History YMMV / FiveNightsAtFreddys4

* SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound: The 6 AM sound, as usual, although it's the sound of an alarm clock and doesn't have any WestminsterChimes like the previous games.

* UncannyValley: Plushtrap is a CreepyDoll version of an already fiendish-looking animatronic, who in turn has ''really strong'' ties with the franchise's most [[SerialKiller wicked]] [[GreaterScopeVillain character]]. The combination couldn't be more perfect. What ''really'' sells it is the disturbingly human-like eyes.
** The Nightmare Puppet is really disturbing now due to its GhostlyGape in place of its previous expression of malicious joy. [[spoiler:Not to mention the hidden, incredibly realistic eyes it sports.]]

* ItWasHisSled:
** [[spoiler:Golden Freddy is Fredbear and is responsible for the Bite of '83, of whom the protagonist is the victim.]]
** [[spoiler:The player character ''dies'' after Night 6.]]

* JerkassWoobie:
** The Child's brother. [[spoiler:He's terrorized his younger brother by playing off his fear for the restaurant and taking him there multiple times, even though he ''knows'' his brother hates it. During his birthday party, he and his friends take him on stage and places the Child's head in the animatronic's mouth. As soon as the animatronic closes its mouth on the Child's head, the brother and his friends stop laughing. Although the brother is remorseful about what happened, it still doesn't excuse him for what he did. He and his friends should have known something like that would happen. It's also been [[WildMassGuessing theorized]] that, in the main game, you in fact play as the big brother rather than The Child, meaning he possibly has to deal with these monstrosities as well as his own guilt.]]
** Upper Management for Fredbear's Family Diner/Freddy Fazbear's Pizza also qualifies. They may be a lousy business that lacks compassion for their employees, but no place deserves [[spoiler:a serial killing employee AND a horrific accident caused by terrible customers]]. Their downfall is a ForegoneConclusion.

* WhatAnIdiot: An odd version. [[spoiler:While no one would expect Fredbear to chomp the kid's head, what exactly did they think would happen to the kid or Fredbear if they jammed his head in there?]]
* TheWoobie: The protagonist is a kid who is under attack in his own home by the nightmare animatronics and is treated as an outcast by every other child he encounters because of how timid he is. [[spoiler:And then there's all the shit he gets from his older brother, eventually culminating in the Bite of '83.]] This kid practically defines this trope.

* HilariousInHindsight:
** ''Typhoon Cinema'' made a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN3gBepo2ls video]] including a small Springtrap plushie. Come the [[http://i.imgur.com/trzR16r.jpg seventh teaser]], there's a small Springtrap named Plushtrap; he's even sitting on a chair, just like in the video.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf63MUmL7m0 These]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09rc7eQa1Hk&index=18&list=PLlD9jSJ1xSBYeDUtTuwP_q6EO1UOxhO27 videos]] are even more hilarious as [[spoiler:the cupcake can now jumpscare you. Bonus points as the cupcake in the video has teeth like its nightmare design]]
** Way back in the first game's Custom Night, players would set the animatronics to 1-9-8-7 in hopes of finding out more information about the Bite of '87, or even play ''during'' the day/night of the event, [[spoiler:only to have it trigger Golden Freddy's jumpscare before crashing the game. At the time, people just assumed Scott was acting as a TrollingCreator, but since this game shows that Fredbear/Golden Freddy actually ''was'' the cause of the Bite of '8[[ThereIsAnother 3]],]] perhaps fans actually did get a clue about the event they were hoping for.
** People loved to make joke theories about how the cupcake was actually a persisting threat in the games. Now it ''really'' is.
** The subtitle of this game is "The Final Chapter", presumably named after the ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' film with the same name, which was decidedly '''not''' the final chapter in that franchise. Come ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSisterLocation'', and the game's subtitle is parallel with the film's.

