Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Murphy's been a bad boy ...

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Piramit Kafa
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Piramit Kafa »

I finally finished the game. I can't say I loved it much but some parts were good.

I haven't enjoyed traveling around town since SH2 but Downpour has one of the best three towns in the series. It's big and doesn't force you go on a linear path unlike Homecoming which had the worst town creation ever. The water theme was a good approach too. I liked the side quests. Although they add absolutely nothing to the story. I liked the bogeyman as a boss. And that's all what I liked about the game.

The game is full of glitches. It kept lagging all the time. Especially when using the subway. I didn't like the story. It was like a rehash of the earlier games from beginning to the very end-If I see one more annoying kid behind bars out of reach...- I didn't like the supporting characters either. We only saw once most of them and they didn't serve any purpose. I don't know what "forced" meaning they have for their existence in the game and I don't care. I never had to think what Angela was doing in SH2 or Lisa in SH or Eileen in SH4. They all felt like they belonged in there. But what on earth was that DJ doing in the game!?

The monsters were terrible. They all had two arms, two legs, a head... Pretty much what humans have. They all looked human, they were all human. Nothing scary. Just annoying. But not as much as that thing which chases you. It was much worse than the red mist in SH3. The combat is also terrible. People say the combat was always bad in SH games but it was never this horrible. I stopped fighting them at some point in game not because I can't handle it but because it's only irritating.

The lighting/darkness balance is still nowhere to be found. They just can't manage to do it properly after SH3. It's been either too bright-SH4- or too dark-Homecoming- ever since. Downpour has both too bright locations and too dark locations and the flashlight totally sucks. The game keeps saying the lighter is not a good source of light on loading screens but I beg to differ. It lets you see what's in front of you better than the flashlight. Homecoming had the exact same issue. No game can be darker than the first three Silent Hill games but never I had an issue with the darkness once I turned my flashlight on back in those games.

The music was just meh. I couldn't hear anything the entire game unless the radio was on or some stupid human was chasing me.

The game is too short. I couldn't believe how quickly it could've ended if I hadn't wasted my time dealing with the side quests.

Actually I could love Homecoming more if it allowed to explore the town and didn't try to copy a movie which is a copy of a game. It was a decent game with no bugs/glitches while Downpour feels like an insult to me. Yet I have to place it above Homecoming because at least it tried to be an original installment though it failed pretty much in every aspect.

So my new order goes like this:
SH3>SH2>SH>SH4>Downpour>Homecoming>Origins>Shattered Memories
Last edited by Piramit Kafa on 31 Mar 2013, edited 1 time in total.
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born2kill
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by born2kill »

Piramit Kafa wrote: I haven't enjoyed traveling around town since SH2 but Downpour has one of the best three towns in the series. It's big and doesn't force you go on a linear path unlike Homecoming which had the worst town creation ever.
I need to replay Downpour just for the town, because i hated it. But now i'm seeing lots of people praising it. I want to give it another chance.
I didnt find the town all that big or open. There were a few extra roads, but they all seem to lead to dead ends and painted on doors. And the places you can go into mostly looked the same as every other place; like a dilapidated wooden shed.

The only part of town i found big were the subway tunnels. I liked how big they were but i ended up getting lost in the tunnels, wasting my time, and finding nothing of value. If there was something interesting to explore in the tunnels, i wouldnt mind. But all i'd find was rubble and dirt, like nearly every other place in the game.
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Steel Pipe
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

Got it yesterday,I just reached the Devil's Pit.So far it seems slightly better than Homecoming,yet I strongly dislike the fact that the map went off the "Δ" button,and why in God's name do I have to press the R3 in order to read a sign or anything with small letters.Well guess what VATRA,I'm not doing it.

Furthemore,I wish to believe that there's gonna be a flashlight somewhere around later because if someone at the production thought that part of making changes to make the game more appealing than the last installments was to exclude the flashlight,I'm picking an axe and heading to VATRA HQ first thing in the morning.But maybe if we got the flashlight we would spend most of the time trying to find something to resemble SH,apart from that cheesy moment with the radio outside the first cabin you find,because so far...nothing,niente,nada.

Ok apart from my usual small ranting,I don't wanna run to any conclusions at this point.Fact is,the game is playable.But so was Homecoming.I'm not impressed,I'm not dissapointed either.I'll be posting again after I make some progress.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by fudgestix »

There should have been a flashlight just after the crash, if you look around for some crows
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
there's a corpse
with one on.

Oh and once you get to SH, make sure to grab the map before you leave the building - I know a few people who totally missed it!
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

fudgestix wrote:There should have been a flashlight just after the crash, if you look around for some crows
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
there's a corpse
with one on.
:shock: Oh nooooooo.....Oh nooooooo..... I remember going circles around the bus trying to find my way out,how did I missed it! :cry:
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Piramit Kafa
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Piramit Kafa »

^There is more than one actually so you could get another if going back to the bus is out of question. But I don't remember where they were or how soon you can get the next one. Use your lighter till then.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by fudgestix »

I just realised you're in Devils Pit, not the Pitstop. Spoilers about items:
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
At that point in the game, you end up without your flashlight, even if you picked one up. Use the lighter for now, you'll get another at the end of this segment if you look around. It's a bit annoying at first, but I thought it added to the atmosphere, and the segment isn't too long!
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thy_butcher
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by thy_butcher »

There are flashlights and lighters all over the place in Downpour, just in case you miss the first ones or drop them.
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Steel Pipe
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

