Zero Punctuation: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
- Thread starter Yahtzee Croshaw
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I told myself for a long time I shouldn't play any other Silent Hill games after Silent Hill 4, seeing how it seemed to me like they were running out of things to do with the series, so instead started throwing in complicated riddles you should solve in order to properly understand the chronologically confusing storyline tied to every game on independent level, and even more trouble being able to link all the games properly, but I always ended up coming back, both with Homecoming and Origin. My opinion on Homecoming was that it was a great example of what not to do with a game series, as it completely left behind the one thing that made me come back, the psychological terror. Origin, while being a festival of what seemed to me to be bland characters, made me feel desperate from time to time, and not knowing what to do actually made the horror even bigger, as I didn't know whether I'd be finding the solution to every problem in life on the next door or a monster the size of Canada, conveniently hiding in the shadows waiting for me to walk by, which was in my opinion the core element of Silent Hill games, and, on other medium, the film The Shining.
Redundancy apart, I come to my question, past the features you've discussed on the video, does the game flop on building atmosphere when you know you will only be getting attacked on the blue portion of the world, or does this actually make you feel intimidated by that portion of the game?
Redundancy apart, I come to my question, past the features you've discussed on the video, does the game flop on building atmosphere when you know you will only be getting attacked on the blue portion of the world, or does this actually make you feel intimidated by that portion of the game?
While I can understand the specific need for gore in a horror game, I feel like most people make the poor assumption that Silent Hill is about the horrific and goretastic environment rather than the subtle, psychological aspect. Any real fan of the series knows that the entire point of the game is to fuck with your mind.
I hate it when goth twats, the type who start jerking off whenever blood is drawn, get a hold of this series. I see this all the time in fucking moronic fanfics, but right now, I'm specifically referring to the Silent Hill comics. Add some pentagrams drawn in blood and and bone marrow, throw in stock Silent Hill monsters, and top it off some gratuitous swearing and sexual references, and suddenly they think they're being hardcore and "true to the series".
This is why I have to disagree with Yahtzee on one thing he mentioned: the lack of gore. Withholding the rusty blood and gore may not have been the best move on the developers part, but it still a good way to remind people of what Silent Hill is all about. This Silent Hill is supposed to be a revamp, helping the series to get back on track. The absence of gore is a great indicator of what I think was a success. The cult, the gore--all that in your face shit has been removed, paving the way for the cryptic, subtle mindfucker that we are all familiar with.
I hate it when goth twats, the type who start jerking off whenever blood is drawn, get a hold of this series. I see this all the time in fucking moronic fanfics, but right now, I'm specifically referring to the Silent Hill comics. Add some pentagrams drawn in blood and and bone marrow, throw in stock Silent Hill monsters, and top it off some gratuitous swearing and sexual references, and suddenly they think they're being hardcore and "true to the series".
This is why I have to disagree with Yahtzee on one thing he mentioned: the lack of gore. Withholding the rusty blood and gore may not have been the best move on the developers part, but it still a good way to remind people of what Silent Hill is all about. This Silent Hill is supposed to be a revamp, helping the series to get back on track. The absence of gore is a great indicator of what I think was a success. The cult, the gore--all that in your face shit has been removed, paving the way for the cryptic, subtle mindfucker that we are all familiar with.
Wow, for once Yahtzee did a review that is actually 100% right and not just poking fun at the game.
I actually just got around to playing and beating it myself a few days ago and while it was interesting, he's absolutely correct about it not being the least bit scary. Creepy & Frantic? Sure. Scary? Fuck no.
It kinda defeats the purpose when you only have enemies in the nightmare scenes, and the inability to fight them only compounds this. I actually have to disagree with Yahtzee on that one point. It's not more terrifying when you can't fight back. The nightmare scenes were more frustrating than anything as the buggers move so fast that unless you have a flare handy or manage to hide and then leave the room before they notice you, you can not check your map for directions. It's basically a giant trial & error run for your life and I"m sorry but I did not find that entertaining in the least.
No, it's way, WAY scarier in in Silent Hill 2 where you CAN kill things except the allmighty Pyramid Head. The way I view it, it's far more terrifying to give someone the illusion of hope (weapons) only to abruptly take it away at the most inopportune moment (Pyramid head showing up, running out of ammo etc) because then you really know you're screwed. I dunno, I guess having that sense of hope and then having it stripped away gives you a greater appreciation of the situation you're in.
It's actually rather ironic for a game that changes based on the choices you make to deprive you of arguably the single most critical decision you can make - fight or flee.
I actually just got around to playing and beating it myself a few days ago and while it was interesting, he's absolutely correct about it not being the least bit scary. Creepy & Frantic? Sure. Scary? Fuck no.
