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

[ww_andi]

this is my video review / impressions kinda deal slight spoiler if you havnt seen the beginning

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCnTlPdT ... ature=plcp

[taketheworlddown]

This is my first post so I wont waste too much time on introductions - I suppose the following information will be relevant considering my comparison of Downpour to the previous games.

So, to get to the point, I've played the Silent Hill games (in order) since I was about 12 years of age (I'm now 24 and finished Downpour today!) They're all brilliant games and the only one I really have a problem with is... *wait for it* Homecoming! BUT I've come across some vicious arguments about that on this board so I wont elaborate in this particular thread.

Anyway, now to get to the point and list my summary of opinions about Silent Hill: Downpour.

Downpour was what I would define as a "great" game. Not "OMFG WOW!", but great. It felt like Silent Hill overall, reminded me a lot of Silent Hill 2 and, despite the negative assumptions about the soundtrack, did not fail in that aspect either. With the Akira Yamaoka days now well and truly over, the sound and music used during the entire game are brilliant. The introduction itself even gave me that chill down my spine.

The fighting system SEEMED a little clunky at first but after getting used to it became second nature. Very hard to deal with crowds of monsters though (but of course, being a past player, you know better than to take on a whole gang of screaming, angry monsters).

The plot outcome didn't end as I would've expected, but it was satisfying enough and the last boss was a very haunting part of the game. I'll go on to discuss the whole theory about

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DJ Ricks and Howard's "disappearances"

in another thread as I know this is a big topic among all of the fans.

Yes, it was scary - without going into much detail (this is generally just a list of opinions and not a review), the scariest area for me had to be the

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Gillespie Mines

(very early on in the game). Outrunning the monsters could be very tense and I jiggled about nervously in my chair many a time as I hit R1 to look back at them gaining on them. Ughh.

Anyway, as I said, I don't want this thread to end up as an official review. I'll mention more as the thread expands so I'd like to know your initial thoughts on what I've mentioned so far.

TTWD

[fudgestix]

We already have a thread to discuss reviews and impressions, so I've merged your post with the rest.

[Lostkitsune]

Okay I've played a few hours into the game and I'm gonna post a small, minimal spoilers review
Graphics-I don't think graphics are as big of a deal as atmosphere or art style, but I think Downpour did a great job with all three, the atmosphere is absolutely perfect, the best since SH3 I think, and I've really enjoyed the rain effects.

Combat-It took me a little bit to get used to the combat, but after I did I have to say it's probably been the most fun in the series for me thus far. The weapon variety is nice and the ability to throw anything you have is a great way to slow down enemies that are pursuing you.

Story-Without spoiling anything, it's been great so far, the pacing is very different than the previous titles, and I think that's worked in the game's favor thus far.

Scares-SH:D has been the scariest title for me in recent years, I dig most of the monster designs and sound choices, the area designs are also amazing and help set the mood. I haven't been this constantly on edge with a horror game in a LONG time.

Misc-
There is minimal lag when transitioning between areas of the town but it's minimal, also some lag after finishing a side quest but again it hasn't really broken my immersion or experience yet.

In fact, my ONLY gripe with Downpour thus far has been the scarcity of items used to knock down certain ladders, though this might be more of a problem with me than the game.

[Silent_Storm]

Still not been able to play it since the YLOD
I have other PS3's but my game is stuck in the broken one

[SHACKled89451]

Hello all

I am about 5 hours in and I have to say, I have enjoyed this game thoroughly and have been hooked from the very beggining! All gripes aside, I don't feel like this much care and effort has gone into a SH game in a long while.

I have the PS3 version, and yes, there are some graphical issues, but they really aren't that bad and the atmosphere and tension of this game more than make up for it for me

What strikes me most about this game (so far at least) is that it totally feels like the old games did, but completley fresh at the same time.. I say major kudos to the devs for trying their asses off to give us obsessive fans what we wanted, and making an incredibly solid and creepy horror experience for newcomers.

So far, wow...

[Calamity]

Finally got to spend some real time with the game tonight and I will say right now that this is the best SH experience I've had in a long time. While I adore SM a ton, Downpour might just edge its way over it (I'll decide that proper once I've beaten it) into my top three.

I made it as far as Devil's Pit before giving it a rest. The combat can feel a little frantic but I still either find it enjoyable or feel most of the time I have enough room to run when I see fit. The music is fantastic, but I was pretty much expecting that since I enjoy Licht's work with Dexter just fine. It's honestly the most I've enjoyed a SH soundtrack in a very long time so that's a huge plus too.

The one overworld section that I've been through absolutely astounded me and might be one of the best otherworld experiences for me pretty much ever. It's the right amount of stunning visuals and urgency. Very much looking forward to seeing more of the otherworld as I go on.

