Is Silent Hill 3 the scariest SH?

[Naughty Nurses]

yarp. have to agree with it being more disturbing than actually scary. i think the most disurbing part for me is the amusement park and the store room in the hospital, didn't like it one bit. and the part when you go up the ladder after the maze and valtiel(sp?) is doing that thing he does with the nurse. gross.

[Kupomee]

I just like how every Silent Hill game is utterly scary and disturbing in it's own way.
This one had the most gore and bloodiness and fear of it in the series so far for me, but Heather's remarks on things made them a lot less scary most of the time.
Which is still better than Henry's remarks when he had any...

[SHACKled89451]

I just like how every Silent Hill game is utterly scary and disturbing in it's own way.
This one had the most gore and bloodiness and fear of it in the series so far for me, but Heather's remarks on things made them a lot less scary most of the time.
Which is still better than Henry's remarks when he had any...

You have to remember, Heather had the god thing inside of her, if it was influencing her, which I'm pretty sure it was (the church scene) then it's pretty unlikley she would react to these stiuations the way a normal teenager would..

[lain of the wired]

SH2 scared me more. For some reason, the fact that most of the monsters are slow enough to just run around made/is making things a lot easier for me. I scare fairly easily, too, so...

On the other hand, I had also watched a few you-tube postings of people playing before, so I know what's coming and am desensitized when it happens. I guess that's defeating the purpose a bit, but then I mostly play games to explore everything, not to scare myself.

[Raider Man]

OK!! Some of you guys didnt agree that SH3 is the best horror for all, but those who dont think SH3 is the best horror, I dont agree with you I think SH3 is the best horror and believe it or not, if you just see many interesting things in SH3 you would change your mind, did you see the monsters inside the walls in the altenate church?! Did you see the first monster that pulls something for the first time you go to the alternate hospital? Where you fist climb up the ladder and get it, turn right and SURPRISE!!! Did you watch the alternate hospital very clear? What about the church?! Remember you push something for the significant of steps of crying lady that get into the wall? Before you push it keep going infront and what do you see? I am sure you see it in tehf irst place. The first scene in the intro! I agree that all SH is scary but there is something colled more, most and better, best why these word had been created for? huh?, so SH3 is the scariest part ever!! I totally agree with only the ones who agree.
And also remember when you go down at the hospital's basement where you see the wheelchair is keep turning until it stopped when you reached! And I am sure that there are many more you didnt watch out, believe me, if you play SH3 carefully? You would say it.

[SHACKled89451]

OK!! Some of you guys didnt agree that SH3 is the best horror for all, but those who dont think SH3 is the best horror, I dont agree with you I think SH3 is the best horror and believe it or not, if you just see many interesting things in SH3 you would change your mind, did you see the monsters inside the walls in the altenate church?! Did you see the first monster that pulls something for the first time you go to the alternate hospital? Where you fist climb up the ladder and get it, turn right and SURPRISE!!! Did you watch the alternate hospital very clear? What about the church?! Remember you push something for the significant of steps of crying lady that get into the wall? Before you push it keep going infront and what do you see? I am sure you see it in tehf irst place. The first scene in the intro! I agree that all SH is scary but there is something colled more, most and better, best why these word had been created for? huh?, so SH3 is the scariest part ever!! I totally agree with only the ones who agree.
And also remember when you go down at the hospital's basement where you see the wheelchair is keep turning until it stopped when you reached! And I am sure that there are many more you didnt watch out, believe me, if you play SH3 carefully? You would say it.

Keep in mind where you are my friend... A lot of people in this forum, (including me) have played this game several, if not DOZENS of times and know it inside out. Not to mention most of the details you pointed out in the game are quite obvious and many of them already have related topics. It's great that you enjoyed this game, but the fact that you believe it to be the scariest is an opinion and not everyone is going share it. Your not going to change anyone's mind by telling them to "play SH3 carefully" least of all veterans of the series, which this forum seems to be full of.

[Uyrikeustek]

I think it was one of the most well-made of the series, perhaps even the best well-made. It was creepy, but it didn't really scare me at all, just when freakin' dogs would jump out of nowhere, but other than that, no, not very scary. I think the scariest one out of the ones I played is Origins mostly because I always feel insecure and realize that I can lose health just by running. Also, the enemies were harder to defeat and it seemed like health drinks were scarce.

[Mumbler]

I don't know. I'll agree it's the creepiest, but it's...trying way too hard. It was always my least favourite, it's got no subtlety at all. @_@
It's like 'LOOK. BLOOD, RUST, SCARY MONSTERS. BE AFRAAAID'.

