I like the Silent Hill games but I don't know why Silent Hill 2 and 3 is the best to a lot of people of all the Silent Hill games.
Why is Silent Hill 2 and 3 the best?
- Thread starter Brandon Lowdermilk
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It may help if you list off a few reasons why you think they're not the best, so people can address your concerns.
Honestly, go watch Zero Punctuation of Silent Hill 2. Yahtzee does a really good job of covering why that game is loved. To date, it is the only game that got under my skin so badly that I had to stop playing and haven't finished it to this day.
They inhabit the sweet spot between good storytelling and decent survival horror. 2 arguably moreso than 3.
You need reasons and evidences to built your case.
It will be so easy for me to convince The Jury These two games are the best of the series without even trying yo!
It will be so easy for me to convince The Jury These two games are the best of the series without even trying yo!
2 had the most complex plot and characters, and had the best use of symbolism. It also helps that everything about the game was geared toward a single purpose. The level design, music, game play, dialogue, and monster designs all reinforced the same themes. Furthermore, it's easily the best psychological horror game of all time. Everything is about the internalization of the characters, and their mental state. Almost all of the other games in the series focus on an external threat, like the cult. Silent Hill 2, on the other hand, focuses on the inner demons of James. It just knew exactly what it wanted to be every step of the way. Subjectively, I also think it was the most emotional game in the series. This makes it not only the best Silent Hill game for a lot of people, but one of the best games ever.
That said, I think SH3 was scarier, and SH 1 probably had my second favorite plot. While it didn't quite have the polish of 2, there's just something uniquely creepy about the first game. I would also give shattered memories a fair shake, even though it wasn't scary.
That said, I think SH3 was scarier, and SH 1 probably had my second favorite plot. While it didn't quite have the polish of 2, there's just something uniquely creepy about the first game. I would also give shattered memories a fair shake, even though it wasn't scary.
"2" took everything that was good about "Silent Hill" and fueled it into the overrall storytelling, whilst "3" took everything that was good about "Silent Hill" and fueled it into the world building and protagonist.
Because the first game was a good start but fairly basic in terms of design and story. Its use of awkward gameplay, symbolism, motifs, meshing of soundtrack with tone to elaborate the story etc. was expanded on in "Silent Hill 2".
"Silent Hill 3" is very reminiscent of the first game, but contains the best gameplay of the original quadrilogy and utilises its tone, aesthetic and gameplay to fuel the horror aspect of the game. Plus by putting us in the perspective of Heather Mason, the symbolism hits much harder because of its themes of rape, pregnancy, inevitability, change in one's body etc. It makes (mostly) natural things seem horrifying - then adds gruesome aspects of life to make it more unnerving.
"Silent Hill 4: The Room" had a fascinating story and created a haunting atmosphere in an interesting world - but the gameplay fucked up entirely, especially in the second half. "Silent Hill" has never had good combat, so if a game manages to screw it up it's noticeably aggravating.
As for the four American games. "Origins" is generally regarded as basically OK. "Homecoming" is very divisive for several reasons not the least of which is it's dramatic shift to action-horror. "Shattered Memories" is criticised for not staying faithful to the original game despite allegedly being a remake[footnote]I'd argue "Shattered Memories" is one of the best games in the series - but that's my opinion versus what I have seen the general opinion to be.[/footnote] and the Wii's controls don't help it. "Downpour"[footnote]I also think "Downpour" is pretty damn good, but I do kinda understand why some fans don't like it.[/footnote] is fairly mixed in opinion as well. It's a lot less subtle than the other games. Plus it's comprised of influences from pretty much all of the games in the series to mixed results.
Because the first game was a good start but fairly basic in terms of design and story. Its use of awkward gameplay, symbolism, motifs, meshing of soundtrack with tone to elaborate the story etc. was expanded on in "Silent Hill 2".
"Silent Hill 3" is very reminiscent of the first game, but contains the best gameplay of the original quadrilogy and utilises its tone, aesthetic and gameplay to fuel the horror aspect of the game. Plus by putting us in the perspective of Heather Mason, the symbolism hits much harder because of its themes of rape, pregnancy, inevitability, change in one's body etc. It makes (mostly) natural things seem horrifying - then adds gruesome aspects of life to make it more unnerving.
"Silent Hill 4: The Room" had a fascinating story and created a haunting atmosphere in an interesting world - but the gameplay fucked up entirely, especially in the second half. "Silent Hill" has never had good combat, so if a game manages to screw it up it's noticeably aggravating.
