Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted

Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted is a 2019 virtual reality (VR) survival horror video game developed by Steel Wool Studios and Scott Cawthon. It is an anthology of different minigames based on the Five Nights at Freddy's franchise, where the player must complete tasks without being jumpscared by homicidal animatronic characters. The minigames include VR adaptations of the main entries in the series and several new experiences. Hidden inside the levels are coins that allow the player to unlock collectable objects and cassette tapes that provide insight into the game's metafictional plot.

Cawthon initially approached Steel Wool Studios to recreate the first game of the franchise in virtual reality. He enjoyed the studio's adaptation, and decided to work with the company to convert all of the previous games in the series. Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted was first released on May 28, 2019 for Windows through Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, and for PlayStation 4 through PlayStation VR.

The game received generally positive reviews from critics, who called it an accessible and tense entry in the franchise. Though some found the jumpscares repetitive. A non-VR port to Nintendo Switch received mixed reviews. Downloadable content called Curse of Dreadbear was launched on October 23, 2019, and a direct sequel titled Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted 2, was released on December 14, 2023.

Gameplay


Help Wanted is a virtual reality survival horror game. It is an anthology of different minigames where the player must perform tasks without being caught and jumpscared by homicidal animatronic characters. These minigames include gameplay recreations of the main games in the Five Nights at Freddy's franchise, chronologically from the first game to Sister Location, and several new experiences unique to Help Wanted. The minigames mostly contain security cameras used to monitor the animatronics, and other tools to prevent these characters from catching the player. Tools include steel doors, lights, and a mask that allows the player to avoid detection. If a player loses one of the minigames, they are jumpscared and experience a game over.

Completing each level grants access to an alternate version of the same minigame featuring greater difficulty and warped graphics. In addition to the adaptations of the main entries in the franchise, new experiences featured include "Parts and Service" where the player is tasked with performing maintenance on the animatronics without provoking a jumpscare, "Vent Repair" where the player solves puzzles to fix a ventilation shaft while keeping threats at bay, and "Night Terrors" in which the player shines a flashlight with limited power to catch the animatronics. As optional objectives, players can collect gold coins or cassette tapes hidden inside the levels; coins are used to obtain collectables, and the cassette tapes provide background information on the plot.

Plot
In the game's metafictional narrative, the player controls a user for the "Freddy Fazbear Virtual Experience", a virtual reality game developed by Fazbear Entertainment, the corporation managing the Freddy Fazbear restaurants and brand. The company's reputation has suffered due to violent incidents at their restaurants, which have been established as urban legends. The problem is aggravated by a horror video game series based on the legends created by an unnamed indie developer. In an attempt to improve their image, Fazbear Entertainment commissioned the game as a way to convince the public that the events were fictitious.

This narrative is contradicted by sixteen cassette tapes, through which the user is given insight into the game's troubled development. Meant as a warning for players, they are covertly recorded by one of the playtesters, who exposes a lawsuit involving a past employee of Fazbear Entertainment, Jeremy, that put the game's completion in jeopardy. Later recordings reveal that Fazbear Entertainment hired the unnamed indie developer to create the video game series based on the urban legends, before cutting ties with him; the games were part of an elaborate ploy to discredit rumors surrounding the company. Lastly, the tapes disclose the existence of malicious code that was uploaded to the experience through an old circuit board. This code takes the form of a rabbit-like character called Glitchtrap, who is attempting to escape from the game by taking over the user's consciousness.

Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted contains several endings which depend upon the player's choices. These endings include the user having their consciousness taken over by Glitchtrap, another where they complete all the levels and witness the credits while performing on-stage as Freddy Fazbear, and an ending where the player follows instructions stated in the tapes and is locked behind a steel door, where Glitchtrap shushes the user before disappearing behind the edifice.

Following the release of the non-VR versions of the game, a door in a final level became available to players. Entering the door takes players to a snowy Christmas tree farm. Visible in the distance is a silhouette of a large building being constructed by Fazbear Entertainment, with a nearby billboard indicating that the new location is now hiring.

