Silent Hill 2 (PS5)

After completing this game on normal I have to say this game blew me away. I took 26 hours to beat it because I took my time to take it all in. It's still on my mind. I am a die hard fan of the original and I love both these games. Bloober team did an amazing job with this remake. They have improved astronomically since "The Medium". I can't say I loved that game but I bought it to get an idea of how the Silent Hill 2 remake would be. I did like the environments for The Medium but was left wanting with the gameplay and some character animations like the running animations, sorry to be nit picky but it was distracting. I was also nit picky about the line deliveries in this Silent Hill 2 remake mostly with the Maria character I just felt she came off as dry or lifeless but this version grew on me and I do like it overall. It's fresh and not exactly the same as the original which is fine. I love the added dialogue as you explore the town with Maria it made me laugh and also was just plain cool, I loved it. Exploring the town is better in this remake than the original. It was so much fun. I loved the simple act of breaking windows and grabbing supplies or to get to a new area, so much fun and never tired of it. The combat was fantastic. Sure it has an over the shoulder camera view like RE4 remake but it still felt different more like survival horror. The animations of the enemies is amazing, even after getting used to most of their attacks they still got hits on me. I'm currently replaying on new game plus on hard for both the combat and puzzles and I died many times in a section of the apartment building "Blue Creek" or something is the name I think. It's really tough on hard. I'm not using the chainsaw because it was too easy. Those spider mannequin things are very tough in this section but it's so gratifying to take them down. I never tired of hearing Jame's anguish as he stomps on them to make sure they're dead, phenomenal. The sound work is incredible and I was also impressed with is in "The Medium" but here they truly outdid themselves. The graphics are just jaw dropping everywhere, so much detail, that's another reason I took so long to beat it the first play through I was taking in the sights from start to finish. Oh my god the fog looks just amazing, still stop and stare into it. Such a rewarding game and there are 8 endings so I'm going to be playing this game for quite awhile. Boss battles were fantastic, just loved it, every single one. I might be leaving things out but in my opinion this is one of my all time favorite survival horror games. I am so grateful and thankful that bloober team made this game, they are now on my radar to watch out for future games to come. I really hope Konami had bloober team remake any other silent hill games preferably the first one and then the third one but I'll take the third one next if that's the way it goes. They also I feel really understood the spirit of Silent Hill and just got it so right and enhanced it. Such a beautiful game. I am most likely going to get their next game "Cronos: The New Dawn". Bloober team really impressed me with how far they've come. I thank them again for remaking one of my all time favorite games in a phenomenal way.

Twenty-three years ago I completed the original Silent Hill 2 (2001) in my college dorm, driving my roommate nuts as I hunted down all the endings within the first five days of launch. Fast forward over two decades later and I can say that not only is Silent Hill 2 (2024) incredibly faithful to the original but may surpass it in almost every way possible.Firstoff, this game looks amazing. The world looks beautiful and the enemies look horrifying. The amount of detail will have players looking at everything to take it all in. The music and sound is world class as the original score is back in all the correct spots. This also includes new tracks that stand right along side in quality due to the return of original composer Akira Yamaoka.Getting the obvious graphical and technical advancements of the past three console generations out of the way, Bloober Team has designed an experience that greatly improves level design and exploration. Progression items and routing are moved around but in the same way Capcom refined the Resident Evil remakes to make traversal as efficient as possible. All the games that SH 2 (2001) inspired now play a role in shaping this game in the best ways possible.Nearly everything from the original SH 2 is here with many new additions. All the major areas have been increased by at least 20%, adding 6 - 10 hours depending on the play style. In the original, the player could go straight to the Woodside Apartments key then straight to the apartments, skipping the entire first town section. In Remake there are a few key items that are mandatory to solve a puzzle first, making exploration more fleshed out and necessary. With that in mind, none of it feels padded because you're always acquiring something needed to progress or survive. Speaking of survival, this game will keep players on their toes scrounging for health and ammo on a first playthrough.Combat in Remake is very satisfying and is possibly the best in an SH game. The melee weapons land heavy and squishy with satisfying feedback. Enemies have move sets that require a balance of movement, distance, and finding openings making most encounters meaningful. When multiple enemies, especially different enemy types are in the same space, encounters can turn into skirmishes quickly requiring firearms.Gun play is solid and resembles that of modern Tomb Raided or Uncharted. Its closer to RE 2/3 remakes rather than RE 4 remake. Its punchy but not very explosive. Bosses have also been redesigned for the better to work around the updated combat. Red Pyramid Thing is far more menacing and has a stronger presence throughout.Unfortunately SH 2 Remake has had controversy surrounding redesigns of some of its characters, notably Angela and Maria. While I do believe the original game nails the look and voice work for both these characters, Remake's versions are also very good. Angela looks and sounds more like a teenage girl which makes her much more unassuming and empathetic. Maria is more personable while still being flirty and snarky. Her look should be seductive and promiscuous but this has been replaced with a deeper performance, making her allure more powerful. In short, the game should not be overlooked because of the fear of political correctness.Overall Silent Hill 2 Remake is worth the time and money of Silent Hill fans, survival horror fans, and gamers looking for an atmospheric, story driven experience. For those that felt RE 2 and 3 should have included more from their respective sources, SH 2 Remake blows them out of the water with its faithfulness and additions. When the dust settles, this game could go down as one of best examples of the genre ever. Here's hoping that Bloober Team can get the go ahead to remake SH 1 and 3. They are clearly fans of the original and did their best to preserve it.