The Correct Order To Play The Five Nights At Freddy's Games Ahead Of The Movie Release
Hollywood has been trying to make a "Five Nights at Freddy's" film for nearly eight years, and this Halloween season, fans will finally get what they've been waiting for. Scott Cawthon's original "Five Nights at Freddy's" point-and-click survival horror game was an independent sensation, spawning a sprawling franchise and becoming the gateway to all things horror for a generation. There are games, books, toys, and enough fan art to fill a museum centered on the characters and their misadventures. While it doesn't seem like it'll be necessary to understand the full lore of the game to enjoy the movie, if you're the type of completionist who feels compelled to dive into the franchise before the film ... you might want to get started now. The release order of the nine canonical "Five Nights at Freddy's" games are as follows, including the year they debuted:
- "Five Nights at Freddy's" (2014)
- "Five Nights at Freddy's 2" (2014)
- "Five Nights at Freddy's 3" (2015)
- "Five Nights at Freddy's 4" (2015)
- "Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location" (2016)
- "Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator" (2017)
- "Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted" (2019)
- "FNaF: Special Delivery" (2019)
- "Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach" (2021)
However, much like the "Saw" franchise, the story of "FNaF" was not told in chronological order. While some argue that playing the games in order of release is more fun, as you'll not have all of the answers to questions you might have throughout gameplay — which makes the games scarier — some of us are panicky scaredy-cats who want to know what's coming. It's me, I'm "some of us." If you're looking to play the games in chronological order ahead of the film's debut in theaters and streaming on Peacock on October 27, 2023, here's what you need to know.
The origin story games
The first game in the story was actually the fourth one released, as "Five Nights at Freddy's 4" is set in 1983. The player is a young child in their bedroom afraid of nightmarish monsters, which look like twisted versions of Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy. You use a flashlight and run between the bedroom door, closet, and behind your bed for safety. The date is confirmed thanks to an Easter egg during a minigame where you can trigger a commercial for the "Fredbear and Friends" show on a TV, which aired in 1983.
The next game in the chronological playthrough is "Five Nights at Freddy's 2," where players take on the role of a security guard in 1987, based on the date printed on the check the player receives at the end of Night 5. New animatronics are introduced including The Puppet and Balloon Boy, so there are more characters to keep an eye on in addition to the core four. Additionally, players can now wear a Fredbear costume head to try and trick the animatronics, but The Puppet won't be fooled. You'll need to keep a music box playing to keep him away.
There's been some debate regarding the exact time of "Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location," but as it could theoretically take place between the late '80s and early '90s, this would make the title the third game in the chronology. The game takes place at Circus Baby's Entertainment and Rental, a children's entertainment competitor with different animatronics from the Freddy Fazbear empire that came about after the 1987 tragedy that shut down operations. The player must survive the night, as well as complete repairs throughout the game.
The game that launched the franchise
Set in 1993, the first "Five Nights at Freddy's" inserts players in the middle of the lore. Taking on the role of security guard Mike Schmidt, players must keep watch at the dilapidated Freddy Fazbear's Pizza for five night shifts. It seems like a security guard should be preoccupied with making sure delinquent teens aren't breaking in after hours, but in this game, the biggest threat comes from inside. The animatronics are roaming around at night, and it's your job to reserve power, pay close attention to the security cameras, and keep yourself safe. It's fascinating to see the little crumbs of lore Scott Cawthon included in the first game, like hearing the Phone Guy's dialogue mention "the bite of '87," which players will later learn took place around the time of "Five Nights at Freddy's 2."
The lack of backstory only added to the terror of the original "Five Nights at Freddy's," truly putting the player in the same headspace as Mike Schmidt. Why are these animatronics coming to life? Who did this? How dangerous are these machines? Does it even matter? None of these questions are given a definitive answer, motivating fans to come back for future games to learn the truth. It's doubtful that Cawthon could have anticipated the success that would come with "FNaF," but by introducing the series with ambiguous details, it provided plenty of room for expansion. Whether he had intended to or not, Cawthon laid the groundwork for a franchise in the very first game.
