Silent Hill 2 vs. Silent Hill 4.

Post by **mattseffect** » 30 Apr 2009

Jonipoon wrote:>I enjoyed both of them more than any of the other games because I'm not very compelled by the whole protagonist vs cult thing anymore.

You know, the cult was present in SH4 as well --- only to a smaller degree.

Yeah, I know SH will always have some sort of cult background due to the nature of the series, but the focus on 2 and 4 were on something else, even if it's based on the cult town from 1 and 3. In one, three, origins and homecoming it's the same shin dig. Main bad guys are the cult priests/priestesses/members. And they're all more or less the same.

Post by **SilentRacoonX** » 30 Apr 2009

mattseffect wrote:
Jonipoon wrote:>I enjoyed both of them more than any of the other games because I'm not very compelled by the whole protagonist vs cult thing anymore.

You know, the cult was present in SH4 as well --- only to a smaller degree.
Yeah, I know SH will always have some sort of cult background due to the nature of the series, but the focus on 2 and 4 were on something else, even if it's based on the cult town from 1 and 3. In one, three, origins and homecoming it's the same shin dig. Main bad guys are the cult priests/priestesses/members. And they're all more or less the same.

Eh, I wouldn't throw Homecoming into that category but other than that I agree with you. 4 had a leering cult presence but it wasn't the typical 'Alessa child sacrifice cult' that we all know so well. It was more of a personal cult oriented sacrifice pertaining personally, and solely on Walter. I believe 1,3, and Origins are in a certain 'Original Story line' category and 2,4, and Homecoming deviated from that story.

On another note, I personally hate the original story. That cult nonsense bores the hell out of me and I find no interest in it. The cult presence in 4 was not over bearing at all, IMO, and produced a unique story and game play. The fact that the Shattered Memories is going back to that 'Original played out' story is the only thing so far that I find disappointing.

I did like 3 a lot however, but mostly because of game play rather than story.

Post by **Vixx** » 30 Apr 2009

While it's not without it's irritations - Henry's character, anyone? - The Room is my second favourite title, second only to SH2 (and that's saying something, considering I played SH1 first). As Raccoon said, the story is beyond grotesque, and the preparation/thought that went into building up Walter's world was . . . well, simply gobsmacking. The enemies/victims - albeit occasionally irritating - are some of the best designed and conceptualised from the entire series. And I too get kinda bored by the cult stuff; while I appreciate that that's why the town is like it is, I find it all a tad tedious now. I'm much more interested in the individual stories - James', Walter's - and how the town manifests itself around them. THAT'S what Silent Hill embodies to me.

It also boasts my favourite OST after SH2, too.

Post by **SilentRacoonX** » 30 Apr 2009

^ Yea, Henry was a little ridiculous and antisocial, though I feel as the game goes on his lack of personality gives you, the player, the ability to 'become him' so to say.

Personally 4 might be my favorite SH game, SH2 only takes the cake because of nostalgic reasons. SH 4 ripped me from reality and threw me into a far more violent, depressing, and macabre SH then I've ever experienced before, and due to such, after thanking God that the game finally ended I said to myself, "wow, that was f***ed up." I love that damn game.

I believe SH4 had other aids in making it a great game, where as SH2 simply had an amazing story that is very difficult to rival.

Post by **DamienPales** » 30 Apr 2009

I played the games in numerical order, so by the time I got to 4, I already had my idealized view of Silent Hill that may have made me see the game with a bit of pre-judgment on my part.

Silent Hill 2 will always be the best to me. The atmosphere, the story, the mood...unparalleled. No other game, with the possible exception of Earthbound, has made me so damn terrified that I'm on the verge of breaking into tears. And by the end of Silent Hill 2, I did experience a form of catharsis.

Silent Hill 4 was a really good idea, but it felt a little rushed and unfinished. Some levels were absolutely incredible (the multiple rooms in the hospital, the apartment world) and some were boring and tedious (the forest world, the prison world). The storyline was the only incredible thing about Silent Hill 4, the rest just fell flat. Even the endings felt sort of plastered on and didn't really provide any clear resolution.

Silent Hill needs to be an open environment to thrive. The environments in Silent Hill 4 felt too gated in and linear, forcing me to take a particular path. It wasn't like Silent Hill 2, where I had miles and miles of open space to explore and find cool stuff. Silent Hill 4 was just enclosed space after enclosed space, making it seem more like a Resident Evil game.

My two cents.

Post by **Jonipoon** » 27 May 2009

>but it felt a little rushed and unfinished
SH4 had one the longest development time of all games in the series. It was in preproduction even before Silent Hill 3.

Why do you complain about gated level design? Do you prefer the endless number of locked doors in previous installments?

Silent Hill 4 is a masterpiece.
If you check old interviews with the developers, you find that the confined, sealed and gated design was much of the whole concept with The Room. They wanted it to be kind of like the room itself - shut in.
The same goes with the limited item storage which so many members here complain about - they put it intentionally into the gameplay because they wanted to force the player to return to the room. The room was the concept, and if you think of how much effort they put into the game to apostrophe this concept - SH4: The Room is one of the most well-made games in the series.

Post by **SilentRacoonX** » 27 May 2009

^Agreed 100%

Post by **666theheartless666** » 02 Jun 2009

I liked number 2 more because it was an excellent story that actually made me sad at times and shocked at others whereas i didnt actually understand a lot of silent hill 4's story .... i should probably play it again shouldnt i.

But i will always have a soft spot in my heart for silent hill 4 because it was the first game of the series that i played so it opened up my need for survival horror and for that im really grateful.

Post by **larry_lovage69** » 02 Jun 2009

Personally I think Silent Hill 2 was much better than 4 because it really delt with some inner demons more than just outer monsters. I just felt more for James than Henry. Actually I felt worse for Eileen more than Henry LOL

Post by **SilentRacoonX** » 03 Jun 2009

I said it before and I'll say it again. Henry's "blank" personality gave the player the ability to create their own perspective of Henry. James personality was written and leaves no room for interpretation. Both great stories, but in their own rights, they really shouldn't be compared.

I believe the games are pretty close in quality, otherwise the question wouldn't have been conjured