The only "Survival Horror" game I've played is Eternal Darkness and I'm kinda numb to it, sorta like how I am with sour candy, just doesn't make my lips pucker anymore, so to speak. I have a PS2 and a 360 but no portable devices other than a DS Lite. I also have a Wii but I'm not desperate or bored enough to play the shitty version of Silent Hill 1. Don't recommend PC ports either, I'm not a fan of gaming on my few years old and kinda crummy laptop. I don't care to purchase a USB controller and I much prefer sitting on a couch with my 1080p widescreen television thank you very much.
Never played a Silent Hill game before, what's a good starting point?
- Thread starter Insomniac98338
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Silent Hill 1, 2 or The Room are the ones I recommend for staters. I think you may want to leave Silent Hill 3 till after you play 1 since is a direct sequel unlike the others.
Obviously I would try Silent Hill 1. If you can find it for a great price, that is. But I'd also suggest silent hill 2. Not the Room, because that game can get a little overwhelming for new Silent Hill people (trust me, I know.)
Actually that's kind of the beauty of Silent Hill, very few of them actually have over arching stories and rest just make subtle references to the other games. So really you can start anywhere.
Silent Hill 2 is unquestionably the best of the franchise, you might want to start there, but don't start with dessert. 1, 3 & 4 are still very good, and I highly recommend any of them. As for Origins, Homecoming, and Downpour.. Just do yourself a favor, don't spend the time and money. It's not they're bad, they aren't. They're just really boring.
Silent Hill 2 is unquestionably the best of the franchise, you might want to start there, but don't start with dessert. 1, 3 & 4 are still very good, and I highly recommend any of them. As for Origins, Homecoming, and Downpour.. Just do yourself a favor, don't spend the time and money. It's not they're bad, they aren't. They're just really boring.
It depends. Can you overlook graphics? Like, completely utterly overlook graphics? If so, then Silent Hill (the first one for the PlayStation) is probably the best place to start. If you can't, you may wish to skip it as it could very well turn you off from the series. The graphics have not aged well and you will find yourself going, "This is supposed to be scary? I can't even tell what that is," most likely.
I understand Silent Hill 2 is often regarded as The Best Silent Hill Game EVER!! I would not know. Scared me too much to finish it. There was a part in the game when you go outside at night and your radio does not shut up. It revved the tension up too much for me and I had to stop playing it. So I guess that's a point in the game's favor. I never went back. Also, I know the 'twist' so that really sucked a lot of the enjoyment out of the game for me. It is also one of the Silent Hill 'main' games that is a stand-alone title. You don't need to know anything from any other of the games to enjoy it.
Silent Hill 3 is my favorite, and it is the one I started with. While it is a sequel to the original, this is not revealed until about half way through the game, at which point you will either be fully invested in it or not. The shock of how 3 ties into Silent Hill will be a lot more powerful if you play the first game (and there are also little Easter Eggs hidden here and there) but you don't need to play the first game to appreciate it. I got through it just fine and I had never played the original. There's only one small part that may confuse you, but you can easily look it up.
Never played The Room, but is is another sequel--in a round about way--to the original game. Not nearly as strong in the sequel sense as 3 was, but the connection is there.
Silent Hill Downpour. Hit or miss depending on who you ask. Probably not the best one to start with but if you enjoy the atmosphere and exploring of the town, then you may want to pick it up if you like the other games.
There is no such game as Homecoming. No. Such. Game. Sssshhh.
I understand Silent Hill 2 is often regarded as The Best Silent Hill Game EVER!! I would not know. Scared me too much to finish it. There was a part in the game when you go outside at night and your radio does not shut up. It revved the tension up too much for me and I had to stop playing it. So I guess that's a point in the game's favor. I never went back. Also, I know the 'twist' so that really sucked a lot of the enjoyment out of the game for me. It is also one of the Silent Hill 'main' games that is a stand-alone title. You don't need to know anything from any other of the games to enjoy it.
Silent Hill 3 is my favorite, and it is the one I started with. While it is a sequel to the original, this is not revealed until about half way through the game, at which point you will either be fully invested in it or not. The shock of how 3 ties into Silent Hill will be a lot more powerful if you play the first game (and there are also little Easter Eggs hidden here and there) but you don't need to play the first game to appreciate it. I got through it just fine and I had never played the original. There's only one small part that may confuse you, but you can easily look it up.
Never played The Room, but is is another sequel--in a round about way--to the original game. Not nearly as strong in the sequel sense as 3 was, but the connection is there.
Silent Hill Downpour. Hit or miss depending on who you ask. Probably not the best one to start with but if you enjoy the atmosphere and exploring of the town, then you may want to pick it up if you like the other games.
There is no such game as Homecoming. No. Such. Game. Sssshhh.