Thank you all for your help.Stubborn as I am I did start the game from the beggining only to realise that...
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
You lose the flashlight either way,when the bridge collides at the point right after you meet with JP.And boy was I lucky that the game holds 5 save points,cause guess what,on my second playthrough I passed the bridge without even the lighter.Regarding the flashlight again thankfully there's another one right before you enter Silent Hill as fudgestix mentioned
How lame was that? :x

Oh,and just to make sure my mind didn't played tricks on me.
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
Did I saw creatures arriving in a police car?Did I just saw that?
Of course that would explain one of Murphy's first thoughts upon arriving at SH."God,why are you doing this to me?" and I was like "Man,I was just thinking the same thing"

This s**t is just getting worse and worse.If I ever come to the point of having more fun with Homecoming than with this,I will grab a katana,hold SH1,2,3 with my teeth and perform an honorable harakiri.
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KiramidHead
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by KiramidHead »

PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
The monsters don't arrive in the police car. If the police car spots you, it makes them spawn.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Glenn »

Monsters driving police cars... don't even look what's in the backseat.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

Made it to the orphanage.Things have improved for the better.Although there are severe glitches mostly when outdoors which have become pretty irritating,I feel like the game is slowly moving towards the right direction.

Found the shotgun,but it seems I cannot have it saved in my inventory like the pistol although I'm pretty sure I saw Murphy mounting it on his back when using the flashlight but still functions as tradable with other melee weapons.Is that right?Hope I make sense.
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KiramidHead
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by KiramidHead »

You can only holster one gun at a time.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

Really?Ain't that ridiculous.I mean I can have up to 5 paintings,cranks,levers,candles,coins,keys etc but I can only holster one gun at a time....Makes sense.
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by KiramidHead »

Well, you can keep two guns, one holstered and one equipped. Makes sense to me.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

KiramidHead wrote:Well, you can keep two guns, one holstered and one equipped. Makes sense to me.
Ok,wait.I can't have them both holstered,and even if one's equipped I will eventually drop one down since there are parts of the game where you need to use a melee weapon in order to progress.Am I right?
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by KiramidHead »

Steel Pipe wrote:
KiramidHead wrote:Well, you can keep two guns, one holstered and one equipped. Makes sense to me.
Ok,wait.I can't have them both holstered,and even if one's equipped I will eventually drop one down since there are parts of the game where you need to use a melee weapon in order to progress.Am I right?
No. You can only holster one gun at a time. It's really not that big of a deal.
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Steel Pipe
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

KiramidHead wrote:
No. You can only holster one gun at a time. It's really not that big of a deal.
Well yes,it ain't big deal,but it doesnt make sense either thinking he can stash a whole storage room under his shirt and at the same time he's unable to carry two guns if one's not equipped.I was afraid there for a moment that I screwed up and dropped the shotgun when I was able to holster it,but having the pistol holstered instead made that impossible to do so....ooookkeeyy.....Anyway,thanks for the help KH.
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KiramidHead
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by KiramidHead »

No problem. :)

Think of it this way: how frustrating would it be to have to grab all the different puzzle based items only one at a time? The weapons thing serves a purpose, in that it adds challenge to the combat.
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Re: Got Downpour? Want to share impressions? Post them here!

Post by Steel Pipe »

And it's done!

Well,honestly,I didn't expect it to be good,maybe average but no way above that.And it was good.It really went over my expectations.

I was really worried at the beggining,but things got much better after the Devil's Pit (which by the way,is the most lame and boring place in any SH).I really liked the variety given by the side quests,and there were many puzzles (most of them were clever and challenging.At least the ones I found) to solve which instantly make the game worth a second - even a third - playthrough.In fact I think I left half of the town unexplored.

I also enjoyed the combat system,although a lock-on here would make things even better.Not a big deal though,since running away was wiser to do most of the times.Monsters/creatures were well designed may be a bit off the SH theme,but still were scary and dangerous,and dealing with them when in pack was far from easy.And f**k did I jumped off my seat so many times,the game's full of jump scares,creating an atmosphere of constant uneasiness.

I found the use of the map via the journal unpleasant to say the least.That's taking some + points of the game,even more when I found out that the houses I had entered before weren't even marked on it.I mean "Δ" for the map...that's a trademark,and you don't fuck with trademarks.However,keeping all paper-info accessible through the journal,was great and very helpful.

Moving on,placing the right equipment on the right spot...or should I say,at the right moment,was a relief and was giving me the feel of progress through reward.Right when I started to feel there's to much stuff to explore and discover,there's your UV light,and later on when I felt the monsters claws on my back I was holding a shotgun.Linearity yes,but perfectly timed,nothing like Homecoming which was the kingdom of linearity.

Storyline had issues.Firstly,there wasn't a single connection between protagonist and town,apart from town working as a purgatory and secondly,it kind of left me with the feeling of having loose ends.
PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER_SHOW PRIME_BBCODE_SPOILER:
I got the B ending by the way,and there has to be another one with Murphy's son,since I found out there's too many info on the case,and felt like Murphy was destined to relive the fact he wasn't there to help his son when that kid requesting a rhyme to open a door at the orphanage was killed by that big monster...and later on there are these laters from his wife cursing him for their son loss,so there was a constant feel that this is the big deal,and this is what we gonna get at the end.Anyway as I said I had the B ending,which circles around Colleridge and her father who was set up to be murdered by Murphy from that son of a bitch Sewel...Oh,and I spared her cause she's hot 8)
Concluding,Downpour is a step to the right direction for the series since Team Silent are chopped for good by Konami,we can at least hope that future installments will be more like Downpour and less if none like Homecoming.
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