Development and release
The game was developed in collaboration between Steel Wool Studios and Five Nights at Freddy's creator Scott Cawthon. It received further support from Lionsgate Games and Striker Entertainment. Cawthon initially approached Steel Wool Studios to help recreate the original Five Nights at Freddy's in virtual reality. After the studio finished development, they felt that the adaptation was too bare-bones, and decided to return to the port and improve its quality. The animations for Cawthon's characters had to be updated to look convincing and scary in a 3D environment, and the team added finer details to their character designs. Cawthon liked the studio's adaptation so much that he expanded his initial plan, now working with Steel Wool to cover all previous games in the franchise. A trailer announcing the game was shown during Sony Interactive Entertainment's State of Play live stream on March 25, 2019. The game debuted publicly at PAX East from March 28 to March 31, 2019, and was available at subsequent PlayStation VR demonstrations before its release.

The game was delayed from its original planned release in April 2019, and was launched on May 28, 2019, for Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets on Microsoft Windows, and PlayStation VR headsets on PlayStation 4. A non-VR version of the game called "flat mode" was released for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4 on December 17, 2019. A Nintendo Switch port was released on May 21, 2020. A port to Oculus Quest was added on July 16, 2020, followed by versions for Android and iOS on October 26 of the same year. An Xbox One port was released on October 29, 2020. A Halloween-themed downloadable content (DLC) pack, Curse of Dreadbear, was released on October 23, 2020 and additional levels for the DLC were added on October 29. Curse of Dreadbear was launched on all platforms available at the time other than Oculus Quest, and was later released for Quest in December 2020. An updated version of the game called Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted - Full Time Edition containing the Curse of Dreadbear DLC was released for PlayStation 5 with PlayStation VR2 capability on November 21, 2023.

Reception
Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted received "generally favorable" reviews for the PlayStation 4 version according to review aggregator website Metacritic; the Nintendo Switch version received "mixed or average" reviews.

Reviewers felt that the game was an accessible entry in the franchise. Destructoid felt that it would appease longtime fans and people unfamiliar with the series, and The Games Machine said that it would appeal to players who were not fans of horror media through its simple mechanics. UploadVR called it a worthy adaptation or the franchise's games, and IGN Italy said that it was one of the scariest horror games available for virtual reality.

Critics called the game tense and unsettling. UploadVR said the atmosphere was intriguing and increased the power of the jumpscares, writing that the virtual reality platform made the game feel immersive. Vandal said the experience was stressful, and praised the designs of the animatronics as detailed and intimidating. IGN contended that the game created compelling tension over time that made the player feel vulnerable. Some reviewers called the jumpscares effective, but said that they would become repetitive over time.

Reviewers highlighted the different minigames. Destructoid praised their inclusion, liking how they created new experiences beyond the main entries in the franchise. The reviewer particularly enjoyed the Vent Repair and Dark Rooms minigames. IGN also highlighted Vent Repair, adding that the minigames generated significant replayability. The Games Machine called the levels diverse, but said that some of them retained the flaws of their original incarnations and were overall of mixed quality. UploadVR found the game repetitive despite the number of levels, calling their mechanics simple and unable to sustain the experience.

Some critics found the Nintendo Switch port inferior to the VR versions. Kotaku and Nintendo Life found the controls to be slow and difficult, and both wrote that the game lacked the immersion of virtual reality. Nintendo Life added that many of the minigames were a downgrade from the main entries of the series already available for Nintendo Switch. Kotaku liked the new experiences such as the Vent Repair and Parts and Service minigames, but opined that Help Wanted did not justify playing through the main games of the franchise again.

The game was nominated for the Coney Island Dreamland Award for Best AR/VR Game at the New York Game Awards in 2020.

Sequel
On May 24, 2023, during a PlayStation Showcase, Steel Wool Studios announced a direct sequel to Help Wanted titled Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted 2 with a planned launch in late 2023. A PlayStation Blog post by Steel Wool Studios on November 20, 2023 announced the game's release for PlayStation VR2 on December 14, 2023 and disclosed many of the minigames. The game was launched on that date for Oculus Quest and PlayStation VR2. Steel Wool Studios released a non-virtual reality port of Help Wanted 2 for PlayStation 5 on June 20, 2024.