Scott Cawthon really messed with us back in 2016. After the primary story of Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location wrapped up with that disturbing scooping room ending, most of us thought we were done. We weren't. The December update dropped, and suddenly, we were staring at a control panel in a private office, wondering how on earth we were supposed to track ten different animatronics at once. Sister Location Custom Night wasn't just a bonus; it was a fundamental shift in how the game played, moving away from the scripted "episodes" of the main game and back into the chaotic, resource-management hell that defined the original series.
Honestly? It's exhausting.
The difficulty spike in the "Golden Freddy" preset is legendary for a reason. You aren't just clicking buttons. You are performing a high-speed percussion solo on your keyboard and mouse, praying that Yenndo doesn't drain your oxygen while you're busy shooing away Bonnet. It’s a masterclass in panic.
The Mechanics That Break Your Brain
Most FNAF games are about a rhythm. You check a light, you check a vent, you wind a box. Sister Location Custom Night breaks that rhythm by introducing mechanics that overlap in ways that feel almost unfair. Take Yenndo, for example. He’s a bare endoskeleton that just appears in your office. To get rid of him, you have to flip up your monitor immediately. But wait—if you flip up your monitor while Lolbit is flickering on the screen, you're dead. If you're looking at the monitor to find where Biddybad is, you might miss Bonnet scurrying across the bottom of the screen.
It’s a lot.
The power management is another beast entirely. Unlike the first game, where you could arguably sit still for a few seconds to conserve energy, the Custom Night forces you to use power to deal with almost every threat. Electrocution is your main defense against the Biddybad in the vents, but it eats your battery like crazy. You're constantly weighing the cost of survival against the ticking clock. It’s stressful.
Why Bonnet Is the Worst
Let's talk about the pink rabbit. Bonnet is a simple distraction, but in a 10/20 run, she’s the one that usually ends the night. She walks across the screen. You have to click her nose. If you don't, she jumpscares you. Simple, right? Not when you have Ballora music blasting in your ears and your oxygen levels are dropping because Electrobab is draining the power. Your cursor needs to be in five places at once.
The Non-Canon Confusion and That Final Cutscene
For a long time, the community was torn on whether this mode actually "counted." Scott Cawthon eventually clarified that while the gameplay of the Custom Night itself—the act of Michael Afton sitting in an office fighting these specific bots—is non-canon, the cutscenes you unlock are very much part of the lore.
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This is where the story of Springtrap gets its most significant beat.
Watching the various stages of "Michael Turning Purple" through the 8-bit minigames was a weirdly rhythmic reward for beating the harder difficulties. Seeing him vomit Ennard's parts into a sewer only to stand back up was the moment we realized the Aftons weren't exactly human anymore. But the real kicker was the final cutscene after beating the Golden Freddy preset on Very Hard.
"Father. It's me, Michael. I did it. I found it."
Hearing that voiceover for the first time changed everything. It shifted the perspective from us being a random night guard to us being the son of a serial killer, searching for a redemption that might never come. It tied Sister Location directly to the events of the third game, showing the ruins of Fazbear's Fright and the charred remains of Springtrap.
Surviving the 10/20 Mode: Real Strategies
If you're actually trying to beat this, stop playing it like a horror game. It’s a math problem. You need to develop a "loop."
- Listen for Ballora. Her music is directional. If it's louder in the left ear, shut the left door. Don't waste power checking the cameras for her. It's a waste of time.
- The Bonnet/Yenndo overlap. This is what kills most runs. If Yenndo is in the room, flip the camera. If Bonnet is walking, click the nose. If they happen at the same time, you have about 0.8 seconds to react to both.
- Ignore the cameras mostly. You only need the cameras for two things: resetting the oxygen/power and tracking Funtime Freddy. Everyone else can be handled through audio cues or office visuals.
- Funtime Freddy's Voice. When he says "Bon-Bon, go get 'em!", shut the door on the side he's on. If he says "Get ready for a surprise!", shut the opposite door. It's a counter-intuitive trick that catches everyone the first time.
The power drain from Electrobab is your biggest enemy. You have to flick to the closet cams and zap him immediately. If you let him sit there for even three seconds, your run is basically over because you won't have enough juice to keep the doors shut during the final hour.
Why We Still Play It
Is it fun? Kinda. It's that specific type of "FNAF fun" where you're frustrated for three hours and then feel like a god for ten minutes after winning.
Sister Location Custom Night succeeded because it took the personalities of the Funtime animatronics and turned them into distinct gameplay hurdles. Funtime Foxy isn't just a scary fox; he’s a timer you have to check. Ballora isn't just a ballerina; she’s an audio puzzle. It forced players to use their senses in a way the previous games didn't require.
The game also holds up visually. The pre-rendered graphics of the private office, with its sterile white walls and flickering monitors, create a claustrophobic atmosphere that feels different from the dingy pizzerias of the past. It feels "high-tech" in a way that makes the supernatural elements feel even more out of place.
A Note on the "Private Room"
Accessing this room in the main game was a chore. You had to beat the Baby death minigame, get the keycard, and then deviate from the instructions during the Ennard chase. The Custom Night gives us that same environment but populates it with the whole cast. It’s a clever reuse of assets that feels like a completely new experience.
Most people get wrong the idea that you can "luck" your way through 10/20. You can't. The RNG (random number generation) can screw you over, sure, but a win requires near-perfect muscle memory. You're basically training your brain to ignore the "scary" parts so you can focus on the blinking lights and the oxygen meter.
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Actionable Next Steps for Completionists
To truly master Sister Location Custom Night and see everything the game has to offer, follow this progression path:
- Start with the "Angry Bench" and "Freddy & Co" presets. These are the best ways to learn the audio cues for Funtime Freddy and Ballora without the added stress of the power-drainers.
- Practice the "Nose Click." Open a practice round with just Bonnet active. Get used to her movement speed. You need to be able to click her nose without looking directly at her, using your peripheral vision while you focus on the center of the screen.
- Master the Camera Toggle. Learn to flip the camera up and down in under half a second. This is your primary defense against Yenndo and your primary way to reset the "scare" timers for other animatronics.
- Watch the 8-bit Minigames in Order. Don't just skip to the end. The subtle changes in Michael's sprite color and the reactions of the NPCs in the background tell a story of physical decay that is central to the series' lore.
- Listen with Headphones. This is non-negotiable. If you're playing through desktop speakers, you will not be able to tell which side Ballora or Funtime Freddy is approaching from, making the higher difficulties literally impossible.
Once you’ve cleared the Golden Freddy mode, you’ve essentially conquered one of the hardest challenges in the entire FNAF franchise. From there, the next logical step is diving into the Ultimate Custom Night, which takes these mechanics and scales them up to fifty animatronics, though many fans still argue that Sister Location’s version feels tighter and more balanced.