: Whistling wind, ritual drums and their constant demands for their heads.
- Playing with Fire: The priest at the Backyard area can throw ethereal fireballs.
- Teleport Spam: All of them tend to do this during battle in different ways each. The Abyss and Square Garden priests do it in ways that make it even trickier to dodge them, with the former moving skyward out of camera view before appearing right on top of you, and the latter "burying" himself on the ground to appear at Miku's feet.
Broken Neck
"It hurts! It hurts!"
A woman who attended the Strangling Ritual when the Calamity happened. Trying to escape Lord Himuro's wrath as he killed those in his path, she leaped off the second floor balcony and fell head-first in the cherry atrium. Her ghost now haunts the manor with her neck still snapped.
- Attack Its Weak Point: Her head is the only spot that can be photographed for damage, meaning the player has to wait for her to turn around to take shots at her.
- Body Horror: Her neck is snapped all the way backwards!
- The Goomba: Apart from one mandatory instance (right after the vanishing ghost encounter showing her death), she's one of the ghosts that can be encountered at random in the first game as Miku explores the mansion.
- Jump Scare: In battle, she'll float closer to the viewfinder then suddenly turn her face around to the camera.
- There's also a possibility your camera's sensor light will flash and her music will begin playing, but you won't see her anywhere, not even as a distortion. Pull up viewfinder mode and she'll slide into view right at your face;
- Not to mention the chance you'll hear her song first and have the filament glow to indicate an area further ahead, out of sight, seemingly indicating she's out of range despite her song playing as if she's close. Leave viewfinder mode and she'll appear right behind you.
- Leitmotif: Strained, echoing breathing and drums.
Former Rope Shrine Maiden
The ghost of a Rope Shrine Maiden before Kirie whose ritual was successful. Appears first during Night 3 as a random encounter ghost before being dealt with in the Final Night at the Baptism Path.
- Came Back Wrong: Since her ritual was successful, her spirit was supposed to be at rest or holding the Hell Gate from opening. But when Kirie's ritual failed, she returned as a vengeful ghost.
- The Dragon: To Kirie, as the final normal ghost fought by the player and being right outside the Hell Gate.
- Half the Man He Used to Be: All she has is her upper body.
- Leitmotif: Her appearance is accompanied by the cracks and stretching noises of ropes and the Rope Altar's wheels.
- The Nameless: Who this Rope Shrine Maiden is was never revealed, with fan speculation ranging from this being Long Arms' daughter to Tokitada Kyuki's lover. Made worst by the fact that "Fatal Frame III: The Tormented" introduced Kizuna Himuro, herself a Rope Shrine Maiden fought regularly in that game that looks rather similar to the one fought in this game (albeit more detailed and with her arms and head floating apart from her body). And with the vague timeline placement for Kizuna's ritual, she could be either one or even both.
- Varying Tactics Boss: Up until the Rope Altar in the Final Night, her strategy is just to stay planted on the ground and try to reach for Miku when she gets close, occasionally teleporting behind her for a surprise attack, but even then she moves rather slowly. Leave the Altar, though, and she reappears for the final round, changing from a Mighty Glacier to a Glass Cannon, chasing after Miku by crawling incredibly fast towards her with even more health and able to cause serious damage.
Wandering Man & Floating Woman
A pair of ghosts that emerged from the Hell Gate after the Calamity occurred, haunting Himuro Mansion and trying to drag any visitors down to Hell with them.
- Ancient Evil: Both died long before the Calamity took place, and were released from the Hell Gate when Kirie's ritual failed.
- Dual Boss: While usually a random encounter, you have one obligatory fight with both of them at the Hell Bridge during the Final Night to seal them away for good.
- The Goomba: They can be tricky to fight in smaller rooms, but they're still easy random ghosts that can be dealt with quickly.
- Humanoid Abomination: Both of them look like skeletal, desiccated human corpses without legs and have long arms that vanish into wilted stubs. The Spirit List doesn't even give them a backstory, which helps to portray them as being far less human than the other ghosts.
