Let it not be said that life has a cruel sense of humor…

Even the act of charity can act as a grim omen of the turning of tides in ones immediate future

Yesterday was a rare moment in the style of mania, not a mode of experience I am necessarily alien to, but one that more seldom rears its ridiculous head these days. I think the reason for the madness that ensued was due to the confluence of several stressors coalescing at once to conjure up a perfect storm of absolute horseshit, and just in time to hit me right before preparing to get ready for work. C’est la vie…that instance has passed, and like most travesties in time, it is utterly trivialized with distance, every moment more belittling of its stature than the last. Which brings us to the current point in time we occupy, and one that brings with it some sense of gratifying closure.

The reason for the gratification I speak of is twofold: I was able to successfully beat the Silent Hill 2 Remake (SH2R), which felt long overdue, and I wrapped up the game just in time for it to conclude on the same day to mark the moment of me writing my 100th article in as many days. An excellent test of creative strength, and a delightful flex of resiliency in the field. I have decided not to be shy about giving myself credit where credit is due, as I don’t celebrate my small victories quite enough, so I am taking the moment to revel in the occasion. Which means now that I’m finished with the SH2R, there is only one thing left to do….beat it again! Well, I guess there is more than one thing left to do, as writing about some final thoughts on the title is certainly another worthwhile thing I can do, which I imagine will happen throughout the next few days. I am in serious doubts I will write an official review, as the mood has to strike me just so, in order to want to do anything official, but I will surely ponder on my conclusions and share them with you.

To that point, and in the spirit of sharing just some surface level knee jerk reactions as of this instance, however, I think my inclination is to say, in spite of a dodgy memory on the smaller beats from the original, the remake seems fairly faithful, and perhaps altered in the right ways, with the dodge mechanic certainly being a saving grace. Blooper Team did seem to add enough to flesh out the experience quite a bit, as I always remember blowing through the original in way less than 10 hours, with my first runthrough clocking in at about 15 hours, so not quite as short as a lot of other survival horror games out there.

I’ve gone on before about how between the two survival horror titans of the industry, Resident Evil is way more “gamey” than Silent Hill, offering up a lot more in the realm of replayability, difficulty to contend with, etc. This is both good and bad for SH, as it does allow one to enjoy the artistry of what’s on display, rather than checking arbitrary boxes while playing…kind of like what happens when one stops caring about achievements or getting collectibles, and just lives for the narrative itself. SH2R definitely has a lot going for it in that regard, so the fact that it only has a new game plus to go through to see other endings doesn’t feel like most in the realm of the reasonable will feel cheated out of anything by the end of the game…even if they may be aching for more content after the fact. The story of the game stands on its own, in spite of not having some tertiary mode like a Mercenaries equivalent, for example.

With all of that said, I am genuinely surprised at how yielding the SH2R is, in pulling its punches in terms of how modest the difficulty ends up being. Granted, I did play with both combat and puzzle options toggled to default, so it’s not like I went out of my way to get brutalized by the best it has to offer, but even with that said, the SH2R is extraordinarily lenient with its players, and I saw so many moments where the game could have been way crueler than it was, and this would not have felt out of place, in a genre that operates best when the tension levels are working best at a fever pitch, which usually comes with the territory of challenge in mind. I am greatly looking forward to doing a second play through with the harder options, especially to see how batshit crazy the puzzles truly get.

I think the game acts as a fresh reminder as to how integral the weight good audio design can have behind it to throw around, as I do feel as if both the atmosphere and creepy factor are helped tremendously by just how sharp everything sounds, both in terms of foley work, and how effectively the backing tracks are used in truly enhancing the space with the most unsettling auditory compliment one can imagine. This is only further idealized with just how great the game looks, visuals both big and small are gruesome and vivid in all of the most perfectly repugnant ways.

Silent Hill wouldn’t be where it is today without setting the standard in the storytelling department, and it remains one of the few series out there that helps in persisting with the perpetuation of modern day mythology and contemporary folk lore for how cryptic the details surrounding the narrative is. Few match SH in this realm, and the remake is no different in offering up plenty for one to ponder, long after the credits roll.

There remains scant detail in the department of complaint one can truly take um bridge with, in my eyes, as so much of the experience was so thoroughly considered, little is left unpolished by the end of the day. As mentioned, perhaps solely in the realm of traditional replayability, average players may desire more to do outside of a replay on new game plus, but that is an exceedingly small conceit for an otherwise stellar overall offering.

I know I said the mood had to strike me just right to offer up a proper review, and I think that remains true. Instead, I’ll leave you with what ever warped little summation this resembles, and feel quite pleased with myself all the same for the pleasure of what the SH2R had to offer.

James Sunderland might suck, but this game certainly doesn’t.

-Pashford