* {{Narm}}:
** The new animatronics being more overtly monstrous in design compared to the previous games has evoked this opinion for some of the fanbase, feeling the new animatronics to be too over-the-top to be legitimately scary. Then again, maybe this is on purpose -- you ''are'' playing as a child, and many kids have rather bloated imaginations that can make some things we don't find scary terrifying for them. Also justified, as it's all but stated that [[spoiler:the Nightmare animatronics are exactly that: manifestations of the child's deepest fears. Thus it makes sense for them to look as horrific as they do.]]
** [[https://youtu.be/Sw3dX1WBdbg?t=173 Guess what can kill you now?]]
** Some people think Plushtrap is just too cute and/or small to be scary or threatening, more likely to tickle you than maim you. Doesn't help that 'plush' is commonly accepted as the cuddliest term for a stuffed animal.
** The Nightmarionette, introduced in the non-canon Halloween update, is rather creepy, but it's a bit spoiled by the Extra menu presumably chopping its name down to the bizarre "Nightmarionne".
** Jack-O-Chica's jack-o-lantern manages to be even ''less'' scary than the Nightmare ''Cupcake''.
** [[spoiler:[[http://i.imgur.com/MLW7zpO.jpg Nightmare Mangle]]]] looks horrifying. [[spoiler:Their endoskeleton, though]], has plenty of sharp teeth too...but retains the googly eyeballs.
** Some have interpreted the Nightmarionne's killscreen as the demonic puppet being ''totally high'', due to its bloodshot, unfocused eyes.
** Nightmare BB probably could have been a lot scarier if Scott made him damaged like the others, but while he's certainly unnerving, he's just as pristine as the real Toy animatronics without a single flaw on his bright plastic exterior.
** On the subject of Nightmare BB, his half-lidded eyes, and pitched-down "Hello?" and "Hi" make him seem more like a bored teenager than a creepy animatronic.
** One aspect of Chica that many fans often pointed out in prior games is that she very noticeably has two sets of teeth. What does this game do? Why, up the ante by giving her '''three''' sets of teeth!
* PortingDisaster: While all of the games in the series have had a problem with frame-rate drop in their mobile ports due to the limited power of most phones/tablets, it is ''especially'' noticeable in this game due to the constant movement and running around you have to utilize as opposed to flipping through an array of static camera screens with the only animation being on the animatronics' kill screens. A subdued version of this trope, to be sure, but still a hassle.
** In addition, this game also eschews the story related minigames that take place between nights, a la ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys3'' (the latter still has the Toy Animatronic mini games, but without the Purple Guy ones it loses a lot of the context). Normally this wouldn't be an issue if it weren't for the fact that the story is ''only'' told through those minigames since you don't have someone calling you every night and talking to you like the last three. To say this has caused a bit of "TheyChangedItNowItSucks" reactions would be an understatement.

* ParanoiaFuel:
** The game is set inside the main character's ''house''. Not a job that can be escaped, but a house… and they can be in the hallway, in the closet, ''anywhere''. The character isn't safe in his own home.
*** Picture it this way: A child is left home alone at night with a bunch of robots that want to harm them, said robots have slaughtered numerous big and burly adult security guards. This child has to last six hours against these things for at least five nights in a pitch black house, with a flashlight as his only means of seeing anything.
** The breathing mechanic. Basically, animatronics that are in front of your door will breathe heavily, and this is a signal to ''not'' use your flashlight and '''hold the door closed''' until they go away. Of course, this means that every time you go to the door- which you'll be doing A LOT, you stare out into the inky blackness, hoping and praying that nothing is there. If you hear breathing, then you're half a foot away from the jaws of one of these monsters, and even flicking on that flashlight for a ''second'' will kill you. Choose wisely.
** For RealLife: you are trapped with an older sibling who uses your fears against you, will terrorize you on a regular basis, and leave you trapped in a place [[spoiler: where children and employees have died]], and ultimately leads to you receiving a [[spoiler:serious injury]]. And given the time period, the 1980s, SocialServicesDoesNotExist and ThereAreNoTherapists for the child protagonist.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
** [[spoiler:Were the kids who shoved the protagonist's head in Fredbear's mouth [[ForTheEvulz being sadistic monsters]] or [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone were they just being dumb kids who didn’t know what they were doing until it was too late?]] The cutscene at the end of Night 6 strongly implies it to be the latter.]]
** In his EasterEgg appearance, William Afton can be found putting a Spring Bonnie mask on an employee.[[spoiler: Was he just doing it as part of his job, or (since 2 revealed that a yellow suit was used to lure the children into the back) was he trying to frame another employee for his murders?]]
** In the Night Two minigame, did the person in the Fredbear suit intentionally scare the child by following him, or did he just see that the child was upset and come over to try and help, accidentally scaring him?
** Fredbear himself. [[spoiler:Despite the Nightmare Animatronics terrorizing the poor child, Fredbear -- or at least the plush of him -- seems to try to console the child, even going so far as to say that he and the others want to fix the child after he suffers the Bite. Is this actual good intentions... or just a precursor to the nightmares faced in gameplay? ([[BreadEggsBreadedEggs Or good intentions gone (literally) nightmarishly wrong?]])]]
** Is the player character [[spoiler: the little brother who was shoved into Fredbear's mouth and the game is his DyingDream?]] Or is it [[spoiler: the older brother who's having nightmares from the guilt?]]

