Five Nights at Freddy's: Information and Guide

From left to right: Bonnie, Chica, and Freddy Fazbear

EDITED: 9:22AM 9/29/2014

Introduction:

Five Nights at Freddy's, for the five or six of you who don't know of it by now, is an indie horror game created by Scott Cawthon. In it, you play as Mike Schmidt, a newly hired security guard who works the night shift at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. His job is to keep an eye on things, namely everyone's favorite animatronic bear, Freddy Fazbear, and his two band mates, Bonnie the Bunny, and Chica the Chicken. In addition to them, Mike also needs to keep an eye on their poor, "out of order" friend, Foxy the Pirate, who stays behind his fancy curtain over at Pirate Cove, not far from Fazbear's show stage. During the day, Fazbear and his two buddies entertain both kids and adults as he sings his joyous songs, warming the hearts of folks everywhere. During the night, however, these seemingly lovable characters take a much darker persona (no pun intended). They lurk about in their "free roaming mode", seeking out metal, animatronic endoskeletons to stuff inside an appropriate suit (after all, those ARE the rules of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza after all...). Mike Schmidt has access to all the security cameras in the restaurant, except the kitchen (that one's busted, it only has audio, but no visual), and he must use them to keep track of the animatronics as they roam about. If those goofballs show up at the doors at either side of the security office, Mike can lock them out with large metal doors. Mike needs to keep them back until his shift ends at 6AM, or else he'll find himself stuffed in an animatronic suit as well...and those things are not comfortable in the slightest. To make things worse, he's only got so much power to work with, and if it runs out, there will be no keeping the animatronics away from him.

Bonnie, Chica, and Freddy staring towards the camera

 Player Mechanics

The game's controls are pretty simple. You can't really move around the building as you're to stay at your post at the security office.

The Security Office

The mouse lets you move your head from side to side, viewing both entrance doorways on the left and the right. Each doorway is equipped with a panel that has a button for the "Door" and the "Light". Pressing the "Door" button will cause a large metal door to drop down, securing that doorway from any threats. Pressing the "Light" button, will illuminate the hallway right outside your doorways. This is good, because those hallways are in the blindspots of your cameras, and if you can't find something on the security feed, chances are, it's lurking right outside...and you better shut the door.

Bonnie standing out in the doorway...

At the bottom of the screen, there is also a rectangular button that, whenever you scroll your mouse over it, will activate your Security Tablet, which allows you to check the camera feeds throughout the building. Scrolling your mouse back over the button will deactivate the tablet.

The Tablet activating and deactivating

Once the tablet is activated, you can click on all the feeds from the grid on the right. Each camera, except for the one in the kitchen (Cam6), has full audio and visual capabilities. Cam6 only has audio. The Tablet allows you to keep tabs on the animatronics' positions and if they're getting close to you.

Be warned, however, that using any of these features (the Doors, the Lights, and the Tablet) will increase how much power you are using. You begin each night with 99% power, which will drain slowly, even if you aren't using anything. Locking both doors might make you feel safe, but it will rapidly drain your power, making it very difficult to last until 6AM. If the power runs out, Freddy Fazbear himself will come to your door, so you must do everything possible to manage your power as efficiently as possible.

Enemy Behavior:

(Disclaimer: Nothing about this game is 100% understood. Not everything written here may be accurate.)

In order to survive, you need to keep a close eye on the whereabouts/doings of the four characters. Some of them behave very differently and its important to understand each of them so that you know what to expect.

Bonnie the Bunny:

The guitar player in Freddy's band, Bonnie is easily the most fickle of the group when it comes to his location. He has the uncanny ability to seemingly teleport from room to room. He can be lurking in the Dining Area one second and then be right at your door the next. In general, he will come for you from the west side of the building, using the left doorway when he gets to your office. Bonnie tends to visit the office the most, so be sure to keep tabs on his position and check the left Light often for him. 

Chica the Chicken:

Rumored to be the female of the band, Chica will approach the player from the East side of the building, using the right door when she gets to the office. Chica tends to lurk in rooms longer than Bonnie, and doesn't visit the office as much. It's very important to make sure you keep an eye out for her, though. Don't let Bonnie distract you to the point that Chica manages to sneak in. Keep your ears peeled for the sound of clashing pots and pans. She's in the kitchen if you hear that.