Considering I've been hearing that the sidequests are some of the scariest parts of the game, I'm going to do my best to find as many as I can once I get to the town. Really appreciating the general sense of dread the game in general puts into me. I haven't felt that in such a long time with the series. It's such a wonderful feeling to generally explore through the environments and Murphy is by far one of the better protagonists the series has had.

Long story short, as of where I am right now I can definitely say that I am beyond impressed with what Vatra has done with the game.

[RinoTheBouncer]

I finished the game long ago but I just got the Platinum Trophy! YEAH

[KiramidHead]

I finished the game long ago but I just got the Platinum Trophy! YEAH

I just got that yesterday. The game was nice enough to excuse the 2-3 monsters I killed.

[Yoshata]

Okay, I know I already posted in this thread, but I have to say this: I finished the game a couple days ago (in the middle of the night ) and I LOVE IT. The characters, the story, the environments, the music (AWESOME! oh my gosh the score, radio music and credits music were sublime) - love it. I felt totally satisfied and like the whole experience was worth it when I got to the end.

They really did a fantastic job on this game. There's little things here and there that I don't favor, such as the screams on the title menu and re-spawning enemies, but they did not ruin what I feel overall about my experience. I am very anxious to do a second playthrough and get some of the side quests that I missed, along with a different ending.

On to the spoiler forum.

[CandyLander]

I felt REALLY scared when

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in a side quest or something, where you get in a house and you're atacked by some ghost kids, or whatever that was.

I think they could have made the game a lot more scarier...specially the st. Marias. That was the scariest place in the game

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like in the moment you're outside, and suddenly you see a hanging body

The Boogeyman, i just feel like he could have been the new pyramid head (but he wasn't because you only battle him once!). The boogeyman scared me a lot in some moments (even though he has a ridiculous name and wears a f*cking gas mask <_<

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in the centennial building parking lot, where you see the boogeyman killing Napier

, but it's a pity that you only get to battle him once :@

[SHACKled89451]

I'm almost done with the game, and I will be posting a review soon

But I wanted to address something.. I hear alot of people complaining about the otherworld in this game, i.e. (it's too frantic and loud, too much like a roller coaster ride, etc) and it seems to me these people may be missing a very important point... Hasn't Silent Hill ALWAYS created a different otherworld depending on who the protagonist may be that is unlucky enough to be visiting?

Maybe Murphy's otherworld is supposed to be frantic and loud and like a roller coaster ride.. Man have Silent Hill fans gotten picky or what??

As for the combat, it's pretty obvious this game (in most cases) makes it more advantageous to run away, and seems to be much more focused on exploration than combat anyway... I for one think it's the best SH game since the original 3! Just my opinion of course

[Yuki]

I'm almost done with the game, and I will be posting a review soon

But I wanted to address something.. I hear alot of people complaining about the otherworld in this game, i.e. (it's too frantic and loud, too much like a roller coaster ride, etc) and it seems to me these people may be missing a very important point... Hasn't Silent Hill ALWAYS created a different otherworld depending on who the protagonist may be that is unlucky enough to be visiting?

Maybe Murphy's otherworld is supposed to be frantic and loud and like a roller coaster ride.. Man have Silent Hill fans gotten picky or what??

I think that peoples' main problems with it is that to them it's not scary because it's so frantic and loud. I didn't mind it at all; it suited him, since yes, the Otherworlds are all supposed to be different.

[DistantJ]

I love the 'frantic and loud' Otherworlds, it picks the pace up nicely and contrasts beautifully with the sombre 'fog world' (rain world?). There are 'quiet' sections of the otherworld but I much prefer the disjointed 'platformer' sections to having to cover the same ground a second time with more rust. The 'fog world' still provided the slow, eerie exploration whilst the Otherworld was able to be more hellish than ever.

It also felt like the sort of 'gauntlet' challenges from classic video games, the kind of stuff we'd get on PS1 or even earlier, but with a character who navigates and responds to them realistically. Swinging and spinning blades are the kind of hazards you'd shrug and backflip over in Prince of Persia but Murphy's controls and actions make these such traps really frightening and intimidating, as they would be for any real person trying to get through such traps. It's crazy that my favourite series, and a horror series for that matter, would be the one to bring back the stuff I miss so much from the classics and do it so well.

[thy_butcher]

I too enjoyed the Otherworld in Downpour.
It always got my heart to speed up from its frantic nature. I found it to be very tense (and creative to-boot).

[SHACKled89451]

I love the 'frantic and loud' Otherworlds, it picks the pace up nicely and contrasts beautifully with the sombre 'fog world' (rain world?). There are 'quiet' sections of the otherworld but I much prefer the disjointed 'platformer' sections to having to cover the same ground a second time with more rust. The 'fog world' still provided the slow, eerie exploration whilst the Otherworld was able to be more hellish than ever.