* WinTheCrowd: A lot of people weren't happy with there being a 4th game in the series, especially after [[EarnYourHappyEnding how perfectly the third game ended]]; others thought that the series was already stretching and [[FranchiseZombie Scott was just milking it for all its worth at this point]] or [[NightmareRetardant the new designs just looked stupid]]. When the trailer came out and people started to get their hands on the demo, a lot of people started to warm up to it after seeing its setting and its mechanics. The jumpscares were now rendered with the room just like they were back in the first game, pleasing the people who disliked the second and third games' jumpscares due to their sprites being a separate render and causing all kinds of graphical goofs due to the games' perspective camera. Also, ''4'' turned out to be a prequel to ''3'', and did not [[{{Retcon}} overwrite]] ''3'''s ending.

* ''YMMV/FiveNightsAtFreddys'' (franchise)

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: The game gave a pretty forward anvil: Bullying has damaging effects on a child. Because no one stepped in--not the [[ParentalNeglect parents]], not the other [[KidsAreCruel kids]], [[AdultsAreUseless no one]]--when the older brother kept tormenting the child, the bullying went too far [[spoiler:and now the kid is physically and mentally scarred for the rest of his life--which may not have lasted much longer.]] The entire game and its [[DownerEnding sad ending]] could have been avoided if the older brother hadn’t been bullying the younger one. Not only that, but one person standing up for himself doesn't guarantee anything. Others have to join in.

* MemeticMutation:
** Loads of people have joked about the "Final Chapter" tease, as the ''[[Franchise/FridayThe13th Friday the 13th]]'' franchise used "The Final Chapter" as a subtitle for its [[Film/FridayThe13thTheFinalChapter fourth]] (and decidedly not-final) entry. Especially true when Scott ended up making [[Videogame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSisterLocation a new game in the series]] after all.
** Comparisons to ''VideoGame/SilentHills'', given the timing of its cancellation and FNAF 4's first teaser, have also sprung up.
** When first revealed, fans described Nightmare Freddy as a mechanical [[WesternAnimation/GravityFalls Multi-Bear.]] or as an animatronic bear version of [[VideoGame/EarthBound Giygas]], earning him the FanNickname of "Giygas Freddy".
*** Nightmare Freddy is also subject to jokes about being a single dad, with the [[FanNickname Fredlings]] as his children.
** "NIGHTMARE", the hidden caption in all the images so far. Mostly used sarcastically by those who [[{{Narm}} find the new designs ridiculous.]]
** The promotional images of the Nightmare animatronics slightly hidden in shadows with the caption "Was it me?" spawned numerous parody images with characters such as [[RunningGag the fan]], Wrestling/VinceMcMahon, [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure Dio Brando]], and others taking the place of the animatronics.
** [[{{Film/Se7en}} "WHAT'S IN THE BOX?!"]] came about shortly after people first began beating the game and gained a ''lot'' of traction after Scott's decision to keep the box closed.
** When Scott "confirmed" Mangle's gender via MathematiciansAnswer, fans starting joking about its gender literally being "yes" and identifying their own gender as "yes".

* WinTheCrowd: A lot of people weren't happy with there being a 4th game in the series, especially after [[EarnYourHappyEnding how perfectly the third game ended]]; others thought that the series was already stretching and [[FranchiseZombie Scott was just milking it for all its worth at this point]] or [[NightmareRetardant the new designs just looked stupid]]. When the trailer came out and people started to get their hands on the demo, a lot of people started to warm up to it after seeing its setting and its mechanics. The jumpscares were now rendered with the room just like they were back in the first game, pleasing the people who disliked the second and third games' jumpscares due to their sprites being a separate render and causing all kinds of graphical goofs due to the games' perspective camera. Also, ''4'' turned out to be a prequel to ''3'' , and did not [[{{Retcon}} overwrite]] ''3'''s ending.

* TheWoobie:
** The protagonist is a kid who is under attack in his own home by the nightmare animatronics and is treated as an outcast by every other child he encounters because of how timid he is. [[spoiler:And then there's all the shit he gets from his older brother, eventually culminating in the Bite of '83.]] This kid practically defines this trope.

** In addition, this game also eschews the story related minigames that take place between nights, a la ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys3'' (the latter still has the Toy Animatronic mini games, but without the Purple Guy ones it loses a lot of the context). Normally this wouldn't be an issue if it weren't for the fact that the story is ''only'' told through those minigames since you don't have someone calling you every night and talking to you like the last three. To say this has caused a bit of "TheyChangeditNowItSucks" reactions would be an understatement.

