How to Play Five Nights at Freddy’s in Chronological Order

Five Nights at Freddy’s has seen undeniable success. What started as a single jump scare-filled horror game has bloomed into a massive franchise complete with films and a novel tied to it. Each new game adds something to the overarching story, but very rarely in chronological order.

This can make it hard to dig into if you prefer to see a story play out in its exact order of events. But if you’re determined to start from the beginning, we can help with this guide on how to play Five Nights at Freddy’s in chronological order!

How to Play FNAF in Chronological Order

There are a total of ten titles from the series’ catalogue of games that are considered canon. All ten canonical Five Nights at Freddy’s titles can be found listed in chronological order, along with the year they’re set in if available, down below:

1. Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 (1983)
2. Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 (1987)
3. Five Nights at Freddy’s Sister Location (early ’90s or late ’80s)
4. Five Nights at Freddy’s (1993)
5. Five Nights at Freddies: Help Wanted 2
6. Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 (2023)
7. Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator (2023)
8. Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted
9. Five Nights at Freddy’s: Special Delivery
10. FNAF: Security Breach (2024 – 2029)

We should note that Five Nights at Freddy’s World, Freddy in Space 2, Security Breach: Fury’s Rage, Freddy in Space 3: Chica in Space, and Ultimate Custom Night are widely considered to be spin-offs of the series. As a result, these titles are seen as non-canon.

Additionally, Five Nights at Freddy’s: Special Delivery is a sort of oddball. You can point to much of the content as canon such as the emails, some of the gameplay, and even Vanny’s appearance. But there are still facets of the game that don’t quite fit with the rest of the series, so you can take it or leave it.

How to Play Five Nights at Freddy’s in Order of Release

While it is entirely viable to play FNAF in chronological order, it’s actually better to play the games in order of release.

This is largely due to the nature of the story, as it expands over time and unveils new mysteries as it jumps back and forth from decade to decade. It also makes much more sense to be in the dark narratively as much as possible, and the difference between a chronological and release playthrough is like the difference between going on a tour and a haunted house ride.

If you don’t want the mystery spoiled, you can play the games in the release order listed below:

1. Five Nights at Freddy’s (2014)
2. Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 (2014)
3. Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 (2015)
4. Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 (2015)
5. Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location (2016)
6. Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator (2017)
7. Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted (2019)
8. FNaF: Special Delivery (2019)
9. Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach (2021)
10. Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2 (2023)

So, there you have it. We hope this helped clue you in on how to play Five Nights at Freddy’s in chronological order. For more on the series, you can take our quiz to find out which FNAF character you would be.