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Thursday 6 March, 2008
Summary
Silent Hill: Origins is a third person survival horror game in which you must unravel the secrets of the mysterious Silent Hill while trying to survive within its various realms. A variety of weapons can be used, ranging from a target pistol to a portable television, in order help you survive while solving the games many puzzles.
Gameplay
During my first playthrough I felt a mixture of excitment and anxiety, mainly because I had never played a Silent Hill game before this and was looking forward to it and also party because I feel that I scare easier than most people. Anyways, I'm one who prefers to watch movies in a room devoid of light so as to enhance the viewing and seeing as Silent Hill is known to play out as a movie would, I began playing in the dark. The music and the sound effects really created a great deal of tension and are largely responsible for the successful implementation of the games atmoshperic horror. Another major contribution to the anxiety I felt and the horror of the game is the game's use of frightening and disturbing visuals, most of which come from the Otherworld, a gruesome alternate realm (that can be accessed through contact with mirrors) where everything is covered in blood and gore and deformed and malevolent creatures dwell. My first encounter with an enemy did not occur for at least a half an hour but it probably frightened me more than any of the other encounters. The music combined with the Otherworld's gruesome detail increased the feeling of fear to a higher level than should have been felt due to the fact that it was only a single enemy and the weakest of them at that.
I really like the games story so far. It's most likely because they took a simple story and expressed it in a complex way. This expression of the story allows for more freedom in creating the atmospheric conditions necessary for the game and allows the player to piece together the story for themselves, taking pieces of information from documents found by the characterby chance along with events and cutscenes that are a part of the game's linear progression. It creates a more realistic view of the horror.
Seeing as Silent Hill is only a one player game, there aren't any interactions with other players within the game itself. On the other hand, I found that with friends watching it feels more and more like a horror movie, everyone getting scared or jumping at different points in the game. It makes for a fun experience and while it may not be as frightening as when playing alone, it'll be worth it to see your friends react to the game.
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