Joe Price on 4/29/2009 10:12 PM · Permalink · Report

I missed out on this when it was new so I picked up a copy from Gamestop for 8 bucks because I've heard so many nice things about it.

First off the game controls are pretty ridged and take some getting used to. They aren't especially bad for the time but by today's standards they're pretty stiff.

I'd have to say the same thing for the camera which goes where the developers wanted it to. At times this adds to it's cinematic feel but it can also be frustrating. For instance, I hate the front-on view because I can't see what's ahead. It could be argued that this adds to the suspense but I would argue back that it just adds to my frustration when I keep running into things.

Now for the good stuff: the graphics. Beautiful. The X-Box version comes with a film grain that I really like. A friend of mine prefers the game without it but I thought it added a softness that helped its cinematic feel. The environments have beautiful textures that you wanna just reach out and touch (or not cause they're really gross). The wallpapers in the apartment building were especially impressive.

The lighting effects are just top notch. The room where you first pick-up the flashlight is a great example of how the lighting really adds to the scary experience.

The character animations are great too. I love the weird-tormented-straight-jacket-thingies when they crawl around on the ground. Jerky and unpredictable is a good choice for scares. So much has been said about Pyramid Head (the rape scenes, the great knife, how bad-ass he is) but I'll just add that I thought he had a parking cone on his head when I first saw him. A really scary parking cone.

I actually think the story and the voice acting (with few exceptions) was pretty good. Visiting a town to find your dead wife because you received a letter from her is pretty interesting. I also like the people you encounter. They are puzzles themselves and they help reveal why you are there too. I don't want to give anything away but I thought it unfolded really impressively and there was a lot of depth. I can see how the cut scenes would drive someone with ADD absolutely bonkers. They. Speak. So. Slowly.

The gameplay seems a little tedious in the apartment and hospital (coin collecting anyone?) but it all seems to make more sense once you get to the historical society (or maybe I just got used to it). The puzzles seemed to get more interesting and clever. I especially liked the hang-man puzzle. Of course the game gets very linear at that point too and you don't explore the city anymore. I didn't mind that too much because I'm not a huge fan of the endless fog.

All in all - Silent Hill 2 was a pretty neat experience and well worth the 8 bucks I spent on it.