It might sound weird, but hear me out.
We all know Five Nights at Freddy's (FNAF) took the horror game genre by storm with its simple play mechanic, iconic mascots, and the complex, never-ending lore. But want to talk about something people rarely talk about: their location aesthetic. Well, I'm not talking about ALL the locations, unless you're into the testing chamber of FNAF Sister Location or FNAF 3's broken-down, creepy basement.
I want to talk about their restaurants from FNAF 1, FNAF 2, and FNAF Security Breach, the 80's pizzaria that people often point out is similar to Chuck E. Cheese with its own animal mascot. The thing that draws me in is their way of being a "maximalist fun" where the visual DNA is the high-contrast checkered floors, the "star-burst" patterned carpets designed to hide arcade grime, and the buzzing hum of flickering fluorescent tubes.
This era-specific charm really leans towards Analog Horror, which nowadays many YouTube storytellers use to make their stories like Backrooms and The Boiled One. FNAF uses CRT monitors and the pneumatic clunk of stiff, fur-covered servos. It’s a world of Mallsoft and Kidcore gone wrong—where the neon glow of a "Pizza-Plex" no longer signals safety, but highlights the uncanny stillness of a dead era.
People are now starting to go back to the old styles to be nostalgic of the moments once they had or want to experience the in today's age. The idea of detaching ourself from the power abusive form tech companies and the algorithmic social media making people pivot from modern technology to something that's analog and not controled by tech companies is freeing, and FNAF, with its unsettling ambiance, is one of the “inspo” for the retro archaic style to recreate in today's era, of course if you pass the complex and gory lore of the game.
Luthfi Hakim (luthfihakim2003@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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