It kinda defeats the purpose when you only have enemies in the nightmare scenes, and the inability to fight them only compounds this. I actually have to disagree with Yahtzee on that one point. It's not more terrifying when you can't fight back. The nightmare scenes were more frustrating than anything as the buggers move so fast that unless you have a flare handy or manage to hide and then leave the room before they notice you, you can not check your map for directions. It's basically a giant trial & error run for your life and I"m sorry but I did not find that entertaining in the least.
No, it's way, WAY scarier in in Silent Hill 2 where you CAN kill things except the allmighty Pyramid Head. The way I view it, it's far more terrifying to give someone the illusion of hope (weapons) only to abruptly take it away at the most inopportune moment (Pyramid head showing up, running out of ammo etc) because then you really know you're screwed. I dunno, I guess having that sense of hope and then having it stripped away gives you a greater appreciation of the situation you're in.
It's actually rather ironic for a game that changes based on the choices you make to deprive you of arguably the single most critical decision you can make - fight or flee.
Really happy he finally could do a review of this game! I've been waiting ever since it came out. Even with all the problems of this game, I really enjoyed it. The story especially got to me for some reason, the same way Silent Hill 2 did. I was in a daze for a few weeks after playing.
Here is how to structure a post responding to a new ZP review:
1) make sure you reply within 5 minutes of the video going up just so everyone knows oyu haven't watch it yet, save maybe the first few lines.
2) Insert "ha ha very funny yatzhee", "great review", "i loled", "lol@", "".
Ugh.
Anyway about the review: I'm scared of the Silent Hill series. Scared that playing any of them except SH2 would be a waste of time. This actually sounds worthwhile :S
And if Yahtzee half likes something then normal people would like it heaps.
1) make sure you reply within 5 minutes of the video going up just so everyone knows oyu haven't watch it yet, save maybe the first few lines.
2) Insert "ha ha very funny yatzhee", "great review", "i loled", "lol@", "".
Ugh.
Anyway about the review: I'm scared of the Silent Hill series. Scared that playing any of them except SH2 would be a waste of time. This actually sounds worthwhile :S
And if Yahtzee half likes something then normal people would like it heaps.
Brushie Brushie Brushie Brushie.. lol
I am going to be going out to get this come the weekend (yay pay day and friday afternoon), so it'll be interesting to see how the supposedly evil and scary side really does get portrayed. I'm a creature of habit though, so I'll probably find myself going to do one thing, and then realise the game is actually different to the original.
Also - I thought it was common knowledge that shit only gets real when a pink dress is involved ;p
I am going to be going out to get this come the weekend (yay pay day and friday afternoon), so it'll be interesting to see how the supposedly evil and scary side really does get portrayed. I'm a creature of habit though, so I'll probably find myself going to do one thing, and then realise the game is actually different to the original.
Also - I thought it was common knowledge that shit only gets real when a pink dress is involved ;p
My GF is a huge SH fan so bought this day 1.
She was not amused.
The Wii-mote anoyed the crap out of her she is a leftie though), the second world (all icey) anoyed her and the monsters....were crap. There's no other word for them. Crap.
Y'know if the psych element had warped the monsters to your fears (like Mr Croshaw said) it'd be a good game. But alas no.
She was not amused.
The Wii-mote anoyed the crap out of her she is a leftie though), the second world (all icey) anoyed her and the monsters....were crap. There's no other word for them. Crap.
Y'know if the psych element had warped the monsters to your fears (like Mr Croshaw said) it'd be a good game. But alas no.
Oh my, Yahtzee said a Wii title was Ok. This is a revelation. Having watched this series from the begining, i have to say that anything remotely positive means it's pretty damn good.
I was hoping it would be have been better I would have loved to seen Yahtzee "remove three of his vertebra, peel his spine back and eat his own ass."
Keeping monsters only in the nightmare world does make the game less scary, but I found the nightmare worlds to be pretty scary.
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I remember the first time I got to the end puzzle and the clue wanted me to go back out and find something outside... I thought to myself,"No way am I going back out there."
And when you realize why the monsters want to hug you, that just pretty creepy in itself. The whole game gives an eerie vibe. There is always something that is not quite right. It was really unsettling.
I think this boils down to the fact that I easily immersed into games. I mean I found oblivion pretty immersive despite its weird characters. For Yahtzee his experiences won't allow him to ignore many flaws the average gamer would. That is why he is the critic.
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I remember the first time I got to the end puzzle and the clue wanted me to go back out and find something outside... I thought to myself,"No way am I going back out there."
And when you realize why the monsters want to hug you, that just pretty creepy in itself. The whole game gives an eerie vibe. There is always something that is not quite right. It was really unsettling.
I think this boils down to the fact that I easily immersed into games. I mean I found oblivion pretty immersive despite its weird characters. For Yahtzee his experiences won't allow him to ignore many flaws the average gamer would. That is why he is the critic.