3.5/5 ★ – CMovieMaker's review of Silent Hill: The Short Message.

Yes, I quite enjoyed Konami‘s newest Silent Hill entry. First, lets get the negatives out of the way: Most of the dialogue is badly written and Silent Hill: The Short Massage is about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but overall I still liked the story told here. Especially because of the fantastic ending. There’s a good twist here that I didn’t see coming and once I got to see our main characters backstory I actually really felt for her. The Art direction is phenomenal. I enjoyed the change of scenery to an abandoned german apartment complex filled with Grafitti art instead of the titular town. It still has that depressing, yet mystifying quality Silent Hill itself had and I quite like how the game visually plays around with the graffiti art. But let’s get to what is in my opinion the Highlight of the game: The Cherry Blossom creature. Sakura Head is the most well thought out creature design since SH 3‘s creatures. It’s not just hauntingly beautiful, but also has a meaning to our protagonist and the games story. Masahiro Ito really has outdone himself. What is there to say about Akira Yamaoka‘s score other than that it’s once again brilliant and perfectly fits the game‘s tone. I especially enjoyed the song that plays over the credits. (Hoping we‘ll soon get this soundtrack on Spotify). The Gameplay is the part I can see being the most divisive. It mostly consists of exploring the abandoned apartment complex in true walking simulator fashion, but it‘s also interrupted by terrifying chase sequences. In that aspect it’s very similar to Shattered Memories, which I love. In general I would describe The Short Message as mix between SH4, P.T. and Shattered Memories. Overall, I think Konami has finally taken a step into the right direction with a new Silent Hill game. Even when it’s just a baby step. 6-7/10