4.5/5 ★ – Denin_29's review of SILENT HILL 2.

Progressive Review (Finished for now) Current Save File Area: In Water Ending Hours Played So Far: 18 Hours Thoughts So Far: Note 1: The atmosphere in this is unlike anything I've experienced before. The pace that the game sets you in at the start immerses you with the eery and unsettling tone. There is a mystery behind every character you meet and the protagonist himself, making you eager to figure out what is really going on. The thing they have in common is that something brought them to this place, and I get the feeling that a part of them gets also taken away. Some you find dead but with notes for you, expecting the same fate. Theres also notes you find in apartments that describe worry, I wonder if these creatures are just part of an experiment that formed humans into these gruesome beings. One of them has a zip going down their spine with their arms inside of their own skin? They also start vomiting when you get close to them, I have so many questions and hope the lore behind it gets revealed to me as I keep playing through this remake of a highly rated masterpiece. Note 2: I really enjoyed how creative the puzzle was in the apartments, understanding the tale to solve it. Also, I have entered the otherworld? Shits scary here. It gives off a whole different gruesome vibe. All the noises I hear keep me on edge. The sound design is top-notch. The way they designed the apartment rooms in this world reminds me of Resident Evil 7. Another thought that crossed my mind is if this is all just representing what's going on in James' mind? The baby stroller where I found one of the puzzle pieces made me think. Does this place make people visualize their regrets and failures? Did James want to have a baby with Mary, which didn't work out? That would also explain the photos that I find, snapshots of James' memories. It's a cool concept, but I hope there is more to it than just that. It's also weird how the other characters show up and vanish when you meet them, making them almost not real. Are they just people in James' life? Who is writing the notes in this place? Another addition is the clock being able to move time, which is an interesting touch. I hope I can answer my questions the further I explore. Note 3 (conspiracies): - Did James Kill Marry? Sexual assault? - Does Angela see other things as she is freaking out all the time? - Does Maria exist? In Heavens Night there is only 1 Glass of Alcohol after the cutscenes making it seem that James was the only one drinking - Everything seems so sexualized like high heels on some of the creatures, Maria being a more sexualized version of Marry - Was James a bad Husband and is now trying to set things right even tho it's probably too late? - Feels like time doesn't move unless you move it Note 4: The build up to the Pyramid Head teaser fight was top notch fear enducing. I'm starting to like the gameplay flow more the more they give you explorable areas with more creatures. That ceiling caged creature was nothing like I've ever fought before in a video game, interesting but also disturbing design. After finishing the Hospital area I came to the realization that this is definitely some sort of illness where people are trapped in a state of mind. Recalling the Professor notes, there are patients that don't want to get cured tho, asking myself again who is real and who is not. The long empty walk after Maria's death (which I don't think she's real anyways) immersed me so much into the emptiness of the world that I felt sick to my stomach, can't recall any other game making me feel like this. Note 5: The Prison feels like an area that tortured people into making them visualize what they see (would explain the picture frames on the walls) and just pushing them beyond their limits. This is also probably a methapor to the true incident hundreds of years ago. Note 6: Did I just fight a fucking picture frame?? This game is so bizarre and I'm here for all of it. It just gets more fucked up and disturbing as stories unfold. I had a feeling Maria was still alive but now I'm even more confused after she died again?? Was that just James's mind coming to the conclusion that she is not an option anymore and Marry is still the main priority? On a side note I want to appreciate how unsettling Maria's personality and vibe is, you feel comfort but you're still creeped out by her. Eddie was a cool boss fight aswell, I wonder if there was an option to not kill him. I think I'm getting closer to the end, if there even is an end to this. Note 7: This will be my final Note before my conclusion. The Lakeview Hotel is my favorite area in the game, very well designed to loop around and not confusing, beautiful graphics which are also throughout the whole game. Laura as a character I'm surprised at how good the acting is, feels very natural how a child would act in a situation she is in. Her development also through her drawings James went from bad wolf to friendly dog which is a neat symbolism. I also want to mention the Otherworld design, not only in this Hotel but throughout the whole game it's not just a copy and pasted with a different look to make you go through the area again. It's more linear and has its own twist. In the following conclusion I will talk about the ending I got and the final moments and fights of the game. Conclusion: In the end a lot of my conspiracies were true and I was satisfied with how the game portrayed them. I got the ending where James decides to take his own life. Now this being considered the worst option in any form, personally I think this ending gave it a bitter poetic round up to form it for my lack of words. The side characters themselves being all serial killers except for Laura, really gave them depth and made me intrigued in their stories, in my opinion making them the perfect side characters for a game like this. The game also leans heavily on your choices and on symbolism in general which I applaud for being different compared to other multiple ending games out there. Maria being the main villain and a big reason of how silent hill is portrayed to James I find very well paced, making the player develop their own thoughts on who she could be. This was definitely one of the best survival horror games I've played so far and I am glad to be part of the community of this game as it really is special. Rating: 9.5/10, when it comes to horror it's the scariest game I've played so far, in the survival horror genre tho out of the games I've played it's on 3rd place. There were a few frame drops here and there, a bit more during the final stages but it didn't affect how I view the game as a whole.