From the playthroughs I've seen it is kinda goofy looking but I have enjoyed some "ugly" games before. As long as it doesn't make me wanna puke like the original Legend of Zelda and its sequel I'll be fine as far as graphics go. Only problem for me would be hunting down both the game and a PS1 memory card if it's not legally available for digital download. I have no idea how PS1 emulation works even if there were any games for it other than Silent Hill 1 that I wanted to play. ;xSniper Team 4 said:
Silent Hill isn't a direct continuation series by any stretch. Only the settings and some of the enemies stay the same. (Except the third.)
It's like the difference between Bioshock 1 & 2. Same settings, almost entirely different cast.
Go with the first four, 1-3 and The Room. Personally I enjoyed Silent Hill 2 and The Room the most.
It's like the difference between Bioshock 1 & 2. Same settings, almost entirely different cast.
Go with the first four, 1-3 and The Room. Personally I enjoyed Silent Hill 2 and The Room the most.
Yeah, definitely starting with 2 given how much praise it's been given. I only hope I can hunt down the original and not be stuck with the HD version. x(TheYellowCellPhone said:
If you want the best, start with two, then transition to shattered memories (a psychological horror-thriller) and, if you can ignore some technical hick ups, downpour is pretty great.
My favorite is shattered memories, hell it made me cry at the end. 2 is great, its just the voices sometimes get...iffy. Downpour, to me, was just as great as 2. Sure it had some framerate issues, but those were in very specific areas and its story is just lovely.
As for the rest? If you can stomach the graphics and voice acting, 1 is still pretty good. 3 is downright horrifying at times with its use of silence. 4 is more of the...odd sheep and, if you go to it for its story, is about the antagonist than the protagonist. Origins was my first silent hill and I loved it, though it couldn't decide on whether to emulate the movies and 1 or try to tell Travis' tale. As for homecoming, its the best double helix has made, but is still pretty mediocre,
My favorite is shattered memories, hell it made me cry at the end. 2 is great, its just the voices sometimes get...iffy. Downpour, to me, was just as great as 2. Sure it had some framerate issues, but those were in very specific areas and its story is just lovely.
As for the rest? If you can stomach the graphics and voice acting, 1 is still pretty good. 3 is downright horrifying at times with its use of silence. 4 is more of the...odd sheep and, if you go to it for its story, is about the antagonist than the protagonist. Origins was my first silent hill and I loved it, though it couldn't decide on whether to emulate the movies and 1 or try to tell Travis' tale. As for homecoming, its the best double helix has made, but is still pretty mediocre,
I guess it depends on what you're looking for.
Silent Hill: The most oppressive one, best atmosphere. A great starting point.
Silent Hill 2: Standalone. Most depressing (involving relationships), most intimate and heartfelt story. Not actually all that scary. Most people (who are not me) think it's the best one. A good starting point. (May be a trigger if a partner has died.)
Silent Hill 3: Direct sequel to first game. By far the most violent and gory. I find it the most terrifying. Play it after playing the first one. (May act as a trigger if family has died.)
Silent Hill 4: The Room: Standalone. Most depressing (involving abuse), most interesting story. Most awkward gameplay. Most tense. An awkward starting point, but worth playing nonetheless. (May act as a trigger if you have abandonment issues/history of abuse.)
Silent Hill 5: Homecoming: Standalone. Purely passable story. Most violent gameplay, action-oriented. Some shocking scenes. Not a good place to start. (May act as a trigger if family has died.)
Silent Hill: Downpour: Blegh.
Spin-offs:
Silent Hill Origins: Prequel to first game. Don't even bother.
Silent Hill Shattered Memories: A really cool "what-if" variant of the first game. Not very scary. Story is good. Play after the first one.
(Side note: I added trigger warnings because I recommended Silent Hill 3 to a friend without a trigger warning... I regret.)
Silent Hill: The most oppressive one, best atmosphere. A great starting point.
Silent Hill 2: Standalone. Most depressing (involving relationships), most intimate and heartfelt story. Not actually all that scary. Most people (who are not me) think it's the best one. A good starting point. (May be a trigger if a partner has died.)
Silent Hill 3: Direct sequel to first game. By far the most violent and gory. I find it the most terrifying. Play it after playing the first one. (May act as a trigger if family has died.)
Silent Hill 4: The Room: Standalone. Most depressing (involving abuse), most interesting story. Most awkward gameplay. Most tense. An awkward starting point, but worth playing nonetheless. (May act as a trigger if you have abandonment issues/history of abuse.)
Silent Hill 5: Homecoming: Standalone. Purely passable story. Most violent gameplay, action-oriented. Some shocking scenes. Not a good place to start. (May act as a trigger if family has died.)
Silent Hill: Downpour: Blegh.
Spin-offs:
Silent Hill Origins: Prequel to first game. Don't even bother.
Silent Hill Shattered Memories: A really cool "what-if" variant of the first game. Not very scary. Story is good. Play after the first one.
(Side note: I added trigger warnings because I recommended Silent Hill 3 to a friend without a trigger warning... I regret.)