Top 5 Things I Want To See In FNaF: Security Breach

Welcome, one and all, to another gaming list post! Today, I’m looking at Five Nights At Freddy’s: Security Breach, the upcoming horror title from Steel Wool Studios. So, let’s start with the official teaser trailer that aired during the PS5 event:

Now, I’m a fan of the animatronic themed franchise as a whole. There’s something endearing about the jump scare fuelled gameplay for me, and the deeper lore is interesting to look into. This particular title is, so far, a beautiful looking game. Knowing that the footage in the trailer is from actual gameplay too gives me plenty of faith that it’s going to be one of the best yet from an aesthetic standpoint.

And I’m not alone in being excited about this either. Check out the trailer reaction and analysis by the excellent YouTuber FuhNaff below. He has a few other videos relating to the game too, so give them a look-in if you’re interested too.

So, it’s safe to say there’s a lot of hype. But… we still don’t really know too much about the game. So, for today’s post, I’m going to look at the Top 5 Things I Want To See In FNaF: Security Breach, and how likely each one is to happen.

Free-Roaming Gameplay

Most of the franchise has seen you sitting in a static position, dealing a mechanical terror on a single screen. This time around, I’d like to see something a little different. What I want is for the game to really use the potential of it being set in a mall.

Now, I don’t mind if certain tasks have to be done in a particular order. Like, you must complete action A in room B and task C in room D before you can unlock the final area, for example. But the huge setting gives plenty of scope for allowing you a measure of freedom as to how you tackle things. Let u have a wander and take in the scenery as we figure out what to do.

Is this likely? Well, there is some precedent for it. While the first three games saw you sitting in place, the fourth allows you to move around a room. FNaF: Sister Location then spiced things up with some gameplay variety, including some sections where you had to traverse the play area. Then, in FNaF: Help Wanted, the Corn maze game in the Curse of Dreadbear DLC saw you running around a maze. So, with each game adding more new elements, this seems like a good time to give us some real-time exploration options. When you consider Steel Wool Studios were involved with Help Wanted too, it seems like a good shout.

Online Hide And Seek

Picture this: an online multiplayer experience where at least one of you is either the apparent new villain Vanny or a killer animatronic. I see this as a timed mini-game where the brunt of the players are trying to survive the night while avoiding the other players try to find them and kill them.

This kinda ties into the free-roaming gameplay concept, because without that, this wouldn’t be easily workable. It needs to be set up so that you can either utilize the whole mall, or parts of it as part of a fatal game of hide and seek. You could even spice it up with a Create-An-Animatronic mode to unleash your own robo-nightmares on others!

Is this likely? Well, it’s possible. There has been at least one fan game where you play as the animatronics. There are also other games that use this style of play, such as the recent Friday The 13^th game. So, while there isn’t an official link to this type of game, it’s not completely outside the realms of possibilities. And as to a Create-An-Animatronic mode, there’s a degree of customization in FNaF AR: Special Delivery so it’s not a massive leap conceptually.

Unlockable Classic Gameplay… With A Twist

There’s a certain amount of charm to the original games. The use of video cameras and audio cues as a way to track the advancing animatronics was simple fun. To that end, it would seem strange not to have a section of the game running like this.

What I’d like to see is something that’s set up like the old games. But, rather than just trying to stop yourself getting killed, I want it to involve you protecting trapped mall patrons. Using the mall’s security system, you could open and close doors, and give audio commands telling them when to hide and when to move, as you try to get them to safety. Alien: Blackout, the mobile sequel to Alien: Isolation actually did this, so the system is certainly out there.

Is this likely? Well, all the games have featured this style of gameplay so far. Even Sister Location had a hidden classic game if you found the true ending. So, the likelihood of there not being something akin not this in there somewhere seems pretty low. Would it feature a twist like I suggested? I’m not sure. It would be fun, in my opinion, but who knows?

New Lore, Old Friends

We’ve already seen in both the trailer for Security Breach and the Help Wanted game that this is all part of a new story cycle for FNaF. There are new animatronics, and the story has moved in a different direction. But, that doesn’t mean the old stuff should be forgotten.

No matter how it all fits into the current story arc, I’d love to see little nods to the old animatronics and plot points in this. Don’t’ get me wrong, I absolutely want to see how this all plays out with the newcomers. Seeing posters or merchandise for the likes of Foxy and Mangle in different areas of the mall would be great though!

Is this likely? I would think so! I can’t see any reason Steel Wool Studios wouldn’t include some nods to the older parts of the franchise. There’s just so much to choose from that it would almost seem strange not to.

Animated Cut Scenes

Now, the older games gave us moments of this. Usually, these were done in a very retro style that kinda put me in mind of the Atari 2600. With the current graphical upgrade though, I don’t see why this can’t head in a new direction too.

From a graphical standpoint, the way the game looks is amazing. Why not use the same engine to create fully animated, high-quality modern cut scenes? Honestly, while I don’t think cut scenes were needed in FNaF 1, for example, I think it would add to the experience in this particular game.

Is this likely? That’s hard to tell. Help Wanted did feature some animated set pieces, so I fully expect the endings to fit with this. Will there be other bits between missions/nights? I hope so!

So, that’s my wishlist. But what yourselves? Do you like the FNaF franchise? What’s your favourite entry? What do you want to see in this game? Let me know in the comments below.