Entry #10: Running off into the Sunset (and also into the fog of Silent Hill)

     Well, this is it. The last blog post that will be made on this blog. Its been fun for these last four months, writing about topics in my own personality. We talked about how to build a PC, the Nintendo Switch, Elon Musk and Twitter, Kingdom Hearts, hashtags, and even liminal spaces. I could have made this blog short and sweet, but I wanted it to be more. So in this final blog from me, I will talk about another one of my favorite game series, Silent Hill, but specifically Silent Hill 2.     

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    I mentioned it very briefly in the Kingdom Hearts blog, but Silent Hill is a recent game series that I got into. I knew about the game series for a while, but I never thought of playing it. It was just a game series that I thought I would never play, but when I was able to buy Silent Hill on my Xbox (It was on the Silent Hill HD Collection, which is considered the worst version of the game, but it ran fine to me) during a sale, I was able to finally play it. I was pretty excited to play it since I was watching some videos about the games (with no spoilers of course) and the fact that Silent Hill is represented in Dead By Daylight, a horror game that I played. After playing through Silent Hill 2 and 3, while 3 was also really good, I REALLY loved Silent Hill 2. It was one of the most unique games that I played in a long time. Despite it being a PlayStation 2 game, the game still holds up to this day. 

              "In my restless dreams, I see that town. Silent Hill."

                                                    

                                                                                            

 Silent Hill 2 starts off with a man, a man name James Sunderland. He just arrived at Toluca Lake in the small town of Silent Hill. As he exits the bathroom, he stares off to the lake and looks at the letter his wife Mary gave him. Seems innocent, right? Well the problem with this is that Mary is dead. She's been dead for three years because of a disease. James, wondering how he could have gotten this letter from her, then sets out to explore Silent Hill to find her, not knowing the monstrosities that are within the town. As he explores, he will find other people who don't seem they are mentally there along with monsters conjured by James's mind. The game creates a setting that isn't really scary, but uncomfortable. The atmosphere of Silent Hill gave me a mysterious but anxiety-filled mood as it is covered by the thick fog. The soundtrack also gives off a unknown vibe, which sets the mood for the game. The fact that you are alone most of the game with some people here and there also gives it a liminal feel to it. Empty streets, dark corridors, and the dilapidated buildings that look like they haven't been used in a while add to this feeling. The monsters hiding within these places are twisted human-like creatures that follow James as he goes on his journey, and sometimes he has to get his hands dirty and kill them, whether it being with a wooden plank, a iron pipe, or even a handgun. Even with these factors, James still pushes on, as he is determined to find Mary. 

    The gameplay of Silent Hill 2 is a survival horror game, which is a horror game that has items in limited quantities. Items like medicine and ammo for guns are not that abundant, so do not expect to run and gun. There are also puzzles, and these puzzle make you actually think a bit. They can be in riddles or just based on common sense (I'm not going to say anything because these puzzles are good). Movement-wise, you control James with tank-controls, which is when movement is controlled relative to player position instead of the camera perspective. Its hard to use at first and it might feel outdated, but eventually I got used to it, and honestly it adds to the game as the camera swerves around when you run around. It especially makes it nerve-racking when you are running away from something and the camera changes angle, which messes you up. In terms of saving, like most games from this generation, you have to manually save by finding red squares scattered around the town. These squares are usually found in calm spots, like some kind of intermission. I highly recommend saving during specific times if you want to achieve the requirements for certain endings, which there are about six endings to the game. 

     I never expected this game to be one of my favorite games of all time, but here it is. Silent Hill 2 is a psychological horror journey that I recommend that you play. The story is really good and there are some tense moments. The soundtrack is eerie yet calm, and in some cases it feels like a vibe. The atmosphere will make you nervous that something will pop out of the fog or darkness. Its really a shame that most people won't be able to play this game  unless you either buy the Silent Hill: HD Collection on Xbox (like I said, it's not the recommended version to play), or you shell out a lot of money to buy a physical copy of the game on eBay. Thankfully, there is a remake of Silent Hill 2 coming soon, so this will let people play one of the most acclaimed games of the 21st century. 

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    Well, that's the end of the last blogpost. I hope you enjoyed my long summary of Silent Hill 2. Also, thank you for reading my ramblings on video games and other subjects, it was nice to read the comments to see others' opinions. Anyway, I'll see you later!