- Leitmotif: A distorted conglomeration of women moaning for the Floating Woman, and a creepy droning sound for the Wandering Man.
- Random Encounter: Both are fought at random throughout the game as you explore the mansion. That being said, Miku does have one mandatory encounter with both at the Final Night to finally seal them away, and it's possible to have a scripted encounter with the Floating Woman in the Great Hall area during Night 1.
Long Hair Woman
The ghost of a woman with hair so long that it wraps around her whole body. Her origins are unclear, but she's still a hostile spirit that fights Miku throughout her exploration of Himuro Mansion.
- Damage-Sponge Boss: She has quite a bit of health and deals a good amount of damage if she grabs Miku.
- Dub-Induced Plot Hole: The Spirit List is unclear regarding this ghost's origins. A Hidden Ghost photo with the same title as the hostile one says she used to be a maiden from the mansion that was hit by the Malice and died during the Calamity, while her entry as an enemy says she's a demon from the Hell Gate that drags people down to Hell, implying she was dead beforehand. It's possible she could be a mixture of both, meaning she could've died during the disaster and then Came Back Wrong.
- Godiva Hair: A weird variation. Her hair is certainly long enough to hide her chest, but only because it wraps around her torso like a kimono.
- Leitmotif: Strained breathing, deep female moaning and a shrill whistling sound.
- Long Hair Is Feminine: Taken to its most absurd conclusion. Whether she died during the Calamity or before, she's become a ghost with hair so long that it wraps around her like clothing.
- Random Encounter: Can be fought at random throughout the mansion, but she has two scripted encounters: an optional fight in Night 2 at the Great Hall (which is even preceded by a cutscene), and a mandatory fight in Night 3 at the Fish Tank Room.
- Teleport Spam: She likes to flicker in and out of view while slowly approaching Miku, then fake her out by teleporting slightly to the side while continuing the pattern of going left and right. Either that or she'll immediately appear right before the player to swoop down for a grab attack.
- Wake-Up Call Boss: One of the few ghosts you don't want to encounter at random, as she's trickier than the others and can deal decent damage if you're not keeping the viewfinder on her.
Female Head
A woman's decapitated head. She was a guest at the mansion during the Calamity, and was caught in Lord Himuro's frenzied rage.
- The Cameo: She'll occasionally show up in Haunted House mode in Deep Crimson Butterfly, appearing as a background ghost.
- Flying Face: Since she's just a head without a body, she floats over the ground in order to move around. She's also capable of rolling up a staircase.
- The Goomba: All she can do to attack you is a bum rush, and her health is consistently low in any of her encounters. Even during the final fight with her, she can be dispatched with a single, fully-charged shot, even with basic Type-14 film.
- Leitmotif: Like the Floating Woman, she's accompanied by creepy female moaning.
- Losing Your Head: The ghost of a disembodied head that attacks you all on its own.
- Off with His Head!: Lord Himuro beheaded her in his blind rampage through the mansion.
- Random Encounter: She's fought at random, but has a scripted encounter in Night 1 at the Stairwell, and an optional battle in the Attic during the Final Night if you examine a certain peephole, where you can finally seal her away so she'll never appear again.
Floating Face
A ghost haunting the mansion, supposedly released from the Hell Gate. It has no defined form, appearing as a smoke mass with a face on it.
- Ancient Evil: So ancient, in fact, that it lost its original form through the years, appearing now as just a face in a cloud of vapor.
- Flying Face: Literally just this and nothing more.
- The Goomba: The smoke makes it difficult to say how far he is in comparison to the viewfinder, but keeping a steady Zero Shot chain makes it possible to defeat him in just two photos. Not to mention, much like the Female Head, his only attack is to charge at you when close enough.
- Leitmotif: Echoing drums and ritualistic bells.
- Random Encounter: You have a scripted encounter with this ghost as you leave the Demon Mouth in Night 3. Afterwards, he's randomly fought through the manor.
