"Everybody's gone." - Lillian Shepherd
Silent Hill is probably one of the most popular Japanese survival horror franchises ever, maybe even surpassing Resident Evil franchise. It is known for it's haunting tone, it's surreal and grotesque imagery and villians, it's psychologically deep stories, and it's flawed utterly human characters. I bought and played Silent Hill 2 when I was younger without much prior knowledge about the franchise beforehand, and I wasn't even a third of the way through it before I was scared and stumped. It was truly complex and terrifying. I wish I had finished it.
Nearly every story revolves somewhat around a game's protagonist being drawn to the town of Silent Hill, a place they have vague but somewhat good memories of. In Silent Hill 2's case it was the deceased wife of the main character who writes him a letter beckoning him back to the town. Once the player arrives in town they find it damp and gloomy, with endless ash-like fog looming, few people around, and hideous creatures lurking in the streets and shadows. Shameful to say, I have watched the online walkthroughs of games 2 and 4: The Room and did not play them myself. The experience is still interesting and intense but not like it would be if played. Finally I decided to play a Silent Hill game all the way through, so I went with the lastest chapter Silent Hill: Homecoming.
Now this game received mixed reviews on the grounds of being too predictable and slightly more action based (due to the fact that this game was American developed). The trailer really grabbed my attention, it looked more like a trailer for a movie. This tale revolves around Alex Shepherd, a young war veteren who was recently released from a hospital after being wounded. He begins having dreams about his kid brother Joshua in danger and sets out to his hometown of Shepherd's Glen (a town bordering Silent Hill) to make sure he's safe. Upon arrival, Alex finds Joshua and his Sheriff father missing and his mother almost totally unresponsive. Shepherd's Glen is also plagued by monsters and clues of these happenings and his brother's whereabouts begin to lead back to Silent Hill.
I found the game to be a delight. I liked the stories and adored the visuals and moving score. Criticism was given toward the main character Alex being to deadly, therefore making it easier to kill monsters, unlike the other game protagonists who were average ordinary people who may have to run away. Sure it is realistic, but in a game where monsters are coming at you the first instinct isn't to run away but to attack and kill them. Plus Alex is a far better upgrade than the very bland characters of James and Henry from Silent Hills 2 and 4. This probably due to his voice actor, Brian Bloom, who is good with live action as well. He carries real emotion in his gruff voice and conveys that into the character. If you know Silent Hill well, odds are you probably know how this is going to end. But that's another good thing about this game, there are multiple endings, a few of which may really surprise you. The ending itself still impacts you and makes you feel as I'm sure every other Silent Hill has done. The action is good too, gritty and intense. With creatures as crafty and dangerous as these, you kind of have to be an experienced fighter like Alex.
In the end, I really enjoyed the hell out of this game. If I had one complaint it would be that it is a bit too easy. I beat it in about a week, playing it an hour or two a day. Even so it's still enjoyable. And did I say scary? It is, not as scary as Silent Hill 2 but really freaky. It's a fun game to play and it's worth a purchase. Not that I'm advertising or anything.
This has been a video game review from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.
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