Don't usually do this because I love stories, and don't think they should be ruined, but this is a SPOILER ALERT. Aspects of this review will give away parts of Silent Hill 2 and Restless Dreams stories. If you've never played the games, close the blog, go track down a copy, and play it. You owe it to yourself as a gamer.
So, here we are...into the second part following my unscheduled sabbatical, and I was wondering what was the best game I played this Spring...well, there are two that I absolutely adored, but before I got onto the onslaught of RPG's that are coming, I thought I'd do the one that I enjoyed that had very few RPG qualities to it...Silent Hill 2: Restless Dreams for the Xbox.
To be absolutely frank (Hi, my name is Frank, ignore the feminine voice and my chest, they are only an illusion), previous to last October, I'd never played a Silent Hill game. Maybe this was a good thing...maybe it wasn't...if I ever play another, I'll let you know.
However, an acquaintance of mine lent it to me...and then vanished. Yeah...I ended up stealing Silent Hill 2, and after trying to track her down, I have not been able to find her. Can't say I'm too broken up about it.
Anyways, I first tried playing on my 360 shortly there after. That didn't work out so well. Pyramid Head ran away. I don't know why, and the game died shortly there after, and simply wouldn't work in the 360. I went in search of other gamers, specifically on here to figure out if it was a regular problem or not, and that seemed to be the consensus that, yes, the 360 simply doesn't emulate it well.
When I moved though, that wasn't an issue. I had an original Xbox at my disposal and I was ready to find out if he still ran. The game actually runs faster on the original Xbox, I noticed early on, and I was able to fly through the first part of town and the bulk of the apartment with ease...then I came to the part with Pyramid Head again.
Guess what? He ran.
I don't know why, but he was the most wussy boss I've ever fought, constantly running from me as I chased him in that little room until he ran away like the coward he was. I'm still just as clueless as to why...but hey, I'm not about to start questioning.
After the fight, I fell in love with the game. It wasn't until I met her that I would...and I don't know why I like the character so much, but hey, she's awesome...well, mostly.
If you've never played the game, you might not know about her. You may know James, and Mary...but Maria is something else entirely. The woman is dark, she's sarcastic, and she's hurt that James feels for her, but rejects her because of Mary.
Also, it's never really revealed what she is...if she's Mary, a ghost, some apparition of Silent Hill...and you know what's more? The Maria ending, where she gets to leave and the Restless Dreams segments make it all the more confusing.
In a lot of ways, she's a damsel in distress type, however, in a lot of ways, she's not. You're never really sure of her place in the story line. Is she love interest, side kick, antagonist, what? However, I should move on from the ode de Maria.
The story continues, getting far more atmospheric as you go...I personally was not fond of the fog in the early part of the game, but as I progressed...it just felt right in Silent Hill. It was this horrible and ominous presence threatening everything with bleak destruction. I liked it a lot.
Moving into the prison area was the most chilling aspect in my opinion...the first and only time you have to kill another human being in the game. Sure he's insane, but it's still killing another human being and that can do a lot to a person.
Finally, the memories that haunt James as he walks down the final hallway, the ones of his wife's death, and how he caused it to be, are the most disturbing elements of the game.
Once you beat the game though, you get to play Restless Dreams, a twenty minute prequel to the game proper where you get to play as Maria, getting even more perspective on her character, which sadly, only leaves more questions. Like why does she start out with a revolver to her temple? I want to know why she's so depressed that she's at that point.
Anyways, gameplay is horrid. Flat out, it's probably the worst game controls I've played on, and I've played some craptastic games. Fighting is next to impossible, though can get easier as you get guns, and the running feels clunky. I actually remapped most of the controls in the first five minutes of gameplay as well, despising the standard set up.
However, the look and feel of the game is something that just can't be touched. If you want to ever design games, you need to go learn atmosphere and environment from it. Don't copy it...because it only works when you're doing a horror title, but, some emulate the ways it which it does. It's the best example I've ever seen.
Sound on the other hand is spotty at best. The voices are generally horrid, and the music is...well, it's bad...but the sound effects themselves, screams, slaps, thuds, chops, and gun fire are exceptionally good. You feel like ramming a 2x4 into a zombies head when James does so. You feel like you fire off a round from your revolver when Maria takes aim.
Silent Hill 2 does what it does well amazingly...what it does poorly are some of the worst in gaming. I know the series goes down hill from here (pun not intended), but why? This series had some great aspects to it...and what's with the remake not even having fighting?!? That's insane, especially given that the guy went homicidal afterwards according to Silent Hill 2's magazine article about him.
Anyways, getting off topic. What do you all think of Silent Hill 2? Is it as good as I think? Does it suck as bad sometimes? Did Pyramid Head run away from you too? Does anyone have any theories on that? Let me know.
-Sara
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