3rd game in the series, direct sequel of the 1st!
Silent Hill 3, one of my favorite games in Silent Hill series! I remember playing it again and again back when we had a PS2. Even though it's the third game, it is actually the real continuation of the original game when it comes to the story.
The game is set 17 years after the events of the first Silent Hill. Here we play as Heather, your average teenager who's at the mall doing a small errand for her father. After waking up from a horrible nightmare and left the burger joint she's suddenly being followed by a detective named Douglas Cartland. Heather wasn't interested in Douglas' investigation about her past, so she avoided him by leaving through a small window inside the women's restroom where he can't follow her.
Outside, the only exit of the alleyway is mysteriously blocked by a parked van and she can't leave, so she has to enter the mall again through the backdoor not far from her current location. Upon reentry, something felt off: It's the same mall as before but everything's eerily quiet, empty and covered in grime. She kept walking and saw a store still open and entered inside, and there she witnessed her nightmares became a reality. This is the start of Heather's journey about knowing her past and her connection with Silent Hill.
So, just like the previous Silent Hill games, you'll get two iconic items that are staple of the series; A cheap pocket radio and a flashlight. The radio will pick up static noise if there's a monster nearby, and the flashlight will provide light in the dark. Turning off flashlight can let you sneak past monsters as they can't see you, but don't get too close!
The movements are in a style of tank control like the old Resident Evil; Up and Down on the d-pad makes Heather move forwards and backwards respectively while the Left and Right turns her direction. Holding down the Run button will make Heather run.
Holding down the Aim button readies her weapon when equipped, then you either press the Action button to attack with the weapon, or Run button to make her block. Blocking may require some timing as she only does this briefly.
Due to the tank controls, fighting monsters is a bit of a mixed bag. She's kinda sluggish, and there's no way to dodge away from enemy attacks other than to block, run away, or just keep your distance.
Hitting or firing at an enemy enough times will make them drop to the floor, but not completely dead. They will squirm and whimper while down, and this a good opportunity to finally end their horrific ways by giving them a one good ol'-fashioned hard stomp (because if you don't the enemy will get back up again!)
You'll find yourself using the ranged weapons a lot, though! Melee weapons are your last resort if you're out of ammo or saving ammunition. Even though the game is a bit generous with ammo and health as you explore, sometimes the best strategy is to simply avoid unnecessary fights — killing enemies don't drop any items upon death.
Disappointingly, the whole game mostly takes place indoors. Unlike the last two games where exploring the town is the main thing, here you don't even begin at Silent Hill. You journey through one building to another via short passages making the game extremely linear. Of course you'll get to revisit the part of Silent Hill from the second game, but there's nothing much to explore there other than to get to the key destination.
The puzzles are also weird in this game. The difference between Normal and Hard Riddle mode is night and day. While the puzzles are still solvable in Normal version, the Hard version's puzzles are so cryptic that it is what you consider "Moon Logic" puzzles. Heck, even the very first puzzle in the game requires you to have an extensive knowledge with Shakespeare's anthology, and even then you still have to put together the solution behind the riddle. This is bad puzzle design!
I can forgive the voice acting. It's really not that bad, but not the best either. In a way, it feels 'natural' by Silent Hill standards.
The soundtrack. DEAR GOODNESS, the soundtrack of the game is VERY AWESOME! From the gritty industrial sounds of Dark Ambient, to Rock music that adds character to the overall atmosphere of the game. Akira Yamaoka truly is a master of his craft!
I want to add a few more comments and flaws of the game, but it's getting too long. Overall, it's 5/5 for me. I genuinely had fun playing this back then and I still enjoy playing it today with the PC port (the original PC port, by the way. NOT the horrendous HD Collection!)
Silent Hill 3, one of my favorite games in Silent Hill series! I remember playing it again and again back when we had a PS2. Even though it's the third game, it is actually the real continuation of the original game when it comes to the story.
The game is set 17 years after the events of the first Silent Hill. Here we play as Heather, your average teenager who's at the mall doing a small errand for her father. After waking up from a horrible nightmare and left the burger joint she's suddenly being followed by a detective named Douglas Cartland. Heather wasn't interested in Douglas' investigation about her past, so she avoided him by leaving through a small window inside the women's restroom where he can't follow her.
Outside, the only exit of the alleyway is mysteriously blocked by a parked van and she can't leave, so she has to enter the mall again through the backdoor not far from her current location. Upon reentry, something felt off: It's the same mall as before but everything's eerily quiet, empty and covered in grime. She kept walking and saw a store still open and entered inside, and there she witnessed her nightmares became a reality. This is the start of Heather's journey about knowing her past and her connection with Silent Hill.
So, just like the previous Silent Hill games, you'll get two iconic items that are staple of the series; A cheap pocket radio and a flashlight. The radio will pick up static noise if there's a monster nearby, and the flashlight will provide light in the dark. Turning off flashlight can let you sneak past monsters as they can't see you, but don't get too close!
The movements are in a style of tank control like the old Resident Evil; Up and Down on the d-pad makes Heather move forwards and backwards respectively while the Left and Right turns her direction. Holding down the Run button will make Heather run.
Holding down the Aim button readies her weapon when equipped, then you either press the Action button to attack with the weapon, or Run button to make her block. Blocking may require some timing as she only does this briefly.
Due to the tank controls, fighting monsters is a bit of a mixed bag. She's kinda sluggish, and there's no way to dodge away from enemy attacks other than to block, run away, or just keep your distance.
Hitting or firing at an enemy enough times will make them drop to the floor, but not completely dead. They will squirm and whimper while down, and this a good opportunity to finally end their horrific ways by giving them a one good ol'-fashioned hard stomp (because if you don't the enemy will get back up again!)
You'll find yourself using the ranged weapons a lot, though! Melee weapons are your last resort if you're out of ammo or saving ammunition. Even though the game is a bit generous with ammo and health as you explore, sometimes the best strategy is to simply avoid unnecessary fights — killing enemies don't drop any items upon death.
Disappointingly, the whole game mostly takes place indoors. Unlike the last two games where exploring the town is the main thing, here you don't even begin at Silent Hill. You journey through one building to another via short passages making the game extremely linear. Of course you'll get to revisit the part of Silent Hill from the second game, but there's nothing much to explore there other than to get to the key destination.
The puzzles are also weird in this game. The difference between Normal and Hard Riddle mode is night and day. While the puzzles are still solvable in Normal version, the Hard version's puzzles are so cryptic that it is what you consider "Moon Logic" puzzles. Heck, even the very first puzzle in the game requires you to have an extensive knowledge with Shakespeare's anthology, and even then you still have to put together the solution behind the riddle. This is bad puzzle design!
I can forgive the voice acting. It's really not that bad, but not the best either. In a way, it feels 'natural' by Silent Hill standards.
The soundtrack. DEAR GOODNESS, the soundtrack of the game is VERY AWESOME! From the gritty industrial sounds of Dark Ambient, to Rock music that adds character to the overall atmosphere of the game. Akira Yamaoka truly is a master of his craft!
I want to add a few more comments and flaws of the game, but it's getting too long. Overall, it's 5/5 for me. I genuinely had fun playing this back then and I still enjoy playing it today with the PC port (the original PC port, by the way. NOT the horrendous HD Collection!)