Should I play Silent Hill 2 (xbox) even though.... (1 Viewer)

[Micheal]

I haven't played the first one? Will I be missing something or is it not a big deal?

 

[Jay H]

I played Silent Hill 2 without ever playing the first one. In fact, I still haven't seen the first one before to this day.

The game doesn't necessitate you to have played the first one but I think if you like SH2, it would be helpful to get a background of the story and the history of the town itself.

You should definitely play it, I wouldn't keep from playing it just because you've never played the first one, IMO.

Jay

 

[Micheal]

Sounds good! Thanks Jay.
P.S. Can you give me a quick review of what you thought of the game? How does it compare to the R.E. series?

Thanks again.

 

[Scott Simonian]

I would try it out because the concensous(sic) of SH fans is that SH1 was scarier and such.

I myself cant wait for SH3, I hope it comes on Xbox.

 

[shane_watson]

its a worth while play even if you deprive yourself of the first one,i say if you can play both even though the stories are not related

 

[Jay H]

Michael, Ha, I've never played the Resident Evil series though, but if I remember the banter when SH2 came out, supposedly the control system is very similar to the RE series. For me, it took me a while to get used to it, I mean the first few "boss" battles were real tough because I was still getting used to the controllers. However, they do give you two setups and I do remember the non-default one was better for me.

Have fun and make sure you play the game with the lights out. I only played at night with the lights out in my room and if I needed light, I had a desk lamp with a red bulb that I used to not ruin the day vision... Very spooky!

Jay

 

[Leslie W]

Silent Hill 1 is what caused me to buy a PS. I watched a friend play at 2AM in a silent house, all the lights off, and he had the first Home Theater system I ever saw.
To this very day, Silent Hill creeps me out.
When Calvin played Resident Evil : Nemesis for me, I got so scared when he breaks in the Police Station I actually wet my pants. Silent Hill is not that kind of game. It is creepy, and heebie-jeebie kind of creepy. The kind where you want someone to hold your hand when you walk down your own dark hallway to the kitchen kind of creepy.
The 2 games don't have any continunity ( I hope that is the word I am looking for ) You don't MISS anything story wise if you don't play 1 ever at this point. I don't know what the future games have in store for plot lines. You just miss playing one of the creepiest games I have ever seen.

 

[Scott Simonian]

The kind where you want someone to hold your hand when you walk down your own dark hallway to the kitchen kind of creepy.

Exactly. And we need more games/movies that do that.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

From what I've heard, Silent Hill 1 had more emphasis on creepiness while Silent Hill 2 had more emphasis on the storyline. Both games are creepy and have good stories, but SH1 is darker and SH2's story is more twisted.

 

[felix_suwarno]

what is the meaning of darker and what is the meaning of twisted?

 

[Morgan Jolley]

When I say darker, I mean visually. The darkness adds creepiness. When I say twisted, I mean things that are just really weird and gruesome (don't want to spoil anything).

 

[Matt Wooten]

personally having owned the second and still having the first, i think the first game is better than the second. i feel that not only is the game creepier but i felt the story kept me into the game more. i felt more for the main character of that game than i did for the second. the games are only linked by the fact its the same town.. but i would pick up the first if i were you (proly for about ten to fifteen dollars at this point) and give it a try either before or after you take the second.

 

[felix_suwarno]

thanks to romier, i think silent hill 2 had a cool story. i havent played the first one though.

i believe if they made a movie out of these games...fans of the changeling, the fog...etc etc will like em.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Actually, they're making a movie based on the first game, though I think they should make it based on the second game and get David Lynch to direct it.

 

[James Reader]

To me, Silent Hill 2 was the first truly 'adult' game to be released. What do I mean by 'adult' - not gratuitous blood, sex or language that seems to be what most people consider as 'adult'. No, I mean a strong central storyline, which deals with truly mature concepts – love, death, pain, revenge and guilt are all covered at various points as the storyline progresses. What's more the game manages the flow of information in the storyline expertly; leaking out the minimal information needed to progress at a given time and leaving most of the fine details of the story left to the player's imagination.

But what happened when the public got hold of the game? Petty complaints about 'poor graphics' (the film grain effect was done for a reason, atmosphere), complaint that the story didn't make any sense (which amazes me – how the hell could they play to the end of the game and insist the story doesn't make sense?. Were they even paying attention? I'll admit a lot of the story was ambiguous, but it made perfect sense. Me and my friends have come up with three slight variations on what we think was happening in the story and all make sense. It's an adventure game and therefore you can expect to use your brain while playing.)