As for the four American games. "Origins" is generally regarded as basically OK. "Homecoming" is very divisive for several reasons not the least of which is it's dramatic shift to action-horror. "Shattered Memories" is criticised for not staying faithful to the original game despite allegedly being a remake[footnote]I'd argue "Shattered Memories" is one of the best games in the series - but that's my opinion versus what I have seen the general opinion to be.[/footnote] and the Wii's controls don't help it. "Downpour"[footnote]I also think "Downpour" is pretty damn good, but I do kinda understand why some fans don't like it.[/footnote] is fairly mixed in opinion as well. It's a lot less subtle than the other games. Plus it's comprised of influences from pretty much all of the games in the series to mixed results.
I'm that weird creepy freak who thinks that SH2 is massively overrated - SH3 is just so much better.
I can't put my finger on why exactly Silent Hill 2 bores me - probably was a bit too slow for not enough payoff - but Silent Hill 3 was incredibly easy to relate to. Having a dead Dad will make that happen. Compared to 1, which was nifty but uneven with some silly plot elements, and 4 which had the most interesting plot and most oppressive atmosphere ruined by the most aggravating gameplay by a long shot. Silent Hill 3 keeps the most consistently high quality elements of the series (not saying they're perfect), and the bloody environments are just creepy as hell.
The newer ones are just... American. That's not necessarily bad, but when your series starts as thoroughly Japanese as possible, it's hard not to be disappointed.
EDIT: Thought about it for a couple minutes, thought of some niggles I have with SH2.
James is not that interesting to me. He gets done in by his own personal demons, which is a pretty good premise for a protagonist, but it just didn't grab me. Heather, by comparison, is dragged in against her will and directly attacked by something she never wanted to be a part of, which makes her vengeance quest a lot more relatable. James kept stumbling forward despite all signs saying he shouldn't because he had a death wish, in essence - Heather kept stumbling forward despite all signs saying she shouldn't because she actually had a goal in mind. Plus, I played both when I was an angst-ridden teen. It's easier to connect to the angst-ridden teen versus the dude who's been through stuff I've never come even close to.
Also, SH2 just isn't menacing enough. Don't get me wrong, it's got fine atmosphere, with lots of fog and creepy entities and decay... but it just doesn't make me panic like blood literally flowing up the walls, you know?
I can't put my finger on why exactly Silent Hill 2 bores me - probably was a bit too slow for not enough payoff - but Silent Hill 3 was incredibly easy to relate to. Having a dead Dad will make that happen. Compared to 1, which was nifty but uneven with some silly plot elements, and 4 which had the most interesting plot and most oppressive atmosphere ruined by the most aggravating gameplay by a long shot. Silent Hill 3 keeps the most consistently high quality elements of the series (not saying they're perfect), and the bloody environments are just creepy as hell.
The newer ones are just... American. That's not necessarily bad, but when your series starts as thoroughly Japanese as possible, it's hard not to be disappointed.
EDIT: Thought about it for a couple minutes, thought of some niggles I have with SH2.
James is not that interesting to me. He gets done in by his own personal demons, which is a pretty good premise for a protagonist, but it just didn't grab me. Heather, by comparison, is dragged in against her will and directly attacked by something she never wanted to be a part of, which makes her vengeance quest a lot more relatable. James kept stumbling forward despite all signs saying he shouldn't because he had a death wish, in essence - Heather kept stumbling forward despite all signs saying she shouldn't because she actually had a goal in mind. Plus, I played both when I was an angst-ridden teen. It's easier to connect to the angst-ridden teen versus the dude who's been through stuff I've never come even close to.
Also, SH2 just isn't menacing enough. Don't get me wrong, it's got fine atmosphere, with lots of fog and creepy entities and decay... but it just doesn't make me panic like blood literally flowing up the walls, you know?
Because opinions. It's like arguing over which Resident Evil game, games, or eras of games are better. You can draw some logical conclusions, but there is a huge dose of simple preference, nostalgia, and beliefs about what a Silent Hill game SHOULD be injected into the mix. The mere suggestion that Silent Hill 1-3 have flawed and broken gameplay induces rage in some of the more "passionate" fans. The kind who sent death threats over the less than great remasters, for example.
The basic difference between Silent Hill and Resident Evil is that "modern" Resident Evil has flourished with games that sold gangbusters even if fans and or critics resented them, while "modern" Silent Hill kinda staggered along, and died. The series never attained the commercial success of Resident Evil, either.
Anyway, Silent Hill 1-3 are fairly consistent games. Graphics got better, gameplay stayed more or less the same, they were all "Silent Hill-ish". Sales fell with SH3, kinda like how they fell with Resident Evil 3.
Silent Hill 4 was a departure. It's basically 1408: The Game. Tank controls were abandoned for 3D movement akin to everything from Mario 64 to Haunting Ground to RE2 N64 & RE6. A huge chunk of the game is a very iffy backtracking section with an AI companion you have to babysit constantly if you don't want the bad ending(s). The game feels rushed, and the aforementioned backtracking is crushing for a lot of players.