** In addition, this game also eschews the story related mini-games that take place between nights, a la ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys3'' (the latter still has the Toy Animatronic mini games, but without the Purple Guy ones it loses a lot of the context). Normally this wouldn't be an issue if it weren't for the fact that the story is ''only'' told through those mini games since you don't have someone calling you every night and talking to you like the last three. To say this has caused a bit of [[TheyChangeditNowItSucks He Changed It Now It Sucks]] reactions would be an understatement.

* ''YMMV/FiveNightsAtFreddys''

* Is the player character [[spoiler: the little brother who was shoved into Fredbear's mouth and the game is his DyingDream?]] Or is it [[spoiler: the older brother who's having nightmares from the guilt?]]

** In his EasterEgg appearance, [[spoiler:was the Purple Guy stuffing a victim into a suit, or merely helping a fellow employee put it on? If it's the latter, was he just doing it as part of his job, or (since 2 revealed that a yellow suit was used to lure the children into the back) was he trying to frame another employee for his murders?]]

* TheChrisCarterEffect: Has been accused of this by some of the fanbase. Many were hoping that the fourth (and at the time, last) game in the "FNaF" series would at least answer one or two burning questions surrounding the lore, like the Purple Guy's identity or the infamous Bite of '87. Instead, people were left even MORE confused than ever. [[spoiler:Scott announcing he wouldn't open the box]] didn't help at all, alongside the Halloween update being PaletteSwaps and not much else.

* TheChrisCarterEffect: Has been accused of this by some of the fanbase. Many were hoping that the fourth (and at the time, last) game in the "Five Nights" series would at least answer one or two burning questions surrounding the lore, like the Purple Guy's identity or the infamous Bite of '87. Instead, people were left even MORE confused than ever. [[spoiler:Scott announcing he wouldn't open the box]] didn't help at all, alongside the Halloween update being PaletteSwaps and not much else.

* InternetBackdraft: Scott's [[https://steamcommunity.com/games/388090/announcements/detail/125327007944045364 announcement]] for the Halloween Content. In the latter half of it, he explains that despite the fans having easily figured out the story for the other 3 games, ''nobody'' had figured out the story for 4, capping it off by announcing that the box at the end of the game, which had "all the pieces put together", wouldn't be opened. Many were upset over this since it meant that the biggest secret in the then-final game of the series would remain unanswered and as a result, many who had been struggling to figure out the lore were turned off from the series with this revelation.

** [[spoiler:Were the kids who shoved the protagonist's head in Fredbear's mouth [[ForTheEvulz being sadistic monsters]] or [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone were they just being dumb kids who didn’t know what they were doing until it was too late?]]]]
*** Strongly implied to be the latter, considering the intro to the next night.
** In his EasterEgg appearance, was the Purple Guy [[spoiler:stuffing a victim into a suit, or merely helping a fellow employee put it on? If it's the latter, was he just doing it as part of his job, or(since 2 revealed that a yellow suit was used to lure the children into the back) was he trying to frame another employee for his murders?]]

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: The mini-game where the child [[spoiler:is locked in the Parts room, with several animatronic heads]]. We are never given an explanation for this, who locked him in (it's implied to be the brother, but could also be [[spoiler:the Purple Man]]), what day or time it is [[spoiler:since it could be happening during the Purple Man's murders]], and it doesn't add anything to our comprehension.

* TheChrisCarterEffect: Has been accused of this by some of the fanbase. Many were hoping that the fourth (and at the time, last) game in the "Five Nights" series would at least answer one or two burning questions surrounding the lore, like the Purple Man's identity or the infamous Bite of '87. Instead, people were left even MORE confused than ever. [[spoiler:Scott promising never to open the box]] didn't help at all, alongside the Halloween update being PaletteSwaps and not much else.

** Way back in the first game's Custom Night, players would set the animatronics to 1-9-8-7 in hopes of finding out more information about the Bite of '87, or even play ''during'' the day/night of the event, [[spoiler:only to have it trigger Golden Freddy's jumpscare before crashing the game. At the time, people just assumed Scott was acting as a TrollingCreator, but since this game shows that Fredbear/Golden Freddy actually ''was'' the cause of the Bite of '8[[AmbiguousSituation ?]],]] perhaps fans actually did get the clues about the event they were hoping for, only to completely ignore it!

