Walking through Best Buy on a crisp Saturday afternoon, I brought myself to the game section. Looking around, I found Silent Hill 4: The Room. I WAS looking for Silent Hill 3, but thought, 'What the heck, I'll give it a go.' Now, sometimes, I think so loud that I can't here what people are saying, such as "You really shouldn't buy this" or "This game is terrible". But, I bought it and took it home.
Popping it into my Playstation 2, I was welcomed by the usual "Graphic content" screen and then by an entertaining opening video. I then began to play the game. The first part of it, was a first person view going through the apartment. And the first thing that came to mind was "Oh great, konami went FPS." Thankfully, they didn't. I explored the apartment a little, peered through the chained door's peephole, before retreating into the apartment to look out the main window. My character, Henry Townshend, hears a crash in his facilities and we go to check it out. Low and behold, there is a hole. I crawl through the claustrophobic's nightmare into the other nightmare. A subway station, SURPRISE! Another random subway station. There were levels upon levels of confusing storyline and strange enemies, including the ghost of a young woman you meet in the beginning of the game who looks like a knock off of Samara. All in all the game had it's freak outs and trippy levels. But, it still somewhat detracted from the beauty that is Silent Hill by not including the town in the game.
GRAPHICS - 10/10 - As bad as some of the storyline was, I must say that the graphics were intense. I love the freakish environments and the effort that Konami put into the surroundings.
SOUND - 8/10 - The soundtrack was Excellent, Akira Yamaoka has the best atmospheric talent out there. However, the resident singer to SH Joe Romersa is still a bit choppy in his vocals. Others might disagree, but I'm not to fond of it. The song Room of Angel, sung by Mary Elizabeth McGlyn, is one of the most heart-wrenching songs I've heard. That song brought the OST back to my top faves.
GAMEPLAY - 5/10 - All I'm going to say is, Eh. While there are some things that I like about the game play, it's still not the best stuff I've seen in a Silent Hill game.
STORY - 4/10 - A Silent Hill game that is set nowhere NEAR Silent Hill. I'd have to say pass on the story. Some elements were seen in earlier SH games, but the story didn't mention much of it. If it were my decision, I would have named this game simply "The Room" and left it at that.
OVERALL - 7/10 - The game has some great potential to be a great one, but the enemies, such as ghosts (?) really don't belong in a Silent Hill game. The story is iffy at best. Vocal talent is pretty bomb, however, Henry's voice is a bit Indy film-ish. Love the music and atmosphere. If you're looking for a cheap thrill game, I suggest you buy this, but for the die hard SH fans, steer clear.
FROM THE REVIEWERS SQUARE JP
Popping it into my Playstation 2, I was welcomed by the usual "Graphic content" screen and then by an entertaining opening video. I then began to play the game. The first part of it, was a first person view going through the apartment. And the first thing that came to mind was "Oh great, konami went FPS." Thankfully, they didn't. I explored the apartment a little, peered through the chained door's peephole, before retreating into the apartment to look out the main window. My character, Henry Townshend, hears a crash in his facilities and we go to check it out. Low and behold, there is a hole. I crawl through the claustrophobic's nightmare into the other nightmare. A subway station, SURPRISE! Another random subway station. There were levels upon levels of confusing storyline and strange enemies, including the ghost of a young woman you meet in the beginning of the game who looks like a knock off of Samara. All in all the game had it's freak outs and trippy levels. But, it still somewhat detracted from the beauty that is Silent Hill by not including the town in the game.
GRAPHICS - 10/10 - As bad as some of the storyline was, I must say that the graphics were intense. I love the freakish environments and the effort that Konami put into the surroundings.
SOUND - 8/10 - The soundtrack was Excellent, Akira Yamaoka has the best atmospheric talent out there. However, the resident singer to SH Joe Romersa is still a bit choppy in his vocals. Others might disagree, but I'm not to fond of it. The song Room of Angel, sung by Mary Elizabeth McGlyn, is one of the most heart-wrenching songs I've heard. That song brought the OST back to my top faves.
GAMEPLAY - 5/10 - All I'm going to say is, Eh. While there are some things that I like about the game play, it's still not the best stuff I've seen in a Silent Hill game.
STORY - 4/10 - A Silent Hill game that is set nowhere NEAR Silent Hill. I'd have to say pass on the story. Some elements were seen in earlier SH games, but the story didn't mention much of it. If it were my decision, I would have named this game simply "The Room" and left it at that.
OVERALL - 7/10 - The game has some great potential to be a great one, but the enemies, such as ghosts (?) really don't belong in a Silent Hill game. The story is iffy at best. Vocal talent is pretty bomb, however, Henry's voice is a bit Indy film-ish. Love the music and atmosphere. If you're looking for a cheap thrill game, I suggest you buy this, but for the die hard SH fans, steer clear.
FROM THE REVIEWERS SQUARE JP