to the events of Fatal Frame III: The Tormented, the direct sequel of the game, the "Crimson Butterfly" ending is the canonical ending. Development Development of a sequel to the original Fatal Frame began "relatively soon" after its release. Many players were too scared to finish the first game, so for the sequel, Tecmo shifted their attention to create a more interesting storyline to encourage players to see it through. Despite this, Fatal Frame II was developed with "horror" being the central focus more-so than the "action". Producer Keisuke Kikuchi and director of the Xbox port, Zin Hasegawa, called it "horror that appeals to human imagination", citing how some people get scared when hearing faint sounds in the dark. Kikuchi cited symmetry as a central theme in the story, in that, "tragedies and fear are based on what happens when you tear things apart", such as butterflies and twins. In creating the horror atmosphere, they considered more closely how spirits may behave. They may randomly disappear or reappear in different locations, and their presence can sometimes still be felt after they are killed. Shibata called these "never-endings loops" characteristic of a horror scenario, and this illusion was something he felt in a dream which he was using as inspiration for the game's story. Kikuchi took his inspiration from movies, literature, and also traditions and customs. He specifically cited Japanese novelist Seishi Yokomizo and Stanley Kubrick's The Shining as inspirations. The decision to make an Xbox port of Fatal Frame II was not made until after release of the PlayStation 2 version and during planning of Fatal Frame III. The Xbox port featured enhanced graphics with better lighting techniques, and also a Dolby Digital audio option was added. Additional gameplay modes were also added, First-Person Shooter Mode and Survival Mode, and more costumes as well. Kikuchi considers this version to be "Fatal Frame 2.5". Release Fatal Frame II was originally released in 2003 for the PlayStation 2. This version has been made available for download on the PlayStation 3. The PS3 version was removed from the online store shortly after release due to various technical issues with the emulator, before it was fixed and re-released on July 30, 2013. The download was only available for players in North America. Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Director's Cut was released for the Xbox in 2004. The director's cut added in several updates, including