October 29, 2008

Still Alive After All These Horrific Years: Silent Hill
By Louis Bedigian

Silent Hill (1999)

While hyping the revival of Metal Gear with the first “Solid” game in the series, Konami gave us a new reason to be frightened: Silent Hill. This wasn’t merely a dark and creepy game. It was an experience that played with our senses, forcing players to not only consider but live with the fact that they weren’t alone in this hellish, poorly lit world. Death was inevitable. It was only a matter of time before something would catch up with you. Leading up to your death, the sound of a radio – and a horrific and mesmerizing soundtrack – were all you could hear, plus the occasional sound of a monster ready to feast on its next victim.

Silent Hill

Silent Hill 2 (2001)

One of the most beloved creep-fests ever conceived, Silent Hill 2 was deep, shocking and often horrific. It wasn’t as scary or as difficult as the first game, but that didn’t keep players from becoming immersed in the environments, which were insanely realistic. The monster designs were out of this world, as were the jaw-dropping light and shadow effects, which added an extra layer of eeriness. For better or worse, Silent Hill 2’s story was the kind that hung with players. Its haunting conclusions – there were multiple endings, just like the first game – were cherished by some, bothersome to others, and remembered by all who experienced them firsthand.

Shortly after its PS2 release, Silent Hill 2 was ported to Xbox in the form of Restless Dreams, an upgraded version that featured a bonus game where you could play as another character.

Silent Hill 2

Silent Hill 3 (2003)

The first Silent Hill dealt with the story of a man searching for his missing daughter. The sequel revolved around a man and his mysterious (almost ghostly) wife. Silent Hill 3 was the first and only game in the series whose main protagonist was female. But don’t let her innocent appearance fool you: when the monsters get tough, Heather (SH3’s heroine) doesn’t simply run away.

With a creepy premise, uber-disturbing sequences, and some of the most horrific creatures known to man, Silent Hill 3 proved to be another hit. The score was particularly memorable, a point Konami must have agreed with, as they included a bonus music CD with early copies of the game.

Silent Hill 4: The Room (2004)

Imagine yourself trapped inside an apartment. It’s small and, upon examining the walls and other things, you discover a connection with this apartment and the town of Silent Hill. If you’ve been to Silent Hill before, this is one of the most eerie and intriguing feelings a gamer can have. You’re in this place and, no matter what you do, cannot escape. The only way out is through a hole in the apartment that leads to a demonic world.

While not exactly the scariest horror game (remember: we’re desensitized), Silent Hill 4 was a brilliant journey to new survival/horror territory. It played like the others but was delivered with such an amazing premise and contained such an eerie and clever presentation that you didn’t care.

Silent Hill 4: The Room

The Silent Hill Experience (2006)

Before Silent Hill Origins and around the time of the Silent Hill movie, Konami released a special UMD known as The Silent Hill Experience. This PSP exclusive combined a digital version of the Silent Hill-inspired comic books with a cool music player (allowing you to hear several selections from the series), as well as video interviews with Christophe Gans, the director of the Silent Hill movie.

Silent Hill (the movie, 2006)

This underappreciated film is loved by many horror fans – just not gamers. Silent Hill is a slow movie that tackles horror from a different angle. The director, Christophe Gans, likely hoped the pace would match that of the game – which it did. But most gamers don’t think of Silent Hill as being “slow.” They think of it as being scary and intense. Therefore, when they paid $9 to see the movie, they apparently wanted an experience that was not as much like the game as Gans anticipated. I personally loved it, and have enjoyed it even more on repeat viewings. The sights and sounds are perfect and Radha Mitchell (who played Rose) is truly superb. She is deep, emotional and believable, as if the horror she was experiencing was real. In reality, she did most everything in front of a green screen.

Many moviegoers agree. But when these same people were asked if they had played the game before (or even heard of it), 100% responded, “No.” This could create a difficult situation for the writers and director of Silent Hill 2, who are aiming to appease the disappointed game players but also wish to retain fans of the original movie. Last fall’s writer’s strike may have changed everything, but if the original reports are true, Christophe Gans will not be back for Silent Hill 2 due to other commitments. As much as I want to see the movie, I’d rather wait another five years (or more) to have him at the helm.

Silent Hill Origins (2007)

One of the PSP’s best action games (and only true survival/horror release), Silent Hill Origins is an excellent entry into a world we’ve visited many times before. Amazingly, the gameplay mirrors that of the PSone and PS2 offerings. Equally as impressive is how the game looks – you wouldn’t guess this was made for PlayStation Portable, as its visuals are much closer to that of a PS2 game. Other than God of War: Chains of Olympus, you just don’t see high-quality titles like this on PSP.

Silent Hill Origins

Silent Hill Homecoming (2008)

Nightmares come in all shapes and sizes. For Alex Shepherd, the biggest nightmare may be linked to his hometown of Shepherd Glen and the always creepy, always mysterious town of Silent Hill. Developed by Double Helix (a first for the series; the first four games were developed internally by Konami), Homecoming’s gameplay is a re-creation of Silent Hill 2 and 3. If you’ve played those games – or any in the series, actually – then you know exactly what to expect. That said, the story is quite chilling, the monsters are still cool and grotesque, and though the gameplay formula may be in need of something new, Homecoming is a decent game.

Silent Hill Homecoming

The Next Silent Hill

Given that Silent Hill Homecoming has just been released this fall, no one except Konami knows where the series will go next. Hopefully it involves a very dark place, a more twisted story, and a revival of the past. One thing that people love about Silent Hill (myself included) is how each game has subtle connections to the original story. If they were to merge those connections and revelations with inspiration from the TV series Lost – a show that, when it first began, reminded me of Silent Hill’s trapped-in-hell concept – they could create a sequel that would shock, surprise and enthrall everyone, most of all those who have been with the series from the beginning and know the characters very well.

A Look at the Resident Evil Series

Be sure to check out our first Halloween Feature:  Horror through the Years: A Look at Some Pivotal Titles in the Horror Genre - From Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Dead Space, the Horror Genre has seen some change for the better over the decades.

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