The original Silent Hill ranks as one of my all time favorite games. Reading about the game in Playstation Magazine (PSM) and, being a huge Resident Evil fanboy, I coveted it immediately. Hurrying home once I managed to get my hands on the demo I spent the next several hours in a pitch black room becoming intimate with the eerie town of Silent Hill. I was hooked! I bought the full game on release day and completed the first of many playthroughs in less than 12 hours (a feat for me as I am an explore every nook and cranny of the game kind of gamer).
My obsession with the series waned during Silent Hill 3. The series grew stale to me. What made Silent Hill so fascinating-the ominous and foreboding foggy atmosphere and its freakishly designed monstrosities-was now tired and overdone. It seemed the developers were determined to wring every last ounce of gaming goodness out of the games’ previously successful formula. The game shifted focus away from psychological survival horror. Whereas in Silent Hill the cackle of the radio raised the hair on my neck, the cackle of the radio in Silent Hill 3 barely elicited a yawn.
My curiosity was piqued when reading a preview of Silent Hill: Downpour (March 13, 2012). Design director, Brian Gomez, intended to bring the series back to its roots. Back to what captured my imagination in the first game and what made the game so enthralling, fun to play and scary-psychological horror! My enthusiasm was tempered, however, as the famous tagline of “bring the series back to its roots” is frequently uttered by developers trying to revive stale series. Duke Nukem, anyone?
Meet Prisoner RS 273A
Featuring an entirely new storyline, you begin the game as prison inmate Murphy Pendleton. Much of what we learn regarding Murphy’s straightforward story is presented in flashback form. Murphy suffers a loss and will go to any length to taste the sweet nectar of revenge. His thirst for revenge, when acted upon, profoundly affect those around him.
Hit the showers: A creeptastic game tutorial
As Murphy sits in his cell a shady prison guard, George Sewell, arrives to escort him to the showers. Walking into the showers Sewell tells Murphy he left him a surprise on the bench. Yikes, a surprise in the shower at a prison? This can’t be good! As the door shuts behind him Sewell drops another interesting nugget-when all the showers are turned on the steam fogs up the shower cameras thus obstructing the guards’ view. Oh boy, now it’s a surprise in a foggy, camera obstructed shower? Gulp! I am starting to feel a tad uncomfortable here. This may not go down well for Murphy! Murphy walks to the bench to pick up his surprise (a broken broomstick and a knife) and onto the showers to activate them. The shower segment serves as the game mechanic tutorial. Actions such as picking up items and opening doors are accomplished by pushing the A button. The camera here is a little funny as it seems Murphy must be positioned precisely to interact with the shower (more on fun camera angles later). Murphy collects the loot, a locked door opens and in strolls a very portly prisoner dressed in nothing but a towel. Our portly, scantily clad friend strikes up a conversation with Murphy. I’ll spare you the rest of the details for the sake of avoiding spoilers. Sewell’s surprises are put to good use and introduce another game mechanic-melee combat and degrading weapons.
The tutorial also provides the first detailed look at graphics, facial animations and voice acting. Graphics are solid with detailed environments and excellent environmental physics. The facial animations and voice acting are less than impressive. Excluding Murphy the voice acting is rigid and forced. Facial animations are reminiscent of an old Kung Fu movie. I can hear what the characters are saying but their mouths aren’t moving right. Remember watching the old Police Academy movies with the classic Kung Fu bit by Motor Mouth Jones? “So you want to fight? Then fight me!” You get the picture.
Home Sweet Home
For reasons I’ll leave to you to discover Murphy and several other inmates are transferred to another prison. The transfer goes awry when the bus, trying to avoid what appears to be a washed out road, crashes near Silent Hill. Murphy blacks out during the crash and wakes alone in a misty forest. Our felonious friend, now on the lam, begins his walk to everyone’s favorite vacation destination-Silent Hill. The forest stroll provides additional control scheme familiarity and introduces the game's moral component. Murphy is presented with several moral choices throughout the game. In classic Silent HIll style, the game features several endings and your moral choices play a role in which ending you’ll receive when you complete the game. The moral component seems forced and presents more like an afterthought rather than a well defined component of the game.
Gameplay
The atmosphere is classic Silent Hill. The game succeeds in isolating you from the outside world as all roads in Downpour inevitably lead to nowhere. The isolation is oppressive. The persistent fog and rain only add to the suffocating atmosphere. Murphy struggles to get his bearings in the unfamiliar surroundings. Meeting somewhat creepy characters throughout his journey deepens his confusion. Coupled with the vagaries surrounding Murphy’s past the atmosphere of confusion adds to the overall feeling of isolation. Equally as stifling is the atmosphere when exploring the Silent Hill’s buildings. In classic Silent Hill style, you are equipped with a small flashlight that doesn’t illuminate much of your surroundings. The buildings are dark and dank and full of ambient, creepy noises. Downpour makes good use of shadows within the buildings as several times I was convinced I saw baddies. The darkness surrounds you and feels weighty. Often while exploring a building I found myself thinking “I need to get out of here.” Downpour excels at fostering high anxiety levels during building exploration. Vatra amps up the fun factor of building exploration with the game’s many puzzles. Puzzles range from fairly easy to challenging. One of the more challenging and most rewarding puzzles involves Murphy in a classic children's tale. Good stuff.
