There’s no denying that Bloober’s completed and expansive Silent Hill 2 remake exceeded expectations, although I nonetheless choose the 2001 basic’s terror-inducing, mind-warping creativity. Silent Hill 2 remake is technically a more adept videogame than Group Silent’s unique. It appears higher, performs higher, meets the expectations of the day, and builds out the city of Silent Hill in bold methods. But the unique’s technical limitations and the artistry holding it collectively on account of and despite these doable pitfalls assist to make it particular.
Honestly, Silent Hill 2 is a greater recreation as a result of it’s a ‘worse’ recreation.
First, let’s deal with the plain. It’s no secret that Silent Hill 2 was stuffed with fog to ease the rendering load. However the setting’s most iconic function isn’t the one {hardware} limitation that leaves you unsettled. The jerky motion of characters in a scene – from the intentionally jarring monsters to figures meant to maneuver in a extra acquainted method – is so in contrast to fluid human motion that they create a base degree of uncanniness.
The facial expressions of the core forged weren’t motion-captured (and even when that they had been, the expertise actually wasn’t as much as at this time’s customary). Which means 2001’s James and Maria really feel off in contrast with their 2024 counterparts. The Uncanny Valley is alive and current in Silent Hill.
The voice appearing is equally uncanny. Silent Hill 2’s unique voices are sometimes criticized for his or her stilted awkwardness, however they’re a necessary a part of the sport’s ambiance. The shortage of realism within the supply creates a nightmarish high quality within the fashion of David Lynch. An illogical script that’s stuffed with traces no human would fairly say contributes right here, too.
In 2024, everybody appears and behaves like an actual individual. This realism diminishes the dream-like ambiance, and it additionally leaves much less room for nuance. Take Angela, for instance. Within the unique, you study her traumatic previous by means of ambiguous traces of dialogue and the character design of her personal private monster, Summary Daddy. Within the remake, she explains her plight outright.
James, too, feels much less open to interpretation. His dialogue was way more minimal within the unique recreation, and its supply not often conveyed the type of emotion you’d anticipate. This made it extra obscure his ‘true’ motives and persona. Like a mind struggling to interpret shapes within the darkness, you’re left to create your individual thought of the individual James actually is. And because of this Silent Hill 2’s a number of endings all really feel legitimate, as James is equal elements hero and villain, relying on the way you see him.
The remake provides out extra info to evaluate the characters on, that means I not have the liberty to interpret them in a different way. I spend extra time in James’ internal world, and a extra simple, spelled-out portrayal leads me to extra logical conclusions. I discover I sympathize with him much less, and one ending feels extra definitively ‘true’ than the others for me. With the remake, it’s like admiring a portray in a gallery, however there’s a big plaque telling you precisely what it’s purported to imply.
Past the characters, the surroundings is much less outlined within the unique recreation, that means that your thoughts struggles to interpret what it’s seeing – even in well-lit areas. When a mind doesn’t get excellent info from the eyes, it creates one thing to fill within the gaps. That’s why you’ll begin to see horrendous faces when you stare at a mirror at the hours of darkness – and why the dearth of element within the city of Silent Hill provides to its dread.
In distinction, the remade Silent Hill is extra ‘knowable’ than it’s ever been. You continue to can’t see three toes in entrance of your face, however when you’re up shut, you may study each constructing and patch of avenue in unimaginable element. You’ll be able to smash home windows to acquire objects and go by means of doorways that had been as soon as impenetrable partitions.
Once I performed the remake, I believed that I spent far longer exploring Silent Hill within the unique PS2 recreation. I’ve since returned to stated unique, and on a repeat play, I’ve found this was unfaithful. I merely acquired misplaced extra usually. The remake does a much better job of telegraphing the place to go subsequent and learn how to remedy an issue. Nevertheless, that ‘lost’ feeling is as a lot part of Silent Hill 2’s ambiance because the graphics and appearing. With out it, exploration feels a lot safer.
Talking of security, you’ll really feel way more in command of the scenario in Silent Hill 2 remake. That is partially due to the shift from mounted digicam angles to an over-the-shoulder third-person perspective. The unique takes away a few of your company, leaving you feeling susceptible. It’s way more horrifying to show a darkish nook when you may’t see what’s forward of you – and you may’t determine when your view will shift. The fixed fog and darkness, mixed with these unforgiving digicam angles, preserve Silent Hill feeling claustrophobic.
2024’s Silent Hill 2 additionally feels way more combat-focused than its 2001 counterpart. You’ll face off towards dozens – doubtless a whole lot – of enemies within the remake, and you’ve got a lot, a lot smoother controls with which to smack or shoot them. Once more, this makes you’re feeling extra in command of the scenario. Enemies turn into overly acquainted after repeated publicity, and combating them turns into an earthly job reasonably than a real second of terror. 2024’s James is a monster in melee, capable of rack up a whole lot of kills, whereas his unique self felt far more squishy and unsafe.
A lot of this recreation is communicated by means of imagery and metaphor, so let’s discuss it metaphorically for a second. Silent Hill 2 must be extra like poetry than fiction. Contemplate, for a second, the normal Japanese haiku.
These have to be composed of a five-syllable line, adopted by a seven-syllable line, adopted by one other five-syllable line. The unique poetic kind additionally restricted the imagery and intent, putting additional limitations on how you can create artwork inside these margins.
Whereas such inflexible guidelines could sound like they make the act of creation more durable, the alternative is true. You have to turn into extra artistic to surpass these obstacles, and the ultimate result’s satisfying and exquisite in a method that free-form writing struggles to realize.
The Silent Hill 2 remake is completely unrestricted by the expertise and expertise accessible to its creators. Nevertheless, it’s much less artistic – and spectacular – for its lack of limitations. The unique is a extra flawed telling of the identical story, nevertheless it’s additionally way more significant for it.