* InternetBackdraft: Scott's [[https://steamcommunity.com/games/388090/announcements/detail/125327007944045364 announcement]] for the Halloween Content. In the latter half, he explains that despite having easily figured out the story for the other 3 games, ''nobody'' had figured out the story for 4, capping it off by announcing that the box at the end of the game, which had "all the pieces put together", wouldn't be opened. Many were upset over this since it meant that the biggest secret in the then-final game of the series would remain unanswered and as a result, many who had been struggling to figure out the lore were turned off from the series with this revelation.

** Upper Management for Fredbear's Family Diner/Freddy Fazbear's Pizza also qualifies. They may be a lousy business that lacks compassion for their employees, but no place deserves [[spoiler:a serial killing employee AND a horrific accident caused by terrible customers]] in the same week alone. Their downfall is a ForegoneConclusion.

** We can see [[spoiler:the Purple Man putting a spring-lock suit]] on [[spoiler:''presumably'']] another Fazbear employee. Safe to assume that the latter was the schmuck that got [[spoiler:arrested for the murders]].

* ScrappyMechanic: Before the v1.01 patch that increased the breathing volume to much higher levels, many people disliked the crucial game mechanic of having to listen for breathing to know an animatronic is nearby in the hallways, in order to close the door and wait for them to leave. It was previously very troublesome for the hearing impaired, and a fair amount of [[LetsPlay Let's Players]] who were shown during gameplay videos to not actually be able to hear anything no matter how long they waited for the breathing to appear, due to the actual noises being rather inaudible if one doesn't intently listen to it. Previously the only solution was to turn the volume up, [[EarRape which would only cause more problems if players were given the noisy jumpscare anyway]].
%%* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: The game gave a pretty forward anvil: Bullying has damaging effects on a child. Because no one stepped in--not the [[ParentalNeglect parents]], not the other [[KidsAreCruel kids]], [[AdultsAreUseless no one]]--when the older brother kept tormenting the child, the bullying went too far [[spoiler:and now the kid is physically and mentally scarred for the rest of his life--which might not be very long if that really was a flat line at the end.]] The entire game and its [[DownerEnding sad ending]] could have been avoided if the older brother hadn’t been bullying the younger one. Not only that, but one person standing up for himself doesn't guarantee anything. Others have to join in.

** Nightmare Balloon Boy is this to some members of the fandom due to his unscary apppearence and minor role.

* VillainProtagonist: If you interpret the game as [[spoiler: the PTSD-induced nightmares of the older brother, not the coma dreams of the child from the minigames.]]

** By now, everyone knows that [[spoiler:Golden Freddy is Fredbear]], and that [[spoiler:he is responsible for the Bite of '83, of whom the protagonist is the victim.]]
** [[spoiler:The player character ''dying'' after Night 6.]]

** When first revealed, fans described Nightmare Freddy as a mechanical [[WesternAnimation/GravityFalls Multi-Bear.]]
*** Or as an animatronic bear version of [[VideoGame/EarthBound Giygas]], earning him the FanNickname of "Giygas Freddy".

** [[{{Film/Se7en}} "WHAT'S IN THE BOX?!"]] came about shortly after people first began beating the game and gained a ''lot'' of traction after [[spoiler:Scott's decision to keep the box closed]].

* HarsherInHindsight:
** An old-yet-popular theory for the franchise was one where Mike Schmidt was the kid who suffered from the Bite of '87. One of the more well known [=AUs=] was one where the Bite was done by accident, with the perpetrator being one of the animatronics that Mike at least tolerated. [[spoiler:This makes recent events, such as the ''true'' story of what happened during the Bite, somewhat harder to look at. However, speculation to the Child's identity are still going around.]]
** [[spoiler:The "Don't touch Freddy" rule in the first game now makes ''so much more'' sense thanks to this game.]]
* ItWasHisSled: By now, everyone knows that [[spoiler:Golden Freddy is Fredbear]], and that [[spoiler:he is responsible for the Bite of '83, of whom the protagonist is the victim]].

** The actual animatronics count, once we see [[spoiler:the Bite of '87]]. Sure, in FNAF 2 we saw them gunning for Jeremy Fitzgerald for about six nights in a row, even though Jeremy (as far as we know) isn't [[spoiler:the Purple Man who murdered the children even as Freddy and the Puppet tried to "S-A-V-E-T-H-E-M"]]. But here we see that [[spoiler:Bite Night ''wasn't their fault''.]] In fact, none of them were present when it happened, and sheer bad luck caused [[spoiler:Fredbear/Golden Freddy]] to break their one rule: [[spoiler:WouldntHurtAChild]]. What makes it even worse? They become TheScapegoat, and [[spoiler:the toy animatronics were scrapped]] through no fault of their own.