An ambitious--albeit flawed--horror game. Silent Hill 4 is something that was mocked and ridiculed on all sides back when it was new by older audiences back in the day. Silent Hill fans hated it as it stripped away a lot of elements that were essential to the original games--such as the dynamic camera angles (SH4 still had some, but much less), emphasis on exploring an open town (SH3 mostly abandoned this too but whatever), the flashlight illuminating a dark atmosphere, and thought-provoking puzzles. Silent Hill 4 was 'missing' all of these elements.
Also, while the core design itself still emphasized on survival horror for the most part, elements like the apartment hub, unkillable ghosts, and limited inventory were ideas not particularly welcomed either. And it can't go without saying that the game introducing a barely cooked escort mission halfway into the game isn't something to shine on about, no matter how you slice it.
However, I played this a LOT when it was fairly new. And letting the mood settle right--starting the game up in the middle of the night with only the big-ass tube TV providing any sort of light-- it scared the crap out of me! I think the introduction of the game itself really gives you the best idea of what you're getting into. Strange, hazy visions of these corrupted venues that would otherwise be mundane, if not for the disheveled ghosts and gored-up creatures. And that jumpscare fake-out to top it off! That--like the games before it--finely emphasized that the developers didn't want to startle you with jumpscares, but instead keep you in that perpetual state of fright as you try to prepare for one!
But that's just the intro. The game itself further pushes this kind of atmosphere, the deeper you get into it. Which is appropriate, considering the story's centerpiece is about a lone man getting deeper and deeper into a serial killer's psyche in order to discover a way out of all this. The atmosphere in its lore and storytelling is rich and very intriguing, I'd argue it easily stands with the previous Silent Hill games in that regard. And while I definitely miss the puzzles, I did like that they focused on combat challenges instead. In that sense, this was a more straight-forward survival horror that emphasized on being more of an actual video game than the previous. At least, in my opinion.
The "Silent Hill" aspect of Silent Hill 4 is probably its downfall. It's no secret that it production initially started as an original horror game, but undisclosed reasons had them attempt connecting it with the previous 3 games, and most of said connections feel very superficial or uninteresting ("I think I got these shoes at Silent Hill!"). Perhaps fans at the time felt slighted, or tricked into buying a game that doesn't really build upon the world of Silent Hill that already felt complete by the end of the 3rd title. Still, there's nuggets of interesting emphasis on previous characters . . . although pretty easy to miss. I also have to criticize the sound designer's use of stock noises, makes it hard to take some of the game seriously, most especially the dogs making that jaguar noise when you kill them.
Overall, I have a bias towards this game. The last bastion of Team Silent, or at least what remained of them. And I kind of love what it did, as it's a game wholly unique. Nothing else plays like Silent Hill 4, not even 1-3! Also, P.T. is a bite-sized SH4.
Also, while the core design itself still emphasized on survival horror for the most part, elements like the apartment hub, unkillable ghosts, and limited inventory were ideas not particularly welcomed either. And it can't go without saying that the game introducing a barely cooked escort mission halfway into the game isn't something to shine on about, no matter how you slice it.
However, I played this a LOT when it was fairly new. And letting the mood settle right--starting the game up in the middle of the night with only the big-ass tube TV providing any sort of light-- it scared the crap out of me! I think the introduction of the game itself really gives you the best idea of what you're getting into. Strange, hazy visions of these corrupted venues that would otherwise be mundane, if not for the disheveled ghosts and gored-up creatures. And that jumpscare fake-out to top it off! That--like the games before it--finely emphasized that the developers didn't want to startle you with jumpscares, but instead keep you in that perpetual state of fright as you try to prepare for one!
But that's just the intro. The game itself further pushes this kind of atmosphere, the deeper you get into it. Which is appropriate, considering the story's centerpiece is about a lone man getting deeper and deeper into a serial killer's psyche in order to discover a way out of all this. The atmosphere in its lore and storytelling is rich and very intriguing, I'd argue it easily stands with the previous Silent Hill games in that regard. And while I definitely miss the puzzles, I did like that they focused on combat challenges instead. In that sense, this was a more straight-forward survival horror that emphasized on being more of an actual video game than the previous. At least, in my opinion.
The "Silent Hill" aspect of Silent Hill 4 is probably its downfall. It's no secret that it production initially started as an original horror game, but undisclosed reasons had them attempt connecting it with the previous 3 games, and most of said connections feel very superficial or uninteresting ("I think I got these shoes at Silent Hill!"). Perhaps fans at the time felt slighted, or tricked into buying a game that doesn't really build upon the world of Silent Hill that already felt complete by the end of the 3rd title. Still, there's nuggets of interesting emphasis on previous characters . . . although pretty easy to miss. I also have to criticize the sound designer's use of stock noises, makes it hard to take some of the game seriously, most especially the dogs making that jaguar noise when you kill them.
Overall, I have a bias towards this game. The last bastion of Team Silent, or at least what remained of them. And I kind of love what it did, as it's a game wholly unique. Nothing else plays like Silent Hill 4, not even 1-3! Also, P.T. is a bite-sized SH4.
Vaudevillain
1 year ago