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Rating: 2009. After the semi-flop that was Silent Hill 4, Konami, entrusting the saga to the American software house Double Helix, presents us with the new chapter of what is, in my opinion, the most "sick," chilling, and profound horror video game saga in the history of video games. For PC, 360, and PS3.
Did the American developers manage to match the (almost always) impeccable efforts and work of the previous Japanese software house?
The game immediately presents itself with a less "old" gameplay and if you will, more "casual". The camera has been moved from a fixed position to behind the character, creating a classic but effective third-person view. The camera movement is free. The combat is well-calibrated and perfectly executed from the start, thanks to the introduction of the innovative "mini-combo" system, which allows us to chain light and heavy attacks. All of this is accompanied by animations that are not always perfect but nonetheless convincing.
Dodging is a fundamental element in combat. It assumes great importance for the first time in the Silent Hill series and, although it mostly resolves to a lateral roll, becomes absolutely indispensable if one wishes to survive the toughest encounters or those with nimbler enemies. The weapons are crafted with great care, and it won't be long before players begin picking their favorites.
The weapons embrace the classics of the survival horror genre, ranging from melee weapons like the knife (this time probably the most useful weapon in the game), the inevitable crowbar, the axe, the gun, the shotgun, and the rifle. For each weapon in the game, one or more "enhanced" versions will be available, obtainable only by thoroughly exploring the various game areas.
The graphics engine does its job from the very first minutes of gameplay without significant quality peaks, providing the usual "damaged film" effect of every respectable Silent Hill, and seasoning it all with spine-chilling and realistic volumetric fog. From a purely graphical standpoint, the game falters in terms of face modeling and textures but compensates with notable light/shadow effects capable of granting the atmosphere that, sadly, is missing from most games today. The attention to detail is immediately felt during the first combats, thanks to the clever idea of having enemies realistically react to hits, creating bleeding gashes in their bodies with every blade strike they receive.
From a technical perspective, the game occasionally suffers from framerate drops on both Xbox 360 and PS3, while tearing almost never appears.
The atmosphere of the game is solid, capable of teleporting us into a distorted reality, a disturbed and decaying world capable of bringing out our deepest fears, lying in a dark and lost corner of our consciousness.
Despite the undeniable quality of the atmosphere, one feels the absence of that extra touch of genius and terror missing since the 2nd and 3rd chapters of the saga, which manifested in game moments capable of making us widen our eyes in terror and frightening us so much that we didn’t dare look around, aware of the presence of something around us. The game is nonetheless very frightening, but unfortunately, it is not comparable to the fear experienced in the previous chapters.
The monsters are excellently crafted, displaying chilling anthropomorphic, deformed, and distorted forms, giving rise to nightmare figures that seem to emerge from the deepest fears of our subconscious. If monsters like the ghosts from Silent Hill (psx), the nurses from Silent Hill 2, 3, and Origins (also present in Homecoming and more voluptuous than ever), or the chilling two-headed children/giants from Silent Hill 4 weren't enough, new abominations appear in this V chapter of the saga, accompanied by revisions of some from previous chapters, particularly the 3rd chapter. Decapitated men with blades for limbs, huge creatures devoted to melee fighting, and gigantic demonic dolls are just some of the horrors that will accompany us throughout the adventure on Silent Hill.
The story unfolds over the roughly 10 hours of the campaign in an always effective manner, creating questions from the very beginning that will urge us to enjoy it thoroughly, dedicating ourselves to the search for various documents scattered across the maps, and eagerly awaiting the ending, which, as per Silent Hill tradition, will not be singular. In this regard, the moral choices are a new and intriguing innovation introduced in this new Konami product, and each of them will heavily influence the ending. There are 3 moral choices in total, and the decisions we make during them will shape the story, culminating in the ending that will be assigned to us.
The sound, finally, is probably the most successful and refined part of the game, thanks especially to Akira Yamaoka's impeccable work in writing the songs, which has been spoiling us with his brilliant compositions since the dawn of the saga. Moreover, the sound effects prove to be as exceptional and absolutely disturbing as always, capable of creating panic situations that will hardly be forgotten.
In conclusion, the game unveils itself as a great and worthy bearer of the name that makes it famous, excelling in the realm of story and sound, faltering in some technical aspects, but without losing for a moment the charisma and overall depth of the adventure, which is capable of transporting us for about 10 hours into a chilling, disturbing, yet utterly fascinating nightmare.
Rating: 8.5
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