Since the inception of Silent Hill audio plays an essential role in conveying the game’s atmosphere. Downpour’s fantastic audio soundtrack weaves intricately into its creepy atmosphere. Daniel Licht replaces longtime series music composer Akira Yamaoka. It is evident that Licht studied the role of music and how it is woven into Silent Hill. Licht does a brilliant job carrying on the stellar musical tradition of Silent Hill games in Downpour. The soundtrack is one of the game’s high points and I highly recommend playing this game with some good gaming headphones.
Beware the black and red floating cloud of death
Silent Hill’s transformation from a sane, perceptible environment to an insane, imperceptible environment is a staple of the series. The nightmare world in Downpour is designed in the classic style-rusty and bloody with plenty of chain link fence. Herein lies one of Downpour’s major flaws. Once transformed into the nightmare world you inevitably are chased by a void, basically a black and red floating cloud of death, that sucks in everything around it. You must run or face a flesh sucking death. My first encounter resulted in a few deaths as I figured out my way through the maze that is the nightmare world. Unfortunately, the experience of the void doesn’t deviate from the first encounter. You meet the void, run from it and die repeatedly until you figure out where you need to run. Wash, rinse, repeat. The void chase sequences reminded me of the Dahaka chase sequences from Prince of Persia: Warrior Within. The exception being the lack of variety during the void chases. The void chases devolve into repeated games of trial and error. In the end the void chase sequences are a cheap imitation of the Dahaka chase scenes.
Isn’t prison supposed to make you tough?
Prison profoundly affects a person. It’s a fight for survival. Surviving in Downpour is tough enough. It’s tougher with the game’s flawed combat system. For all the good things the game does the combat system is where it falls on its face. Murphy uses just about anything in the game as a melee weapon. Wrenches, bottles, sticks and knives to name a few. Weapons break down with use eventually rendering them unusable. Murphy can also throw melee weapons but I found he flings stuff wildly. I had a hard time hitting anything when thrown. The game is chock full of annoying crows. “Caw, caw!” “Caw, caw!” To try to shut them up, I started throwing whatever I could find at them. Try as I might I was unable to hit the crows consistently. Melee combat is frustrating. Murphy can “block” but I found it to be hit or miss; mostly miss. Downpour portrays Murphy as a regular guy. Now, I don’t expect him to perform like a member of Seal Team Six. However, he was in prison so he should be familiar with melee combat. Apparently he spent most of his time reading as he swings wildly when in melee combat. It is a fine line to straddle. Murphy as a super soldier takes away his vulnerability as a character; Murphy as a fighting nincompoop takes the fun out of melee combat and the game. He fares no better using firearms. In fact, Murphy may have an undisclosed addiction. Aiming a weapon he seems to shake excessively; so much so that I feared he would accidentally shoot himself in the leg. The cumbersome combat was so frustrating I made like a Flock of Seagulls; I ran, I ran so far away from most all enemy encounters.
Enemy designs are excellent. The Silent Hill series sets a high bar with its devilish monstrosities and Downpour is no exception. Enemy variety in Downpour? Yeah, not so much. The variety is just not there. The shock value of multiple enemy variations in previous installments is lacking in Downpour. Murphy finds himself battling the same baddies repeatedly.
Downpour’s camera system alternates between both fixed camera angle and player controlled camera views. Downpour differs from previous installments as fixed camera views are not always indicative of an upcoming scare. The camera system works for the most part, with one exception-combat. When faced with a baddie in tight quarters the camera alternates between multiple angles rapidly. Resultingly, frustrating combat becomes unbearably frustrating combat which may result in an R.F.C. (rapidly flying controller) and a haiku strung together with expletives. Neither of which household cohabitants approve of but, if they had to choose, would forgo the R.F.C in favor of the expletive haiku. Ask me, I know!
The verdict?
Overall, I enjoyed my time in Downpour. It was a good trip down memory lane. Ultimately, the frustrating combat holds this game back from being a true gem in the series. The unpolished combat results in the game performing in fits and starts-the atmosphere, story and exploration suck you in. The combat violently spits you out. Polished combat makes this game a more immersive experience-too bad it's lacking.
About the Author
Steven “frizzlefry2” Boulé is an avid indoors-man. He currently resides in New Hampshire where he is an active member of Task Force 141. He frequently swims in the River Styx and tirelessly works to rid the universe of the evil Dr. Nefarious. Steven’s favorite game genres include platformers, action/adventure, RPG’s and first person shooters.
