Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake gives you six distinct ways to close out Mio and Mayu's story, and the path to each one is tied to Spirit Stones, New Game+ playthroughs, and a handful of boss encounters you'll face in the final chapter. Whether you're chasing the default Crimson Butterfly ending on your first run or grinding toward the elusive Remaining Sun on Nightmare difficulty, this guide walks you through every requirement and key decision point so nothing catches you off guard.
Mio at the Ritual Altar
What Determines Which Ending You Get?
The final chapter, titled Crimson Butterfly, is where all ending routes converge. Most of the action takes place inside Kurosawa House, through the Deep Path Tunnel, and down into the Abyss. Three factors control your outcome:
- The difficulty you're playing on
- Which Spirit Stone charm you have equipped before entering the Ritual Altar room
- Whether you've completed specific side stories in New Game+
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You must complete the Crimson Butterfly ending first on a standard playthrough before New Game+ unlocks. All other endings (except Lonely Road Home) require New Game+ access.Here's a quick reference for every ending and its core requirement:
Ending 1: Lonely Road Home
This is technically a game over state that still awards an achievement, so you'll want to grab it early before committing to a full run.
After completing the pinwheel puzzle at the Old Tree and watching the secret door open at Kureha Shrine, escort Mayu there. Once Mayu is taken away and you defeat the three wraiths outside the shrine, go inside and exit through the secret door alone, leaving Mayu behind.
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This counts as a game over. Load your save immediately after the achievement pops so you don't lose progress toward the other endings.
The achievement Reached the ending "Lonely Road Home" unlocks upon completion.
Ending 2: Crimson Butterfly (Default)
This is the ending most players reach on their first Normal difficulty playthrough, and it's the gateway to New Game+. You cannot access any other Spirit Stone endings without clearing this one first.
After the Kureha Shrine sequence, follow the Crimson Butterfly from the Old Tree toward Kurosawa House. Pick up Butterfly Diary 4 in the entrance and Mayu's Charm from the floor. Grab Butterfly Diary 11 from the altar in the Altar Room, then crawl through the gate into the connecting corridors.
Save at the save room before stepping into the Hall of Ropes, where you'll face the Kurosawa Matriarch boss.
How to Beat the Kurosawa Matriarch?
Equip the Chrysocolla charm before this fight. It boosts your damage against multiple wraiths simultaneously, which matters here because the Matriarch links to the surrounding priests.
- Focus shots on the boss, not the priests. Damaging him reduces all of them.
- After depleting his first HP bar, he enters aggravated mode and regenerates to full health.
- In aggravated mode, find him up in the rafters and knock him down with a Special Shot.
- Keep at least one priest alive while finishing him off. If all priests are eliminated before the boss dies, he teleports back to the rafters and spawns reinforcements.
Hall of Ropes boss encounter
After the fight, head through the Deep Tunnel. Use the Exposure Filter to unlock a side room on the right for extra loot (expect wraiths inside). Sneak past the blind wraiths further in to reach the butterfly lantern. Save here and spend any upgrade points on healing items.
In the Ritual Altar room, you'll fight the Kusabi. His movements are slow, so use your most powerful film and stay mobile to dodge his periodic projectile attacks. Once he falls, continue into the Abyss for the final cutscene: Mio sacrifices Mayu, completing the ritual just as Yae once did with Sae.
Pick up the Final Letter document in the Deep Path Altar Room after the Kusabi fight.
Ending 3: The Promise
This is widely considered the most satisfying ending in the game, showing a hopeful resolution for both sisters.
Requirement: New Game+ with Yae's Spirit Stone equipped. You earn this stone by finishing the Crimson Butterfly ending and then completing Yae Kurosawa's side story in New Game+.
Follow the same path as the Crimson Butterfly ending through Kurosawa House and the Hall of Ropes boss. Before reaching the Ritual Altar in the Deep Path Tunnel, equip Yae's Spirit Stone.
You'll know it triggered correctly when Mayu appears running toward the Torii gates at the Ritual Altar instead of standing on the altar with the twin specters.
Complete the Kusabi fight (same mechanics as before, with a halfway health aggravated phase). In the final cutscene, Yae's spirit flows through Mio, allowing Yae and Sae to dive into the Abyss together while Mio pulls Mayu to safety. Both sisters survive and watch the butterflies rise from Misono Hill.
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You can use Chapter Select to jump straight to the final chapter in New Game+ if you've already saved in the Deep Path Tunnel, saving significant replay time.
Ending 4: The Abyss
This ending introduces a full boss fight against Mayu/Sae and delivers one of the game's darkest conclusions.
Requirement: New Game+ with the Kusabi Sparkling Spirit Stone equipped before entering the Ritual Altar. Earn this by completing the Crimson Butterfly ending and then finishing The Kusabi's side story in New Game+.