Edit: Well now I think about it, I suppose all that extra violence and darkness could be explained by it being Heather's perspective, and all she's been through (especially as Alessa) but it's still over-the-top to me. SH1 wasn't that bad.

[SPRINGS02]

Keep in mind where you are my friend... A lot of people in this forum, (including me) have played this game several, if not DOZENS of times and know it inside out. Not to mention most of the details you pointed out in the game are quite obvious and many of them already have related topics. It's great that you enjoyed this game, but the fact that you believe it to be the scariest is an opinion and not everyone is going share it. Your not going to change anyone's mind by telling them to "play SH3 carefully" least of all veterans of the series, which this forum seems to be full of.

Yeah well im a veteran of the series and i say silent hill is one of the scariest games of all time so there. Case closed.

But in all honestly i really do consider it one of the scariest games i've ever played(and i've played a shitload of horror games) due to the fact that i haven't seen anything like it. The atmosphere is abstract as hell and has some of the creepiest weirdest things i've ever seen in my life. I say all of the original silent hill games are scary. But Sh3 was just all over the place, actually 4 was pretty damn abstract crazy and creepy too, and i say it's right behind sh3. That's not to say sh2 isn't creepy because it definitely is, but the style is different it has more of a dream feel to it, and a big theme is depression. Sh2's atmosphere felt like a dream gone wrong and Sh3's atmosphere felt like all hell had broken lose and it felt like everything in the atmosphere hated you, violent and angry.

[clips]

Yeah well im a veteran of the series and i say silent hill is one of the scariest games of all time so there. Case closed.

But in all honestly i really do consider it one of the scariest games i've ever played(and i've played a shitload of horror games) due to the fact that i haven't seen anything like it. The atmosphere is abstract as hell and has some of the creepiest weirdest things i've ever seen in my life. I say all of the original silent hill games are scary. But Sh3 was just all over the place, actually 4 was pretty damn abstract crazy and creepy too, and i say it's right behind sh3. That's not to say sh2 isn't creepy because it definitely is, but the style is different it has more of a dream feel to it, and a big theme is depression. Sh2's atmosphere felt like a dream gone wrong and Sh3's atmosphere felt like all hell had broken lose and it felt like everything in the atmosphere hated you, violent and angry.

I agree 100% with this....I remember TS making some comments after they finished making prt2...they stated while they did like what they did in prt2 in terms of atmosphere, they stated that for prt3 they really wanted to throw everything at the gamer....and for me they accomplished that goal..sh3 still creeps me out if i'm playing it late night...to the point to sometimes i think it's some weird s**t goin' on in the house...

It had incredible atmosphere and terrorfying and disturbing imagery that kept you on edge throughout the whole game...the texturing techniques of the characters and art direction was really ahead of it's time back then....one of the strongest looking titles in the ps2/xbox era...

[Apatheria]

I would say it definitely has the most violent imagery, and is the most bombastic and adrenaline fueled. Not only is the average difficulty boosted and monsters are difficult to defeat, but they often attack in groups, and each monster has its own special theme/noise that plays whenever you near them. Even when you're not fighting a monster, there are rarely moments of silence, as there is often background noise (a television blaring static) or a phantom noise (the strange groaning in the sewers). Pausing the game doesn't pause the music/sound effects, so it's difficult to escape the bombast aside from simply turning off the television.

But I would still say scariest Silent Hill goes to 1. Silent Hill 1 mastered the eerie moments of quiet dread that I found very effective. Silent Hill 3 favored bombast over quiet dread, which is a legit approach, but I still say 1 wins out.

[Skylerness]

It scared me a lot... the walls in the scary world and the mirror room. I thought Origins was scarier though. (:

[Mumbler]

Yeah, the imagery was just...relentless. I honestly found it more stressful than genuinely frightening though, except for maybe in the mirror room. Urgh, I hated that. Time limits can go die in a hole.

[Arthemesic]

As many have said, Silent Hill 3 seems to be more of a shocking experience,
rather than a psychologically frightening/stressful one.

I can relate, although there's something I found to be at its best in SH3.
Sound design. The use of silence & odd sounds is spot-on.

But still nothing beats the first one, especially when it comes to horror.
Gritty visuals & mind-shattering ambience; Plain sickening fear is born.

