Silent Hill 2

[Angantyr]

Silent Hill 2 is a survival horror which expands far beyond where most horror games would take you in a psychotically disturbing journey through the town of Silent Hill. In Silent Hill 2 you take control of James Sunderland who received a mysterious letter from his deceased wife Mary about their 'Special Place' somewhere in Silent Hill, in which he decides to return in hope of finding answers.

Storyline ~ 5/5

As stated earlier the story follows James as he wanders through Silent Hill looking to find answers. As person who normally plays long games with a real in depth story I was surprised at just how much was put into the story of Silent Hill 2. I won't spoil it for those who haven't played but each Character in the game has their roles, certain elements of each character play a role in the story. Also the main story has overlapping layers which coincides with the world around them further disturbing the player.

Graphics~ 4.5/5

Whilst the in game graphics aren't cut scene quality they are still nicely done. The attention to detail is quite superb and an improvement of the first Silent Hill 2. As you may know the world is a very empty yet disturbing place so in order to bring the ambiance to Silent Hill, a lot of work has been put in to make the world look as intended.

Gameplay ~ 4.5/5

Fairly basic, I found the controls to be tedious at first but after a while you get used to them. The town is large so there is quite a few places to go and everywhere you can go pretty much has a reason for it. The tasks that you do will require you to look around bit and sometimes you get lost but the map is a huge help and you will often find yourself using it. One flaw I found was it was a bit too short, the parts aren't incredibly short but before you know it you'll be facing off at the end.

Difficulty ~ 4.5/5

It varies depending on what you chose set it as but for the most part it requires some thought into what you are meant to be doing otherwise you will end up walking around aimless. The puzzles are brainteasers which require some thought into figuring out. I think I was on normal, so I found the monster relatively easy to deal with though I after a while running is a good option, pyramid head on the other hand can be kind of difficult to deal with.

Music ~ 5/5

The music is something which sets this game apart from other games, it fits quite well with the world around you. Some of the pieces give intensify the feeling you get in the world, quite abstract but works effectively. It's kind of like weird noises you would hear in a steel mill, banging away in your head as you try and make your way through the bloodstained halls, at other times it sounds like you are in a warped version of reality as it slowly pulses into you getting louder and louder.

Overall ~ 4.5/5

A great game, and whilst I haven't played much horror games beyond the Silent Hill games I have heard this is considered one of the best horror games ever. This game goes beyond what you would expect from a typical horror, the story is in depth, the world is cold and obscene and the music is eerie and disturbing. If you haven't checked it out yet and you are looking for a great horror game then this is worth playing.

[Angantyr]

*Fixed ratings*

It was for the Ps2 version as I didn't even realize there was an X-Box. The covers don't seem to want to load otherwise I would have posted the PAL cover (seem as how its the one I played).

As for me I am playing them in order as I do but the story doesn't connect to the other 3, however the third 1 carries on from the first so I would say the best advice is to go through them in order.

[Lowlf]

Since the release of Silent Hill Origins, as I stated in my other post, you will get more info connecting to Silent Hill 1.

Still, should play them in order, 1-4 is nice. O-4 would be even better. 2 and 4 have small connections in characters but nothing in storyline.