Foxy the Pirate:

The lonely, decommissioned animatronic over at Pirate Cove (Cam1C), Foxy has a completely different set of rules than Bonnie and Chica. You can, sometimes, have very little warning of him coming, and even if you do catch a glimpse of him sprinting down the hall towards you on the camera, you will have very little time to react...

Foxy's role is to force the player to use the Tablet and view the cameras. He has two criteria that must be met, or he will emerge from his curtain and eventually sprint to your Office. The criteria is this:

1: The player must check the Tablet and the camera feeds.
2. In addition to checking the Tablet, the player must also remember to check Pirate Cove, only occasionally. Too much and he'll become active as "he doesn't like being watched".


Freddy Fazbear:

The singer and main attraction of the restaurant, Freddy Fazbear can be considered the "boss" character. During the first two nights, he won't leave the Show Stage, but if you run out of power, he will approach the office, play a jingle, and then stuff you into a suit. He does leave the stage on Night 3, but it is currently unclear if he will actually attack until Night 4 or not. Like Foxy, he seems to follow a different set of rules than Bonnie or Chica, and these rules are even less understood by players. He generally follows the same path to the office that Chica takes, a deep laugh heard each time that he changes location. He plays his jingle while lurking in the kitchen, so keep an ear out for that. I have speculations and theories about him, but for now I will say this: Don't bother checking the Lights for him. He won't be there...ever...

 Breakdown of the Nights:

Night 1: This is by far, and not surprisingly, the easiest night in the game. Bonnie and Chica won't activate till around 3AM, though that sometimes changes. Just keep an eye on their positions and you should be fine. Though the player isn't warned about Foxy until Night 2, he can still be active on this night if the player neglects checking the Tablet for way too long.

Night 2: Difficulty noticeably ramps up for this one. Bonnie and Chica are much more active and will move around more frequently, especially Bonnie. Make sure to check the Lights more frequently on this night, especially the left one for Bonnie. Foxy becomes more of a threat this night, and you'll need to watch him carefully. 

Night 3: Chica will leave the stage first on this night. Keep an eye on her as she wanders, but make sure to peek at Pirate Cove, so that Foxy doesn't sprint to you. Bonnie and Freddy will leave the Show Stage around 3AM (though, as always, that's liable to change). Don't worry too much about Freddy, as he's not very active during this night regardless, but watch him...just in case...

Night 4: Bonnie and Chica will both activate pretty quickly this night. The first thing you'll want to do, right when the game starts, is check Pirate Cove. Freddy will become hostile this night for sure. You'll need to keep an eye on him, as well as Foxy. Alternate between the two.. If Freddy gets close you'll have to be even more vigilant. See further down for my advice on him.

Night 5: Everyone will be very active this night, especially Foxy. On this night, reduce your tablet time to just Foxy and Freddy. Bonnie and Chica you'll need to try to play by ear, while checking the "Lights". It is important that you do everything you can to keep Foxy in Pirate Cove.

Night 6: Don't even bother trying to find Chica or Bonnie. They move around too much. Focus on Freddy and Foxy only. Alternate between them in this pattern: Check lights, Check Pirate Cove, Check Lights, Check Freddy, Check Lights, Check Pirate Cove, etc.  If you do this pattern properly, you should be able to keep Freddy on the Show Stage and (hopefully) keep Foxy in his curtain. Just be wary of Bonnie and Chica. They will both visit the Office frequently, though they both tend to leave rapidly. Stay diligent with the lights. You don't have a lot of time to block them out.

Do NOT believe rumors that Foxy will not activate on Night 6 if you don't look at Pirate Cove. There are documented cases of this being false. Specifically here (around 7:20 in the video). 

On Night 7, you can adjust the difficulty for every animatronic, with 20 being the highest. More on how to beat Night 7 at the bottom

General Tips/Strategies for the Game:

Here's a list of tips that come from my experience playing the game.