I'm not saying the game is perfect – there is a little too much backtracking for my liking, but it is the first game that I feel was created with an truly mature player in mind.

Oh, I've just had another thought about the ambiguity of the overall story – after I went to see Memento at the cinema I went to the nearby pub for a drink or two and heard three guys discussing the ending. While once of them seem to be fascinated by the structure of the film and also the ambiguity of the ending (the conversation was about if Leonard did in-fact kill his wife or not) the other two were unresponsive, and quite hostile to the film. In fact one went as far as to state "I didn't pay £5 to see a movie and then have to make up my own God-damn ending.". If you feel the same way about such films, Silent Hill 2 is probably not for you.

 

[Leslie W]

That was one of the +/- of the whole thing for me. I was kept guessing the whole time. I thought I had it figured out ... then come to find a new twist. ( Talking about SH2 here not 1 ) One was straight forward guy looking for his daughter. 2 was a tormented man searching for answers he is not sure he wants to know.

Very different stories. But I agree... I cared about the protagonist in SH1 more than I did 2.

 

[Romier S]

But I agree... I cared about the protagonist in SH1 more than I did 2.

MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD. PLEASE DO NOT READ ON IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED SILENT HILL 2
There is nothing grander than a game or even a movie that leaves so much to the individual. That allows for so many different interpretations. Its like watching a good David Lynch movie. You know what you saw, but did the friend sitting next to you see the same thing?
Concerning the quote above, let me just say that I agree with that statement but not in the way that many think..
James was not as endearing as Harry. I agree totally with that. As Leslie mentioned, though confused, Harry had one predetermined goal. To find his daughter. Nothing was more important. It was easy for us to identify with Harry because of that. What parent wouldn't go through hell to find and rescue thier child. You can imagine yourself in those shoes and going through that if your childs life depended on it. Harry is us. We can place ourselves in his shoes.
Many would say the same holds true for James. That he has one goal and that is to find his wife. To an extent I agree but I think the reasons many find James to be a less interesting protagonist are two fold. The first being the Maria character.
Maria is the one character I think that most of use felt for in the game the most as we played through to the end. We knew there was something demonic about her and that she had something to do with Silent Hill but to me at least that didn't matter. As silly as this sounds, every time she died I mourned her. After replaying the game her deaths led me to have a more poignant understanding of the hell that James had to endure. Imagine for an instant having to see the one person you truly loved massacred over and over again and not being able to do anything about it. That really helped me to form a connection with James and subsequently with Maria. The great thing about Silent Hill 2 is that connection is shattered in room 312. When you finally find out the horrible truth of what James did you can't help but stop feeling sorry for him. Which leads into my second reason...
Lets put things into perspective. What James did was not in my humble opinion a merciful killing of an ailing loved one. He committed cold blooded murder because he could not stand to see what Mary became. Her illness made her a monster. In return he took her life. Yes he loved her but he also failed her. He failed to understand and care for her when she most needed him.
Fundamentally you are *NOT* supposed to care about James in Silent Hill 2. Hes no better a man than Eddie Dombrowski. If you'll remember Eddie even says to James in thier final encounter that "We are both alike". A very true statement indeed. James' guilt is well deserved and the hell that Silent Hill puts James through is very much deserved. To be honest I feel the most compelling and deserving ending in Silent Hill 2 is the "In water" ending where James kills himself. A tragic end to a very tragic character.
Whats even more interesting to look at is in a way Silent Hill is the main *protaganist* of this story. The town makes people face the horrors that they have committed. It makes the insane and evil see thier atrocities and repent for them.
So yes, I would most definitely say that I cared more for Harry. I do not say that because I feel James was any less of an interesting character but because he is not meant to be cared for.
One last thing. Above I said that I thought Maria is the character that we most cared for throughout the game. That is true in most cases. But for me the one character I very much identified with and utterly felt sorry for was Angela. When she finally walked into the flames on the stairwell of the Lake View Hotel my heart broke. I wanted to save her more than anything and I couldn't. She is by far my most cared for character in Silent Hill 2.
Anyway I'll shut up now since I've already said too much. Before anyone says it, yes I am an utter geek when it comes to this game. I love it down to every last bit of programming and I desperatley hope that I will one day see a movie done on this story. In the meantime Session 9 will be my "Silent Hill" movie............
EDIT: James Reader, I am in total agreement with your statements.

 

[James Reader]

Romier S, like you I am totally fascinated by the story of the game, and feel that even now I could discuss it for hours with anybody who would care to listen. In fact, I'm obsessed!

My friends and I have discussed the game at length and think we have the whole story nailed down now - except for the true nature of the little girl, Laura.