[Loonwolf]

I haven't played all the Silent Hill games, but I agree Silent Hill 3 is probably the most disturbing - at least of the ones I HAVE played. Picking up the unlimited submachine gun, or playing on too easy a difficulty is a mistake. It's less scary when you are confident you can slaughter anything that gets even remotely near you, or don't even need to worry if they do. That's for evil murderous Heather, who wants to kill, kill, KILL! You should be afraid of the monsters - if they need to be afraid of you then you aren't playing it right.

The first time playing I was nervous the whole way through. Some of the visuals got to me, but it was mainly the NOISES that were freaking me out. I've played it several times, but it is STILL getting to me in parts. For example I can't help those dogs howling creeping me out, among other things. That bang at the door in the dress shop gets me EVERY TIME. The problem is, it doesn't always happen, so I'm uncertain about it - due to the differences on repeat plays, I am filled with uncertainty about if something freaky is suddenly going to happen. Perhaps whatever it is will actually burst through the door at some point... And going into that underpass seems to get worse every time I play.

[NeoAquarius12]

I have to admit that this is the second scariest in my opinion. The first one is the actual scariest for me, but that is mostly due to the age I played it at.

SH3 has the most... suspenseful game play. There are a lot of sections in the game where you can't see what's ahead of you, or coming from behind you. And the fact that you can HEAR the monsters at points but not SEE them. The Amusement Park and Church were shock full of locations like this.

[Doctor Eggnog]

Scariest to least scary: 2, 1, 3, Origins, Homecoming, 4.

SH2 scared me the most. It was the way the game changed things from 1. Not giving you a gun and a flashlight from the start. I remember being in the apartments and having to walk, not run, because I was so scared. Things like Pyramid Head popping up randomly and having to put all your weapons and flashlight away in the hotel were genius.

SH1 had the best jump scares, like the locker. I would also say that the Giant Lizard is the scariest thing in the whole series. My best friend found this to be the scariest one, my ex-2nd best friend thought this was the 2nd scariest.

I hated SH3 at first, but I've gotta say it gave me a horrifying first impression. It scared the hell outta me the first time I played it. After a couple playthroughs though, it no longer scared me. Also, I wasn't scared by the things that seemed to freak everyone else out (the mannequin, the mirror room). Really it was my first time exploring the mall that scared me the most.

In Origins the Otherworld Transistions were scary, mainly due to the dramatic shift and music change. My ex-2nd best friend found this the scariest. (She hates mental hospitals, and the black and white stuff scared her too)

The only part of Homecoming that was scary was Alex's Otherworld House. I hadn't been freaked out like that in a long time. In the attic, it was like SH2, I couldn't run, I had to walk.

In 4 the only level I find a little scary is the 1st Apartment. Also, finding the body in the wall unsettled me.

[neotoko]

silent hill 2 is the scariest and most frightening for me. First time I entered the apartments I froze and couldn't do anything I was just so scared. nothing has scared me like that for a long time.

silent hill 3 made me kinda blood thirsty every time there was a supposedly scary area coming up I rushed in so I could kill the monsters.

4 was mediocrely scary I mostly just wanted to save and protect Eileen because I couldn't save the others.

[Tillerman]

I agree with the OP, SH3 is the scariest in the series, but not by much. Honestly, the first 3 games of the series are all masterpieces and very effective each in their own right. If I had to rank them, I would say that 3 is the most effective for a few reasons: It's the most visceral, it has the best sound design, it has the most creative environment design, it has the most varied and difficult monsters, and it's just plain the craziest.

The other SH's have different things going for them, and either of the first 2 could easily be considered scarier depending on the person. (As you can see from the varied responses in this thread, with a fairly equal distribution between 1 2 and 3.) Even 4 has it's merits, with it's unkillable monsters and claustrophobia (though some find the ghosts more annoying than scary.)

Another subtle thing about 3 that might make it scarier for some people is that Heather is IMO the most likable main character in the series, and the one you most don't want to die. Especially as she has the freakiest death scene, with Valtiel dragging her away. But then again, YMMV.

SH3 is not my personal favorite, but I do love it's creativity. The mirror room is still my absolute favorite trick that any SH game has played on me, and the haunted mansion was fantastic. I would love to see a newer SH game try for crazier and more surreal stuff like that. It's a different kind of horror than the isolation and despair from SH2, but I think it's just as integral to the Silent Hill series; not every game needs to try to be SH2.

[CerealKiller]

For me, Silent hill 3 was the creepiest. What makes it creepy and disturbing is the atmosphere, especially the blood and rust everywhere. And it did have a few stand out moments.