- Super Smoke: A ghost made of white smoke that is still capable of attacking you.
Wandering Monk
A Buddhist monk that traveled to Himuro Mansion in order to exorcise the ghosts that haunted it. He ended up dying and becoming a new haunting himself.
- Death by Irony: A Buddhist monk traveling to Himuro Mansion in an attempt to exorcise the hostile haunting ghosts within it ended up meeting his end in the very mansion he tried to exorcise for his trouble and became another one of the very hostile specters he himself aimed to exorcise.
- Leitmotif: Chimes and distorted prayer chanting.
- Lightning Bruiser: Easily the hardest of the ghosts you can fight randomly in the game. Not only is he fast, the Monk can cause a TON of damage if he hits you, not to mention giving you a small chance for a Zero Shot when he's already too close for you to take it.
- Random Encounter: He shows up randomly anywhere in the mansion through the Third Night. Miku is never scripted to confront him.
- Sinister Minister: The ghost of a monk corrupted by the Malice in the mansion and turned into one of the same hostile spirits he tried to seal away.
- Teleport Spam: Part of why he's so hard to defeat. His teleport pattern is erratic, never giving you enough time to focus on him to charge your shots before he's already too close for comfort.
Bound Man
"Forgive me..."
A ghost fought by Mafuyu when he entered Himuro Mansion searching for his mentor. Miku later meets the same spirit at random as she looks for her brother. The Bound Man was a victim of the Rope Curse that died some time after the Calamity.
- Apologetic Attacker: His only comprehensible line is the quote above.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Died to Kirie's Rope Curse.
- The Goomba: All he does is rush at you when up close and he moves really slowly, being one of the easiest enemies in the game.
- Leitmotif: Scuttling sounds and creepy mumbling. Bound Man also appears with a ritualistic drum beat that stops when he's defeated.
- Random Encounter: When playing as Miku.
- Warm-Up Boss: The first ghost to be fought in the game (and, by extension, the series as a whole), so he's easy to defeat and his attacks are predictable, all due to the fact he's the ghost used to introduce the combat mechanics for the game.
People Killed
Himuro family members that were present during Kirie's Strangling Ritual, killed during the Calamity after the Malice was released from the Hell Gate.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: Miku runs into a big group of these ghosts when escaping from Kirie at the end of Night 2. Come the start of Night 3 and she fights them while heading back into the Banned Path to get a certain item.
- Leitmotif: Deep growling and breathing.
- Mook: Because they're Himuro family members, they're technically this to Lord Himuro himself.
- Random Encounter: After fighting them once in the Banned Path at Night 3.
- The Swarm: They always appear in a trio, spawning at different parts of the area you're in but never too far apart from each other. Their individual health bars are also small, so getting them in a group (meaning you can charge much faster) is recommended to deal with them fast.
- Zerg Rush: Their main attack, which is to approach each other and then charge at Miku one at a time in quick succession.
Hand from Floor
A disembodied hand that can be fought in Night 1 after the fight with Takamine.
- Floating Limbs: It's a disembodied hand and forearm that emerges from the ground.
- "Get Back Here!" Boss: He can be a nightmare to find if he's summoned in a wide area with too many elements, or an enclosed space with little visibility. Since the camera can't track it unless you're close, you'd have to chase it into solid objects or walls he's too deep into to be caught.
- Joke Character: It barely has any health, does virtually no damage and dies to a single shot from any film type. It pretty much exists to be this and/or an Easter Egg.
- Leitmotif: Shares the same background ambiance as the Bound Man.
- Unique Enemy: It only appears during Night 1 after defeating Takamine but without taking the Buddha statue. The player then needs to head back to the Abyss, defeat 13 other random encounter ghosts (repeating fights count), save the game and wait for the background music to kick in (even then, this method isn't precise). It cannot be tracked by the Camera Obscura and it will only become visible when you're right up close to it.