I personally think that Laura was a ghost - the suggestion that James didn't kill his wife 2 years ago but instead two weeks ago (as Laura insists was the time Mary died) somehow doesn't seem true to me. Notice how degraded and run down the empty town and hospital are. Also, the story line has more poignancy if there is a 2 year period for all of James' repressed and unconscious doubts and guilt to surface. Notice too - I think - that Maria and Laura are never shown to interact (possibly never even shown together). However, my friends point out that Laura is shown talking to Eddie at one point, and therefore she is real and alive. They also say that it is telling that Laura, an innocent child, is the only human who doesn't see monsters in Silent Hill (the monsters of course being the products of a person's own guilt).

I disagree - I think the ending where James goes off with Maria is the most fitting - James is going to be forced to watch and suffer as his 'wife' succumbs to the same disease all over again.



"Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

 

[Romier S]

James,

I think the ending you selected works as an ending to the story. In either of the two endings (In water or Maria) he will suffer or die
. Its kind of harsh but considering what James did, both would be a fitting conclusion.

Also regarding the time frame of Mary's death. You have to remember the card/letter that Laura gave to James. She mentions that it was given to her 1-2 weeks ago on her birthday by Mary. I think that solidly places emphasis on the fact that she only died within that time frame. James psychosis led him to create a rosey fantasy world where his wife dies of a horrible disease, its Silent Hills job to break up the fantasy and show him the truth.

I find your Laura is a ghost hypothesis intriguing. I never really thought of it like that but it is perfectly feasible. Why else would she be there? In the game it is mentioned that she is there looking for Mary as well but Silent Hill only calls to those who must face an atrocity. Her being a ghost would make sense...

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I thought that the most interesting thing about Silent Hill 2's storytelling is that you are told the story through the perspective of James, so you see all the mystery and confusion that he goes through, but when you find out "the truth," you feel like as though you were led through the game by this horrible man, and it sort of makes you feel dirty.

This is how I saw the story (it's my theory, I urge you to critique it):

First of all, there are multiple Silent Hills: a fog one, a real one, and a ghost/evil one which varies for each person.

We have a few characters: James, Laura, Eddie, Maria, Mary, and Angela. Of those, all but Mary are living people. Through circumstance, we come to meet them all.

James killed his wife, Mary, just about two weeks ago. He went crazy and convinced himself that it had been 2 years since her death. He received the letter from Mary (I'll explain later) recently and has come to the town to find her. He sees monsters that represent images from before his wife died, like the nurses, as well as images from the town's history, like the pyramid heads (who I think represent the executioners from the prison).

Laura is real. Before Mary's nurse sent out the letter she wrote, Laura stole part of it. The part James gets leads him to believe his wife is still alive, but the whole letter when it is all together would suggest she is on her deathbed and is saying goodbye. Laura torments James throughout the story to sort of remind him that Mary is gone every once in a while. She also never sees monsters because she has no guilt or fear; her only fear is that James will try to hurt her because of what he did to Mary, which is why she always runs away from him.

Eddie went on a killing spree because of repressed anger from his childhood and current adulthood. He doesn't feel guilt over it, because he thinks the others deserved it. Whenever someone insults him, he gets angered and it all comes out. Instead of seeing monsters in the town, he sees people as being genuinely cruel, which is why he attacks them.

Maria had a troubled childhood. Her father abused and molested her while he mother did nothing about it, so she killed him, and possibly her mom. She lives in fear of men, so she tries to manipulate them through sexuality. She looks like Mary, but is not Mary, so she serves as a reminder that Mary is really dead. James sees her as Mary Number 2, even though she's not.

Mary was James' wife and she had a terminal disease. James felt bad for her because of he loved her and because he couldn't help her. At the same time, he was mad that she took his time away from him and that he was forced to watch her waste away, knowing she would eventually die. When he killed her, it was more to end it all for himself than for her. Before she died, she wrote a letter and gave it to her nurse to send to James when she died. Laura stole most of the letter, so James only got the last part, which led him to think Mary was still alive.

Angela's story is not quite all clear to me, but I'll do my best from what I can guess. Her parents were very strict with her and possibly even beat her. She developed a love for them that was very strong, which is why she keeps searching for her mama, even though she was mean to her. She burned down her house as a revenge to her parents (thus, all the fire in "her Silent Hill") and then maybe tried to kill herself (the knife with blood). She, like James, has forced herself to forget that she killed her parents, which is why she keeps trying to find them.

OK, so it's not an explanation of the story, but rather of each character's story. If I missed something, please point it out.