Rogetsu Isle

Rogetsu Isle Kanji 朧月島　（ろうげつ　とう） Game Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse Located at Island south of Honshu Function Island Status Abandoned

Rogetsu Isle is the setting for Fatal Frame IV. It is the largest island in the Rogetsu Archipelago south of Honshu. The island had been feared since ancient times, for its epidemic of a mysterious disease and its reputation for being close to the underworld. Islanders were frequently "spirited away".

Every ten years, a Shinto ritual involving song and dance known as the Rite of Descent was performed on the night of the lunar eclipse, but after a great disaster, the ritual fell into the realm of taboo. In its place, the Rogetsu Kagura (神楽, kagura) was performed, and over time became an important tourist attraction. The island was also renowned for the beautifully-carved masks made by its master craftsmen.

After a second disaster wiped out the island's population in the 1970s, it was abandoned and all but forgotten.

Locations

• Rogetsu Hall
• Haibara Infirmary
• Yomotsuki Residence
• Temple of the Lunar Eclipse
• Primeval Passage
• Cape Tsukiyomi Lighthouse

Residents

• Haibara Family

Shigeto Haibara, Sakuya's Mother, Yo Haibara & Sakuya Haibara

• Yomotsuki Family

Soya Yomotsuki, Soetsu Yomotsuki & Soan Yomotsuki

• Minazuki Family

Sayaka Minazuki & Ruka Minazuki

• Tsukimori Family

Visitors

• Ruka Minazuki
• Misaki Asou
• Madoka Tsukimori
• Tomoe Nanamura
• Marie Shinomiya
• Choshiro Kirishima

History & Culture

In ancient times, Rogetsu was feared as "the island nearest to the underworld", whose insular culture shunned outsiders. It is said that after a great disaster, however, they welcomed visitors to aid in the recovery.

Over time, the island had become renowned for its handmade artistic crafts, especially wood carvings and masks. During his visit to the island at the end of the Meiji Era, Dr. Kunihiko Asou credited the paint utilized in the creation of Rogetsu's kagura masks as advancing the film produced for use in the Camera Obscura.

Faith

On Rogetsu Isle, the moon regarded as an object of faith. As the sun reveals what is on the surface, the moon is associated with what is within, such as memory, the personality, and the soul. The moon is believed to act as a doorway to the Other World. In ancient times, there was a secretive ritual involving the returning souls of the dead. While the ritual's original form has been lost, today it is known as the Rogetsu Kagura, a popular tourist attraction in which the island's famed masks play a vital role.

Misc. Info

• Rogetsu means "hazy moon". Carvings of full moons surrounded by swirling clouds are part of the island's cultural heritage, and appear in various places throughout the game.