1: Play with a stopwatch handy. Each hour of every night lasts one minute and twenty five seconds (yes, I timed it). The entire night lasts roughly eight minutes and thirty seconds. That's how long you have to survive, so your power has to keep on for much of that. If you have a stopwatch, it will allow you to know how much time you have left until 6AM.

2. When a round starts, immediately check Pirate Cove. Every now and then, Foxy may start singing a song. A speculation of mine is that, when he sings, this signifies that he is happy and is not going to attack for the moment. I base this assumption on the observation that I've never heard him sing while he's peeking out of his curtain. Of course, his singing may just be a random event instead.

3. Always check the "Lights" for the doorways before looking at the Security Tablet.

4.  Do not, EVER take your time on the Tablet. Search as fast as you can. If you need to, stop in the middle of your search, check the "Lights" to make sure nothing is lurking outside the Office, and then keep looking.

5. If you know it's gonna happen, turn down the volume....

6. Do not shut the "Doors" unless you absolutely have to. This is a lot easier said than done, especially when Bonnie and Chica are close by. But using the doors out of fear can gobble up a lot of power. Check the "Lights" to know if Bonnie or Chica have left and the minute they leave, open the door.

7. If at any point you should see the curtain in Pirate Cove wide open and no Foxy in sight, close the door on the left immediately. Once the door is closed, check Cam2A, and you will catch a glimpse of him sprinting down the hall towards the Office. He will then proceed to bang on the door, robbing you of some of your power (how much he takes varies, it is usually only a little, but sometimes he can take a significant chunk). If you look at Cam2A before shutting the door, you will have less than a second to react...

8: Listen! You can hear often hear the footsteps of the characters. You can save power by simply listening for them. If Bonne and Chica are close to the Office, then you might want to just keep checking the Lights, while very quickly peeking at Pirate Cove on the Tablet from time to time.

9: If, at any point, you look at Cam2B and see this poster on the wall...:

You've just activated Golden Freddy. This activation will be marked by the sound of children giggling. When you next lower the Tablet, you will find a slumped over, golden version of Freddy Fazbear sitting across from you in your office. Staring at it for too long will cause a nasty jumpscare followed by losing the game (and occasionally the game crashing). If Golden Freddy appears in your office, quickly raise the Tablet back up. This will cause him to disappear from the game. Just be aware that Bonnie and Chica or Freddy can still sneak into the room while this is happening.

 10. Milk the power. Remember, Bonnie and Chica, once they've breached the Office, will not actually attack you until you lower the Tablet after using it, and Freddy won't sneak in unless you're viewing it. Use this to your advantage. When you're trying to get through 5AM to 6AM, at some point, try and just wait. Don't check the lights and don't check the Tablet. Just try to ride out the rest of the night. A good time to do this is when you're around 5 or 4% power. This will let you milk more time, and possibly get your homefree. Be warned, however, that Foxy can still kill you, regardless of whether or not you're checking the Tablet. If you're going to attempt this strategy, check Pirate Cove first to see where Foxy is. If he's getting to sprint out of the Cove, you might have to shut the door to prevent him from entering...or bite the bullet and hope the power will go out before he makes it to the Office. Once the power goes out, Freddy will approach the Office, play his tune, and then kill you. If you "play dead" you may (or may not) get more time, as Freddy may (or may not) play the longer version of his song, thus allowing you to make it to 6AM.

Freddy playing his song at the Power Outage

Foxy getting ready to sprint...

Strategies/Theories regarding Freddy Fazbear:

Freddy Staring into Cam 4B

Freddy Fazbear, as previously stated, will not leave the Show Stage till Night 3, but there's a higher risk of him killing you on Night 4. Each time he moves, he emits a creepy laugh, which tells you that he's on the move. From the Show Stage he'll follow a path, starting at the Dining Area, the Restrooms, the Kitchen, The East Hall and then the East Hall Corner. One of the most important things to know about Freddy is that he cannot be found via the "Lights" like Bonnie and Chica can. He will bypass the doorway and sneak into the Office, hiding out of the player's direct line of sight before springing into attack.

SURPRISE

Freddy can be tricky for players who don't understand him, but once you know his pattern, he's fairly easy to deal with. Here's everything you need to know.

