Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly[a] is a survival horror video game developed by Tecmo for PlayStation 2.

The story follows sisters Mio and Mayu Amakura as they are trapped in a ghost-filled village cursed by a failed ritual which they are being forced to re-enact.

Gameplay follows Mio as she explores the village searching for Mayu, fighting hostile ghosts using the series' recurring Camera Obscura.

Crimson Butterfly began development shortly after the original game, with returning staff including director Makoto Shibata, producer Keisuke Kikuchi, and writer Tsuyoshi Iuchi.

The aim was to both refine the gameplay mechanics of the original Fatal Frame, and to create a compelling narrative to encourage players to finish the game.

[2]: 6–13, 20 Twins Mio and Mayu Amakura visit a forested valley in the Minakami region where they used to play as children, which will shortly be flooded due to a new dam project.

Mayu is led away by a crimson butterfly, with Mio giving chase and the two ending up in Minakami Village, a legendary location said to trap people who enter it.

Mayu is frequently separated from Mio, led by crimson butterflies deeper into the village and eventually becoming possessed by the spirit of a girl called Sae Kurosawa.

[7] The CGI cutscenes were handled by Daisuke Inari, who described the task of balancing the horror elements with Japanese-inspired beauty as "a mind-boggling challenge".

[8] Production ran parallel to the Xbox port of the original game, with Kikuchi choosing the early staff to "push the envelop" of the proposed gameplay.

The scenario was inspired by a dream by Shibata which he described as having a complete plot and ending he just needed to make work as a video game.

[5]: 78–82  Kikuchi cited the stories of Seishi Yokomizo, and both Japanese and Western horror movies as inspiration for Crimson Butterfly.

[12] In the middle of production, Kikuta voiced his wish for a theme song, and Shibata suggested they approach singer-songwriter Tsukiko Amano after hearing her debut single "Hakoniwa".

The port included updated graphics, a first person camera option, a new harder difficulty mode, new costumes for Mio and Mayu, and a new ending.

When creating the first person mode, which was intended to make the game more frightening, Kikuchi used Halo: Combat Evolved as a reference.

[24] In Japan, the game released on November 11 using the American title, with pre-orders including a fan disc featuring behind the scenes information and promotional trailers.

[49][50][51][52] Writing for Ars Technica in an article of that type, Ben Kuchera cited its use of atmosphere and the camera-based gameplay as keeping the player on edge throughout the experience.

[55] A third Fatal Frame title began development shortly before the release of Crimson Butterfly, with the team intended it as the final entry for the PS2 generation and exploring new approaches to the series' established horror.

[56] Titled Fatal Frame III: The Tormented, the game was released in 2005 in Japan and North America, and 2006 in Europe.

[57][58][59] The Tormented continues storylines from the original Fatal Frame and Crimson Butterfly, creating a narrative trilogy.

[60] A remake of Crimson Butterfly was developed for the Wii, with its graphics being updated and its gameplay redesigned based on that of the fourth Fatal Frame title Mask of the Lunar Eclipse (2008).