The current era games
"Five Nights at Freddy's 3" takes place 30 years after all of the Freddy Fazbear Pizzerias have closed for good, which puts the timeline somewhere in the 2020s. The game takes place at Fazbear's Fright: The Horror Attraction, a terrifying horror locale based on the real-life (in the game, that is) tragedies. It's such an insensitive and ghastly capitalist hellscape that it would be the equivalent of us making a "Jonestown Massacre Escape Room" in real life. The attraction even has the original animatronics on display, like the creepy Ghostface museum in "Scream VI." The gameplay is similar to "Five Nights at Freddy's 2," just expanded for the new game and with the introduction of Springtrap.
Speaking of Springtrap, that leads us to "Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator," which takes place shortly after game 3, as the character appears in the game. This one marries the point-and-click survival horror elements of the usual games with the added bonus of being a point-and-click business simulator as well. Make your own pizza place! Don't get eaten by animatronics! The next game, "Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted" was the series' first foray into virtual reality, and the game takes place either concurrently with "Pizza Simulator" or shortly after. It features both classic and new mini-games based on the existing universe but with the added terror of being VR.
"Five Nights at Freddy's: Special Delivery" takes place around the same time as well, if not a little while after, as the mobile game utilizes augmented reality to put the horror of "FNaF" in your own environment. The game is centered around the Fazbear Funtime Service, which sends animatronics to your house. This seems to be the in-universe Fazbear corporation's second attempt at revitalizing the company following The Freddy Fazbear Virtual Experience in "Help Wanted."
The newest game
"Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach" is the most recent canon game to be released and takes place after the creation of Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex. Not only is the Fazbear company on a successful upswing in popularity, but they've now expanded to their biggest location yet. The game is a free-roam survival horror game where players are a small boy named Gregory who is trapped in the area over the night. The game also has the "Ruin DLC" expansion, where players take on the role of Gregory's friend Cassie. In both games, the children must survive the night, and discover an unlikely ally to help them stave off the animatronics. The game features the "Glamrock"-styled animatronics throughout the mall including Glamrock Freddy, Glamrock Chica, Montgomery Gator, Roxanne Wolf, the Daycare Attendant, the Glamrock Endoskeletons, the Wind-Up Music Man, and DJ Music Man.
Despite their old-school designs, the game canonically takes place after all of the previous games, as is confirmed in one of the endings after winning the game. The game was recently given a patch to help fix some of the many, many bugs and glitches present at the time of release. This is one of the more ambitious "FNaF" games, so hopefully this recent patch will allow the game to thrive and keep players happy.
The spin-offs are non-canonical, but still fun!
As of publication, there are four "FNaF" spin-off games. While you don't need to have played any of these games to understand the lore, all of the games bring their own unique, fun flavor to the world. "Five Nights at Freddy's World" is a fantasy RPG featuring the 48 characters featured throughout the franchise, and two modes of play: Adventure and Fixed Party. The game plays like most turn-based RPG games, just with the identifiable characters and markers of "FNaF."
There's also "Ultimate Custom Night," which allows players to fully customize their own version of the first "Five Nights at Freddy's Game." While non-canonical, fans have often theorized that this game is a reflection of series baddie William Afton in a purgatory-like state, and the endless combinations provided by the game is the ultimate punishment for his transgressions. This is arguably the fandom's favorite spin-off game, as it allows the player to incorporate all of their favorite characters for maximum scares, or downright silly situations.
"Freddy In Space 2" is a side-scrolling fighter game that Scott Cawthon developed for a St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital fundraiser, and is just an expansion sequel of a mini-game in "Five Nights at Freddy's World." And the other side-scrolling spin-off is "Security Breach: Fury's Rages," a beat-em-up that Cawthon published as an apology for there being two delays before the release of "Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach." The game looks like "Mortal Kombat," but with an art style that looks a bit more ... furry than fury.