In its debut week in Japan, "Fatal Frame" sold 22,000 units, the lowest debut sales of the series. Its lifetime sales in the country have reached 42,000 units, also making it the lowest-selling title up to that point. Upon release on the PlayStation 2 in Europe, it sold 12,000 copies. According to an interview with Kikuchi and Shibata, the game was an unexpected success in both North America and Europe. The two attributed this to the recent popularity of Japanese horror films like "Ring".