How The FNAF Universe Took Over The Gaming Industry

A horror video game where the player never moves. A nod towards the iconic American Chuck-E-Cheese food chain. And an indie gamer with an idea and a vision. Here's how Five Nights at Freddy's became an internet sensation and a multi-million franchise with merchandise, over 10 games and 2 cinematic movies. 

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What is the point of 5 Nights at Freddy's?

Five Nights At Freddy's is nicknamed FNAF (which is what we'll be calling it for the rest of this blog) and is a video game that was released in 2014 which led to another 10+ games released for the next decade. The series was developed by Scott Cawthorn and has 11 mainline games, with 4 additional spin-offs, mini-games and challenge games. As we said, the series started in 2014 and over 10 years later it's still going strong with a new game releasing in 2025. Here are the main video games in the series, plus their release dates.

• FNAF 1 - August 2014
• FNAF 2 - November 2014
• FNAF 3 - March 2015
• FNAF 4 - July 2015
• FNAF Sister Location - October 2016
• Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator - December 2017
• FNAF: AR Special Delivery - November 2019
• FNAF: Security Breach - December 2021
• FNAF: Into The Pit - August 2024
• FNAF: Secret of the Mimic - June 2025

 

What is the main story of five nights at Freddy's?

Before we dive into why the game became so popular, let's talk about the plot of the game. FNAF is a horror video game that uses point-and-click survival methods. 

The first 4 games follow the same premise, animatronic animals including rabbits, chickens, bears and foxes are on the hunt for the player who must use security cameras, torches and electric power to lure the animatronics away and survive the 5 nights. The main animatronic is called Freddy, hence the 5 nights at Freddy's. If the player can survive the 5rounds (5 nights) they win. If they're too late catching the animatronics, they die and the player gets a horrific jump scare in the process. The later games tend to become more advanced with their gameplay and plots, but they all follow this very basic outline. 

How successful was Five Nights at Freddy's?

When FNAF 1 was released in 2014, it was met with more positivity than Scott Cawthon ever imagined. Mostly, this was due to the era the game was released. YouTube was getting huge in 2014, and 'Let's Play' video were beginning to grow. In Let's Play videos, gamers would film themselves playing these popular video games and upload their gameplay and live reactions to YouTube, it became hilarious to see creators screaming in terror at the many jump scares therefore influencing a lot of other people to begin playing. A year later in 2015, FNAF has become one of the most uploaded video games on the site, and with this growing popularity, it was time for Scott to quickly begin working on a sequel.

Within 1 year of the original games release, there were another 3 FNAF mainline sequels for gamers to play, stream and watch on YouTube. The first 3 games are very similar, they're all based in similar locations with the 4th game having the same premise just in a new location. These sequels also latched onto the FNAF fandom popularity. Did you know FNAF was the first game with the most sequels in under a year? The new games provided additional story depth and details, the games let players theorise on the backstory and side plots. Many gamers didn't discover the series until the 3rd addition, meaning they had another 2 games to go back to and play.

After the 2016 game Sister Location, the games took a turn and the production turned up. Each game would have a brand new name instead of FNAF 1,2,3,4. The gaps between the game releases increased to around 2 years which was well worth it because each new release introduced new characters, more gameplay options and improved narration. 

 

Why was Five Nights at Freddys so popular?

As we said, the Let's Play era gave FNAF a huge push into the gaming industry. But the gameplay of the original also sparked some interest. In the original the player never actually moves. They're based in an office which is simply 3 walls and 2 doors. (We can't see the 4th wall as it's behind us) Players can't move, get up, or walk around. They're frozen in space only able to look across the room, side to side. The first game is a stretched image that the players look across, with the occasional push of a button to light up the room or to flick through some cameras.

This plain gameplay made FNAF reliant on jump scares and the unknown to make it scary, something that it seemed to do very well that no other game has been able to replicate.

 

What is the future of FNAF?

When it comes to the future of the FNAF universe, it looks very promising. We're currently awaiting the next game that releases in the summer of 2025, before this, the latest game was the 2024 edition, Five Nights at Freddy's: Into The Pit which was just as successful as the original game. 

Into The Pit was met with great success, it introduced fresh mechanics whilst keeping the eerie atmosphere of the game. You can feel the original storyline of the game is still present even with all the modern 2024 gaming additions. As well as this, Into The Pit offers all the iconic features of the 2014 FNAF, atmospheric, immersive, fun, spooky but still fresh and new. Whilst we recommend playing the original games first, the 2024 edition is not one to miss!

As well as this, a movie adaptation of the game released in 2023 with a sequel releasing in 2025. The movies are based off the original 2014 games, and it's believed an ongoing movie series may commence. 

 

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Conclusion:

We'll still be reviewing the new FNAF when it releases this year. From its rumoured leaks, imagery and trailers it looks very spooky, hopefully a great contender for Octobers spooky season.