Silent Hill: Origins followed. Development was a huge mess. Initially developed by Climax's American branch, the game was removed and handed to Climax's original UK branch, where Sam Barlow and his team went about trying to salvage it. Konami insisted they cut costs, so the game couldn't be completely scrapped and rebuilt. I think one element that had to be kept was the prerendered FMVs, meaning there's a bit of an odd tone thing going on between the FMVs and the ingame cutscenes. It's a strange game. One interesting design element is how it uses the method for handling fixed camera angles+3D movement that RE2 N64 pioneered.
I haven't played Silent Hill: Homecoming, so I can't comment on it.
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories is very interesting. Developed by Climax UK. Sam Barlow was lead developer. It started out as a very different game. The actual nature of the game is very complex because it was crafted to exploit a Konami loophole. Basically, Konami had on their books an opening to make a Silent Hill remake. Well, Climax weren't interested in remaking Silent Hill, but they wanted to make another Silent Hill game. So they PRETENDED to remake Silent Hill. They gave their characters the same names as the original characters to mask the deception, and rejigged the script so it bore vague resemblances to the original Silent Hill, despite having basically nothing to do with it. Shattered Memories is a game developed by someone who not only hated classic Silent Hill combat, but didn't like combat in general. (His latest project is the FMV game Her Story.) Shattered Memories reflects that because all you can do is run away.
The game was originally designed for Wii, and was ported to PSP and PS2. The Wii version is visually superior, but it has Wiimote controls, and I hate them so, so much. The normal flashlight pointing stuff is fine. Performing waggling motions to shake monsters off is not fine. I find the Wii version unbearable, and find the other versions to be far more enjoyable games. The PSP version is a technological marvel.
Haven't played Silent Hill: Downpour for the simple reason it never came to PC. Nor have I played Silent Hill: Book of Memories.
The basic difference between Silent Hill and Resident Evil is that "modern" Resident Evil has flourished with games that sold gangbusters even if fans and or critics resented them, while "modern" Silent Hill kinda staggered along, and died. The series never attained the commercial success of Resident Evil, either.
Anyway, Silent Hill 1-3 are fairly consistent games. Graphics got better, gameplay stayed more or less the same, they were all "Silent Hill-ish". Sales fell with SH3, kinda like how they fell with Resident Evil 3.
Silent Hill 4 was a departure. It's basically 1408: The Game. Tank controls were abandoned for 3D movement akin to everything from Mario 64 to Haunting Ground to RE2 N64 & RE6. A huge chunk of the game is a very iffy backtracking section with an AI companion you have to babysit constantly if you don't want the bad ending(s). The game feels rushed, and the aforementioned backtracking is crushing for a lot of players.
Silent Hill: Origins followed. Development was a huge mess. Initially developed by Climax's American branch, the game was removed and handed to Climax's original UK branch, where Sam Barlow and his team went about trying to salvage it. Konami insisted they cut costs, so the game couldn't be completely scrapped and rebuilt. I think one element that had to be kept was the prerendered FMVs, meaning there's a bit of an odd tone thing going on between the FMVs and the ingame cutscenes. It's a strange game. One interesting design element is how it uses the method for handling fixed camera angles+3D movement that RE2 N64 pioneered.
I haven't played Silent Hill: Homecoming, so I can't comment on it.
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories is very interesting. Developed by Climax UK. Sam Barlow was lead developer. It started out as a very different game. The actual nature of the game is very complex because it was crafted to exploit a Konami loophole. Basically, Konami had on their books an opening to make a Silent Hill remake. Well, Climax weren't interested in remaking Silent Hill, but they wanted to make another Silent Hill game. So they PRETENDED to remake Silent Hill. They gave their characters the same names as the original characters to mask the deception, and rejigged the script so it bore vague resemblances to the original Silent Hill, despite having basically nothing to do with it. Shattered Memories is a game developed by someone who not only hated classic Silent Hill combat, but didn't like combat in general. (His latest project is the FMV game Her Story.) Shattered Memories reflects that because all you can do is run away.
The game was originally designed for Wii, and was ported to PSP and PS2. The Wii version is visually superior, but it has Wiimote controls, and I hate them so, so much. The normal flashlight pointing stuff is fine. Performing waggling motions to shake monsters off is not fine. I find the Wii version unbearable, and find the other versions to be far more enjoyable games. The PSP version is a technological marvel.
Haven't played Silent Hill: Downpour for the simple reason it never came to PC. Nor have I played Silent Hill: Book of Memories.