I think it's pretty much agreed that Silent Hill 2 is one of the best survival horror games ever to be released. Some may even go so far as to say that it's one of the best games ever, period. So, does the game live up to all the talk? Let's have a look.
STORY: Generally I like to review the gameplay first, because, predictably enough, gameplay is the center of most game-playing experiences. However, Silent Hill 2 is one of the few games where this is not the case.
The storyline of SH2 is simply a masterpiece. We follow James Sunderland, a man who has come to the town of Silent Hill looking for his deceased wife, Mary. Right off the bat we see that something's not quite right here. Mary had been dead for three years, when James got a letter from her, inviting him to their "special place", Silent Hill, the town where they had spent some of their last days together. As James enters the town, however, he discovers that the entire place is nearly devoid of human life and overrun by monsters.
The characters in the game are very... interesting, to say the least. They were all designed to highlight elements of James' character, but they seem to exist all on their own at the same time. Many notes and diaries scattered around the town add to the realism of the seemingly outlandish story, not to mention that SH2 also has one of the most shocking plot twists in living memory.
GAMEPLAY: Unfortunately, the gameplay in Silent Hill 2 is stiff at best, and downright stifling at worst.
The combat, which consists of bludgeoning (or shooting, if you're a wuss) monsters to the ground and then stomping on them, is pretty fun, but the poor controls constantly get in the way. Each melee weapon has two different modes of attack, which I will call "fast" and "strong". Which one James uses depends on how hard you press down the X button. While this is perfectly reasonable, it is not executed very well. You'll often find yourself having a lead pipe shoved down your throat by a demon nurse because you used a "strong" attack by mistake.
Also, the "fast" attacks may be more accurately called "less slow" attacks. James fights at a sloth's pace, as though he's underwater. This causes some unnecessary difficulty problems when fighting some of the faster monsters. The guns are supposed to lock on to the nearest enemy, but this does not always work, especially the Hunting Rifle, which is, ironically, the least accurate gun on the game.
However, it's not all bad. When you're using 2-D control mode, you automatically circle-strafe around the enemy you're locked onto by pressing right or left, which I though was a really nice touch. James also automatically turns his head to look at objects of interest, meaning that you can use him as a sort of radar to see if you've cleared a room of all its useful items. However, if you buy this game, do not expect great gameplay. You will be disappointed.
GRAPHICS & SOUND: The graphics in SH2 have not aged well, and may even seem a bit ugly, but the environments are really well done. They are very scary to move around in, especially since most of the time they're pitch black and you can only see about 5 feet in front of you. A great deal of visual allegory is included in the levels, meaning that dedicated fans have something to obsess over even after they beat the game with every ending ("Oh, I think that the West wall of Room 104 represents James' desire to reunite with Mary..."). In addition, a unique "gloss" effect is applied to many of the monsters in the game, making them look a bit like insects.
The sound presentation is seriously top-notch, and the best that I have ever heard in any video game to date. Noises often come from illogical places, creating a distinct feeling of unease, and metallic grinding takes the place of background music in most places. Subtle changes in this noise let you know that you're going in the right direction, so the game is constantly letting you know whether or not you're making progress. Static from a broken radio serves as a radar, the tone and intensity of the static letting you know what types of monsters are there, and how many there are. It's an invaluable resource in Silent Hill's oppressively dark world, where you can barely see your hand in front of your face even WITH a flashlight.
OVERALL: I greatly enjoyed the story and atmosphere of this game, even though the mediocre gameplay threw a bit of a wrench into things. Although it's definitely not for everyone, I'd recommend that you take a chance and buy it, because you probably can't rent it anymore.
STORY: Generally I like to review the gameplay first, because, predictably enough, gameplay is the center of most game-playing experiences. However, Silent Hill 2 is one of the few games where this is not the case.
The storyline of SH2 is simply a masterpiece. We follow James Sunderland, a man who has come to the town of Silent Hill looking for his deceased wife, Mary. Right off the bat we see that something's not quite right here. Mary had been dead for three years, when James got a letter from her, inviting him to their "special place", Silent Hill, the town where they had spent some of their last days together. As James enters the town, however, he discovers that the entire place is nearly devoid of human life and overrun by monsters.
The characters in the game are very... interesting, to say the least. They were all designed to highlight elements of James' character, but they seem to exist all on their own at the same time. Many notes and diaries scattered around the town add to the realism of the seemingly outlandish story, not to mention that SH2 also has one of the most shocking plot twists in living memory.
GAMEPLAY: Unfortunately, the gameplay in Silent Hill 2 is stiff at best, and downright stifling at worst.
The combat, which consists of bludgeoning (or shooting, if you're a wuss) monsters to the ground and then stomping on them, is pretty fun, but the poor controls constantly get in the way. Each melee weapon has two different modes of attack, which I will call "fast" and "strong". Which one James uses depends on how hard you press down the X button. While this is perfectly reasonable, it is not executed very well. You'll often find yourself having a lead pipe shoved down your throat by a demon nurse because you used a "strong" attack by mistake.
Also, the "fast" attacks may be more accurately called "less slow" attacks. James fights at a sloth's pace, as though he's underwater. This causes some unnecessary difficulty problems when fighting some of the faster monsters. The guns are supposed to lock on to the nearest enemy, but this does not always work, especially the Hunting Rifle, which is, ironically, the least accurate gun on the game.
However, it's not all bad. When you're using 2-D control mode, you automatically circle-strafe around the enemy you're locked onto by pressing right or left, which I though was a really nice touch. James also automatically turns his head to look at objects of interest, meaning that you can use him as a sort of radar to see if you've cleared a room of all its useful items. However, if you buy this game, do not expect great gameplay. You will be disappointed.
GRAPHICS & SOUND: The graphics in SH2 have not aged well, and may even seem a bit ugly, but the environments are really well done. They are very scary to move around in, especially since most of the time they're pitch black and you can only see about 5 feet in front of you. A great deal of visual allegory is included in the levels, meaning that dedicated fans have something to obsess over even after they beat the game with every ending ("Oh, I think that the West wall of Room 104 represents James' desire to reunite with Mary..."). In addition, a unique "gloss" effect is applied to many of the monsters in the game, making them look a bit like insects.
The sound presentation is seriously top-notch, and the best that I have ever heard in any video game to date. Noises often come from illogical places, creating a distinct feeling of unease, and metallic grinding takes the place of background music in most places. Subtle changes in this noise let you know that you're going in the right direction, so the game is constantly letting you know whether or not you're making progress. Static from a broken radio serves as a radar, the tone and intensity of the static letting you know what types of monsters are there, and how many there are. It's an invaluable resource in Silent Hill's oppressively dark world, where you can barely see your hand in front of your face even WITH a flashlight.
OVERALL: I greatly enjoyed the story and atmosphere of this game, even though the mediocre gameplay threw a bit of a wrench into things. Although it's definitely not for everyone, I'd recommend that you take a chance and buy it, because you probably can't rent it anymore.