It also felt like the sort of 'gauntlet' challenges from classic video games, the kind of stuff we'd get on PS1 or even earlier, but with a character who navigates and responds to them realistically. Swinging and spinning blades are the kind of hazards you'd shrug and backflip over in Prince of Persia but Murphy's controls and actions make these such traps really frightening and intimidating, as they would be for any real person trying to get through such traps. It's crazy that my favourite series, and a horror series for that matter, would be the one to bring back the stuff I miss so much from the classics and do it so well.

Well said! I thought the contrast was excellent, and I didn't see the rotating blades thing as cheesy at all, quite the opposite actually.. it was like this demonic twisted nightmare obstacle course haha loved it

[trai has cake]

I Finally got it! Only yesterday and I'm well into the game /at least i think i am/ and in all honesty i am not disappointed one tiny bit

[TransientJetlag]

WOW. I haven't been here in forever. But I thought I drop by and share my downpour opinion. I never even played homecoming because I just got a ps3, and I heard so much crap about it I didn't really care. But this one looked interesting and I had some spare cash.

It's a pretty fun game overall, but all of it's shortcomings really bring it down.
like......seriously... The Bogeyman? Really? A big dude in a GAS MASK, with a HAMMER. WTF? It's just a mashup of those two bosses from clock tower 3 with a shitty name. And the whole game it's like the writers are screaming at you "SEE LOOK! THIS REPRESENTS THE GUILT OR NAPIER OR WHATEVER!! SEE! AND LOOK

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NOW YOURE THE BOGEYMAN BECAUSE TO HER YOURE GUILTY!

AW COOL! IT'S SO DEEP AND SILENT HILL! JUST LIKE SH2! YEAH! UGH. What an awful thing, they might as well have just fucking made it Pyramid head.

Also, the sidequests were hyped up by the dev team as being this new cool thing. But really they all suck except for a couple of them. Go find a bunch of birds? yawn. Collect paintings? ok. And all the rewards were lame.
And the otherworld was alright, but there wasn't enough of it. There's like 3 of them or something? And they all are really short and linear. And you have to run through most of them. I really liked the Centennial otherworld, but the ones after that were spotty at best. I don't really count the first one because it lasts like 2 minutes.

And GOD the enemies. Shirtless sweatpants man who chases you and roars at you? Girl from the ring but with claws? Bigger shirtless sweatpants man? I could have shat out better enemies than that. It's like the devs just took the most generic overused ideas they could think of but we're really stoked about it.

The combat was awful too, and i don't buy the whole "SH combat was always bad!" argument. I never had a problem in 1-3, this is just pitiful.

I really didn't have too many framerate issues, never encountered the subway glitch, but I can see how that would make this game way too tedious, but if yr not going for the sidequest trophy it doesn't really matter.

The story was garbage too. Just felt like some awful TV movie or something trying to capture silent hill without knowing anything about it.
It's cool that Tom or whatever posts here and stuff, but honestly his comics were garbage, and this is garbage. i just feel like the guy doesn't get it. And the one ending where it says

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murph doesn't kill Napier, but Tom stepped in and said that was a mistake. Like wtf dude, how do you fuck up a key point in one of the endings and then just say, "oh yeah, it's supposed to be different than that."

Despite all these criticisms though, I really did enjoy the game, I might even try to get all the trophies at some point, but I'm bored with it for now.

[SHACKled89451]

>Despite all these criticisms though, I really did enjoy the game, I might even try to get all the trophies at some point, but I'm bored with it for now.

Dude, do you realize how badly you just contradicted yourself?

All you did was complain about this game and how "horrible" it is, nit picking just about anything you could think of to nitpick.. You call the entire game, not to mention Tom's work garbage, and then at the end of all that you say you "really enjoyed it" SMH.. How about giving the devs some effing credit for being original and different instead of just copying the old games just to please hardcore fans..

seriously, I loved the original games as much as the next SH fan, but this just sounds like you were bashing the game just to bash it...

[JuriDawn]

Definitely agree with SHACKled. There's a difference between sharing your personal opinion and just flat out blasting the game in the most offensive, nitpicky ways possible. TransientJetLag, reading your post makes it really hard to believe you appreciate the game at all. It also makes it hard to believe you've watched The Ring.

You're going to harp on the decision to call the big lurking monster that follows Murphy around the bogeyman? What makes it a "shitty name?" It's a universally recognized archetype, should the creators have tried for something more unique? Grey Hammer Entity perhaps? Would that have pleased you?

And say what you will about enjoying the side quests (the gramophone one was frickin' amazing), but the rewards were not lame. The tomahawk you get after collecting the paintings and exploring the crypt: awesome weapon. Way more effective than anything I picked up off the street. Same goes for the demon statue you get for completing the shadows side quest.

If the combat was objectively awful, there would probably be a bunch of people complaining about it here, but it seems almost everybody is happy with it. What exactly are you having a problem with?

Again, you have a right to your opinion, but if you're just going to throw broad, unsubstantiated insults at the game and its developers, you leave the impression that you were going to hate the game no matter what.