1: Listen for his laugh. Every time it is heard, he's moved closer to you. Unlike Bonnie and Chica, he does not wander randomly. He will follow his path directly to you, and will not retreat back to any position once he's advanced. If he was at Cam4B and you hear his laugh again, there's a chance he's in the room. If at any point you think Freddy has snuck into the room, check Cam4B. If he's no longer there, then you're in trouble. I don't know if he can attack you while the Tablet is raised (like Foxy can), or if he waits for you to put it down (like Bonnie and Chica do).

2. Keep tabs on where he is and check him frequently. He tends to hide in the dark, so he may be difficult to see at times. Look for his eyes. Watching him on the Tablet slows him down. On later nights, alternate between checking his position, and Foxy at Pirate Cove.

3: If he makes it to Cam4B, close the right door every time you check the Tablet. Because he can bypass the doorway, this will prevent him from getting into the room.

4: Despite rumors to the contrary, Freddy cannot bypass a closed door. There's often a small delay between when he enters and when he attacks. If you are killed by him with the right Door closed, chances are he snuck in prior to the door being closed.

HOW TO BEAT NIGHT 7 20/20/20/20 MODE

As stated above, you can adjust the difficulty for the characters to whatever you want. The highest you can set them is 20 A.I Level on all four of them. This is the fabled 20/20/20/20 mode (or 4/20 mode), which was originally thought to be impossible by game developer, Scott Cawthon. Once he found out that people had managed to complete it, he created an update, granting players a third star for completing it.

It is, without question, the most difficult night in the game, one that only experts should even attempt, as it requires a full knowledge of the game's mechanics to beat. You have to know your enemies and how they behave, and, in addition, you have to focus and be fast in your movements. This Mode offers little space for mistakes.

 It IS possible, though, as several YouTube Let's Players have demonstrated. I, myself, was able to beat 4/20 by following a brilliant strategy found on a discussion thread on Steam. The person who made the thread (a fellow by the name of "Bagel the Bagel"), posted a detailed video in which he shows the strategy (he was doing a live stream at the time of the recording, evidently, and he communicates people who were chatting with him as they ask questions).

In writing, the strategy is this:

When the game starts, quickly check Pirate Cove, then place the Tablet on CAM4B (The East Hall Corner). Rapidly check it for a few moments, and then start checking your Lights for Bonnie and Chica. After quickly checking both doorways with the Lights, bring up the Tablet and check Freddy, who should be there very shortly after the game starts. Frequently checking him on the Tablet will prevent him from entering the room. Don't worry if you occasionally see Chica on CAM4B instead of Freddy. He's still there, you just can't see him when Chica's there as well.

Checking the Tablet frequently for Freddy will also slow down Foxy's activity, but you'll still need to peek over at Pirate Cove or he'll sprint for you regardless. Whenever you want to check Pirate Cove, you absolutely must shut the Right Door. Failure to do so will allow Freddy to sneak in and kill you. Once you've peeked at Pirate Cove, do not forget to immediately put the Tablet back on CAM4B or you might accidentally let Freddy in. Freddy may temporarily disappear from CAM4B as he attempts to enter the room. Don't panic. If everything was done right, he should reappear there. You'll probably hear him laugh twice as this will be essentially two movements for him

If you manage to keep the pattern going, there's a chance you may be able to beat 4/20 mode without running out of power. But, just to be safe, it's still a good idea to try to "milk the power" as discussed in Tip 10 above.

Here's Bagel the Bagel's video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DfCRVKLUuA

Here's a video of myself playing 20/20/20/20 mode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUZsnILQceY


In Conclusion:

I must again emphasize that not everything about this game is really understood. Nothing written here is 100% guaranteed to get you through the night alive. With that said, I welcome anyone to submit their own thoughts on what they believe the mechanics of the game are. I encourage players to try these steps and see if they work or not.

A recap of the most important points:

- Don't watch the Tablet for too long

- Check the "Lights" often, and especially before you check the Tablet.

- Check Pirate Cove immediately when the game starts, and periodically afterwards.

- Don't shut any "Door" unless you have to.

- Be ready for Freddy. Don't let him sneak in the Office.