In 2014, a struggling Christian Animator and SciFi game creator named Scott Cawthon was fresh off ridicule from some asshat on Steam making fun of his animation style. After some depression and mental hardships due to pouring his soul into his projects he decided to turn lemons into lemonade and out came this. And I don't think the Texan Dollar General worker at the time had any clue what was about to happen to his last hurrah....

Some YouTuber named Yamimash made a video of himself playing the game, he was friends with another guy named Markiplier - you might have heard of him - Markiplier started playing the game, and his radio-friendly voice and penchant for freaking out due to his fear of automatons lead him down the path of being a much beloved and much watched YouTuber. Through him, Yammimash, Razzbowski, Dawko, and others over the years, the game has achieved a legendary status normally reserved for AAA titles from major corporate producers. But the irony in Five Nights at Freddy's is most of the people watching it on YouTube did not actually play the game!

So when the first night starts, you're pretty much free and clear until 2:00. Your best bet here is to wait it out until 2:00, listening to "Phone Guy" if you need to to learn the other processes in which we are to do this.

Usually when 2:00am rolls around, I'll hit the stage camera first and then Pirate's Cove if I hear Foxy doing his "dum de dee dum dum diddly dum" bit. I have read, in some places, that Foxy is not active on night one unless you look at him, but I've had a couple times I did not look at the camera and got a nice "HELLO" from Foxy as a result, so I'm not quite sure I trust that assessment. This is when we get into the groove of how to play the game.

Usually the first main stage Animatronic to come loose is Bonnie. I'm going to tell you, right now, that the Camera is a ruse, and it's better to just use it to stall Foxy and deal with Bonnie and Chica IMHO, especially on the first 4 nights.

Bonnie comes down the left hallway and he likes to move around a lot, so don't worry about him hanging around too terribly long. The way to tell if EITHER Animatronic is active is to listen to the ambiance. At first, you just have the fan, then you will hear what sounds like various electric motor sounds starting up in the background. Once you hear something sounding like a Table Saw firing up, it's time to get ready for the coming of Bonnie and Chica.

To check for Bonnie or Chica, use your Hall Lights, and if either one is spotted, CLOSE The door ASAP. If not seen, continue as usual. I usually cycle left, right, then check on Foxy very quickly, note his status.....

Foxy has several stages: closed curtain, closed curtain with singing, slightly open curtain, nose poking out, curtain open and foxy is out, then foxy looking in the camera sideways, and then foxy gone - that last one - IMMEDIATLEY put down the camera, close the door, and if you want, trigger his sprint down the left hallway by opening the camera and clicking on the left hallway - and you'll see Foxy Sprinting down the hallway, and then him banging ont he door, which will take some power.

If you're being more exploratory, the west hall also features a picture on the wall of Freddy, which may occasionally turn into a picture of "Yellow Bear" or "Golden Freddy". If you see that picture, the next time you pull down the camera, Golden Freddy will be in your room - if so - QUICKLY Flip the camera back up or he'll crash your game and scream in your face in a lower pitch.

One last bit about audio - listen for Chica being in the Kitchen. The Kitchen has no Camera, but when she's in there, you'll hear pots and pans clanging around in there. When you hear the pots and pans, the only reason you'll want to check the right door....if for Freddy, and he's not coming out on Night 1 on most cases (unless you run out of power).

On Night 2, Foxy and Chica become a little more active, and if not introduced yet, this is when Foxy starts. Same deal as night 1 - cycle left and right, listen to the ambiance for clues, check Foxy periodically, and note his position, and close the door if he's ready to sprint, or if you see anyone at your door.

This is when I must discuss the importance of power economy in this game. Apparently, Afton went to the future and got some Tesla Batteries for Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. You have a limited supply of energy, and everything takes it up - the doors, the lights, the camera, foxy knocking on the door, even that Fan is a minimal drain you can't turn off. Usually what I try to do, is match the power to the hour. So my halfway point is 3:00am - I shoot to have at least 50% power by 3:00 AM - that way I have a higher chance of saving my power. Generally I'll try to be more conservative on one half of the night or the other, depending on the events. Because some nights, Bonnie and Chica love to box you in, and then Foxy comes by to bang on the door a bit - which is a great power usage. If I'm boxed in on both sides, I usually choose not to check the cameras until just before I open the doors and both are gone - that way then, that gives Foxy some time to run his cycle and I don't have to slam the door when I pull up the camera.

But what happens when you DO run out of power? Well....You get a nice serenade from Freddy Fazbear to the main part of the Toredor March from the movie Carmen - played on the most spooky Orchestron this side of Herbie Rides Again - before the last remaining light cuts out and Freddy starts pacing for a random amount of time like a cop trying to figure out what charges to run you up on before jumpscaring you. If you lose power toward the end of the night though, you may be given mercy by the 6:00am ring of the clock.

Usually for this night, I sit still, and wait for the ambience to start getting closer. Did I mention the footsteps? Well, you can hear the character footsteps to the door. I'm not sure if this was in the original game, or something Cawthon added after FNaF 4 (all the games got some updates after FNaF 4). Once you hear them, check your lights, chances are, you'll be slamming the door soon.

If you have not guess by my quasi-Night Ranger reference in the title, Freddy like's to go on a midnight stroll starting on Night 3. He'll come down the right hallway, and he will indicate a movement with a mixture of his "hue hue hue hue" laugh (which I find actually pretty funny), and the occasional Carmen performance. Tonight, we might as well reveal the travel paths of all the animatronics that I have not mentioned.

Bonnie and Foxy go down the left/west hall. Foxy just sprints to your room ASAP, while Bonnie will go to the party room, sometimes detour through parts and services, west hall corridors, and the cleaning supply closet once in awhile. When he's at your door, he'll be poking his head in.

Chica and Freddy come down the right/east hall. Chica travels to the party room, east hall, hangs out in the kitchen sometimes (pots and pans), and then outside your door on the east side. Freddy will come off stage, hang out by the bathrooms, follow the east hall down to your door, and will not leave for the rest of the night. This means - once Freddy is at your door, you need to close it every time you pull up the camera, or you'll get a Freddy Fazbear in your room - and probably the funniest Jumpscare in the game (it looks like he's tickling you or trying to dance with you....in that spooky but funny way like a second sound effect going "yeaaahehehehahahue!" used in old Disney Movies when people fell from somewhere high should be played).

So starting the night, again, I'll just be a lazy moron at the start and let Bonnie and Chica start up after I've prepped my Camera for the night. Then check for Foxy - and listen for Freddy's laugh. Once Freddy is close, I start closing the right door while I check the Foxy camera. If Foxy is out, I close the other door - maybe even wait - and check the lights periodically because Chica and Bonnie like to come and hang out even when the doors are closed. I check Chica a little less as often - because she tends to hang around for long periods before resetting, while Bonnie will sometimes cycle as much as 5x a night. I shoot for 50% power still, at 3 a.m. - at least - but I focus a little less on that this go out.