The long awaited installment of the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” franchise released on Dec. 16, 2021, filling all fans with excitement. Security Breach introduces new loveable characters and some old foes. With every Scott Cawthon game, there is a deep hidden lore, which is tangled for fans to uncover. It is never a dull moment with “Five Nights at Freddy’s” and Scott Cawthon.

Like every “Five Nights at Freddy’s” game, the new installment is an indie horror title with puzzle and survival elements. Expect lots of jump scares, loud noises, flashing lights, and possible frustration while playing the game. Also expect the unexpected, Scott doesn’t do coincidences.

Based on Cawthon’s announcement of retirement last year, this might be the last game he develops. Cawthon has stated that he entrusted his franchise to someone he believes will carry on the game just as well or better than he did. We can expect good things in the future if so. 

The gameplay, on the other hand, has a few glitches and technical issues. This includes duplicates of the famous Freddy Fazbear model, animatronics not being able to reach you in obviously easy to reach places, and walk cycle issues in the animatronics. Famed YouTuber Mark Fischbach or Markiplier, encountered quite a few of these bugs in his own gameplay.

Building on the gameplay, many have speculated that the whole game was scrapped and remade only a few months before the release. The first trailer for the game introduces voices that were never heard in the actual game, mechanics that never show up, and a different look all together. Fans speculate that this is due to the problem between Funko, a popular toy company, and Cawthon when they released figures for the new game when the designs were not even released. Cawthon told his fans on Reddit to, “…try not to let any of this bother you too much. Things will be happening very very differently going forward.” Yet, this theory is not proven true as of now.

Of course, it would not be a “Five Nights at Freddy’s” game if beloved theorist YouTuber Matthew Patrick, better known as MatPat, didn’t weigh in. He has already released a couple theories on the new installment and has uploaded his own playthrough on the GTLive channel.

The nostalgic design of the Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza Plex was an homage to the developer’s favorite childhood places. The funky neon 80’s vibe is very prevalent in the game. Along with the looks of the animatronics themselves, some have mismatched stockings, star shaped glasses, and big hair styles.

The main characters that are introduced to us are Freddy Fazbear, Glamrock Chica, Roxanne Wolf, and Montgomery Gator. A noticeable absence of Bonnie the bunny and Foxy the fox really hit the fans. Foxy being a fan favorite through all of the games and Bonnie being an ongoing character that was all the sudden scrapped. Bonnie was not completely left out though, he has his own section in the pizza plex called Bonnie Bowl. This led fans to believe that Bonnie existed at some point, but not anymore.

Other characters such as the daycare attendants Sun and Moon (lovingly nicknamed Sundrop and Moondrop by fans), Music Man, and Mapbot appear as well. Some more characters are being seen for the first time and some seen in previous games. 

Security Breach picked up traction and quickly became the largest game in the franchise, even over the virtual reality title Help Wanted. Being able to interact with animatronics and having one on your side was a refreshing feeling for players. Having free roam of the map and experiencing all of the hidden presents was part of the fun for everyone. 

Anyone who holds the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” fandom close to their hearts, thrill seekers, and anyone with an appreciation for video game design and artistry would enjoy Security Breach. Those who are a bit jumpy or can’t handle flashing lights should stray away from the game but can still love from afar with the adorable plushies and action figures that accompany the franchise. They can even read the books that Cawthon has released over the past few years.