Equip the Kusabi Spirit Stone before entering the Ritual Altar room. The trigger is confirmed when you see Mayu standing on the altar crying, which then shifts to Sae laughing.
Complete the Kusabi fight. Unlike the standard version, this fight has two waves: defeat him once, then survive his return in aggravated mode. In aggravated mode, his projectile attack intensifies (more skulls simultaneously) and he can conjure darkness similar to Chitose Tachibana's ability. Counter the darkness by locating him via the camera indicator and snapping a shot to break him out of it.
After the Kusabi, enter the Abyss for the Mayu/Sae boss fight.
How to Defeat Sae in the Abyss?
- Open with a stealth shot the moment the fight begins by photographing Mayu before she activates.
- Deplete the HP bar to the initial threshold to trigger the Fatal Frame moment, transforming Mayu into Sae.
- Sae attacks with bloody projectiles that obscure your screen, blood AOEs on the ground, and three blood tornadoes.
- When she conjures the tornadoes, the camera's red arrow indicator points to the one she's hiding in. Shoot the correct tornado to break her out. Shooting a wrong tornado causes it to explode and damage you.
Once Sae is exorcised, she drops into the Abyss. Mio catches Mayu but looks into the pit herself, spending the rest of her life blinded by what she witnessed.
Sae's tornado attack pattern
Ending 5: Sprouting Wings
This ending requires collecting two Spirit Stones from separate side stories.
Requirements: New Game+ with both Sae's Spirit Stone and Mayu's Spirit Stone equipped simultaneously before reaching the Ritual Altar. Fragments for each come from reaching The Promise and The Abyss endings respectively, then completing their associated side stories.
Equip both stones before the Ritual Altar. You've triggered the correct route when Mayu stands on the altar calmly (not crying as in The Abyss ending).
Complete the Kusabi fight (two waves, same aggravated move set as The Abyss ending), then descend to the Abyss and fight Sae with the same mechanics described above.
After defeating Sae, Mayu stands near the edge. Run toward her and press R2/RT to grab her hand. This triggers the final cutscene: both sisters fall into the Abyss, but the spirits of Sae and Yae catch them mid-fall and carry them back to the Ritual Altar. The Crimson Butterflies rise from the pit and cleanse all remaining spirits from the town.
Ending 6: Remaining Sun
This is the hardest ending to unlock and the only one tied to Nightmare difficulty. Chapter Select cannot be used for this run.
Requirements:
- Complete a full Nightmare mode playthrough
- Have Mio's Spirit Stone equipped before entering the Ritual Altar
- Earn Mio's Spirit Stone by completing the Sprouting Wings ending and then finishing Mio's side story (requires all other side stories completed first)
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Nightmare difficulty significantly increases enemy aggression and damage. Stock up on healing items and upgrade your Camera Obscura lenses as much as possible before the final chapter.
Equip Mio's Spirit Stone before the Ritual Altar. Mayu will stand calmly on the altar (mirroring the Sprouting Wings trigger). Complete the two-wave Kusabi fight, then enter the Abyss for the Sae encounter.
What's the Key Difference in the Remaining Sun Fight?
You must defeat Sae in 1 minute or less. This is the critical condition separating Remaining Sun from The Promise ending.
To hit the time limit:
- Use your highest-tier film (Type-90 or Type Zero)
- Equip your most powerful upgraded lenses and charms
- Hit Mayu with a strong shot immediately when the fight begins
- Prioritize Fatal Frame shots to maximize damage per hit
If you defeat Sae within the time limit, the prompt to grab Mayu's hand appears. Miss the window and you'll get The Promise ending instead.
In the final cutscene, Mio and Mayu fall into the Abyss together, but Sae and Yae's spirits catch them (identical to Sprouting Wings). The Crimson Butterflies cleanse the town, and an extra post-credits scene shows Mio and Mayu together on a bench outside the village.
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If you equip Mio's Spirit Stone outside of Nightmare mode, you won't get Remaining Sun, but you will unlock the post-credits bench scene with Mio alone.
Equipping Mio's Spirit Stone
Spirit Stone Unlock Order
Because each Spirit Stone depends on the previous ending, the unlock chain is strictly sequential. Here's the full progression path:
- Complete Crimson Butterfly ending (first playthrough, Normal+)
- Complete Yae's side story in New Game+ to get Yae's Spirit Stone, then reach The Promise
- Complete The Kusabi's side story in New Game+ to get Kusabi Sparkling Spirit Stone, then reach The Abyss
- Complete Sae's side story and Mayu's side story in New Game+ (fragments from Promise and Abyss endings), then reach Sprouting Wings
- Complete all side stories, then complete Mio's side story for Mio's Spirit Stone, then reach Remaining Sun on Nightmare
Side story unlock screen
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The Lonely Road Home ending can be collected at any point during your first playthrough without affecting your progress toward the Crimson Butterfly ending, as long as you reload your save afterward.