Always the saga of Silent Hill has focused on a type of horror markedly oriental design, a greater focus on psychological and emotional distress that the plot was able to raise, rather than abusing explicit images and splatter scenes, just to generate a different type of terror in the player. The apex of the concept of horror made in Konami was reached with Silent Hill 2, PlayStation 2 glorious title whose melancholy and harrowing atmospheres have left a deep impression on those who have had the pleasure of completing it, over and over again for each expected end. The level of involvement and the narrative quality that have graced the second installment of the series have never been equaled more later, even if the honest third episode (also on PS2) has scored new achievements in the artistic and technical side of purely graphic. Silent Hill: Downpour arrives on our screens today at about thirteen years by the founder of the series, released back in 1999 on PlayStation, and is having to deal with a handful of missed reboot and questionable spin-offs, orphans of creativity typical the origins of the survival horror targati Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo.
Over the years, we have succeeded to the internal team other developers in the creation of the following titles to Silent Hill 4: The Room. This time, Silent Hill: Downpour, the direction of the project has touched Vatra Games. I approached this title with the mind free from bias as possible, trying to ignore past failures, and the fact that the output of the title has been postponed due to a hail of feedback, not just flattering at the demo presented last E3.
The plot of Silent Hill: Downpour revolves around a new protagonist, Murphy Pendelton, apparently a crook and a violent, possibly a victim of events. Your alter ego is a prisoner who is serving his faults, of which you will be duly kept in the dark when you make his acquaintance. The opening, which gives a nod to many classic elements of the series, see Pendelton forced to transfer to a prison even harder than the one in which houses. Like all victims call for trial of Silent Hill, Pendelton also will remain involved in a car accident that leaves him alone with himself ... but certainly in the company of something else.
In spite of much classical approach, the plot of Silent Hill: Downpour still manages to nail front of the screen, offering a charismatic protagonist, called to confront her past and making moral decisions can influence the epilogue of his journey in delusional hell on earth that is Silent Hill.
The environments, both indoors and outdoors, are deeply disturbing and terrifying at the right point to take away the safety of quietly explore every corner, but cleverly structured so as not to deprive you of the desire to do so ... reluctantly, in fear of being attacked by some abomination. The subtitle of the play, translated into Italian, means "shower" or "flood" and there will, in fact, times when storm clouds and lightning charges are coming on the streets of Silent Hill, spewing water on the asphalt and causing the deformed enemy creatures to conduct far more aggressive to you! There will be even allowed to take the city through the underground tunnels, but this will not save you from disturbing the ghostly presences that inhabit the city.
The continuing gap between the real plane and the deformed parallel universe that lies beneath the thin, fragile layer that covers normal Silent Hill has always been distinctive feature of the series, have been enriched by the introduction of pulse-pounding chase after the sessions. Generally, in fact, the transition to parallel reality heralds the appearance of an abstract entity, a sparkling red light that will chase Pendelton's completely up to it draining the life energy. The only solution to avoid certain death in Silent Hill: Downpour will be to get away as quickly as possible, hoping to have chosen the right path. If, on the one hand having to decide what direction his way through various obstacles and monstrous strikes a fair sense of anxiety, it is also true that, ultimately, you just have to repeat these sessions until you have found the correct path. Mechanics of so-called trial & error that could turn up their noses at some of the players.
Unfortunately, Vatra Games has decided to maintain, for better or for worse, a fairly canonical approach with regard to gameplay, not deviating significantly from the guidelines set by the classic survival horror genre and, specifically, a series that has been designed at the end of the last century, with results anachronistic in many choices of game design. The combat system, for example, seems too crude and cumbersome to be mostly focused on the dynamics Hack 'n Slash: racimolerete around the weapons that will only break too easily, but most can not rely on a system lock opponent. Too often, moreover, you are obliged to direct confrontation and the mechanics of the fight, not at all finished, and also suffering from a neurotic management of the shots, make no doubt frustrating the melee. Silent Hill: Downpour is saved at the last minute only because of the fact that, finally, the protagonist is able to move like a human being rather than as a crawler (lack of which has also recently released another famous survival horror series , Resident Evil).
Even in handling the camera, Silent Hill: Downpour is limited by the decision to adhere to the dictates of the original Silent Hill, which required claustrophobic shots and a limited range of visibility from the blanket of fog prevailing: constraints probably related to the hardware limitations of the console time. Fortunately Vatra Games has also taken some liberties, and partly reinterpreted the original recipe, using the fixed camera system only in certain situations, and opt for free management of the camera for the remaining part of the adventure. Also in view of fidelity to the original, but with a hint of contemporary features, you get an inventory overlay much leaner than before, as well as the assignment of the medkit to the right of the touch-pad. Solutions which, taken together, hurl the gameplay and make it attractive, although not perfect.
The level design, you feel the desire to offer something more than the usual fixed routes, but failed to hit the target completely. In some ways, the feeling of freedom path resembles that given in Alan Wake, also because of the initial setting Scots. You can beat some alternative routes, but mostly to visit the inside of some of the houses of Silent Hill. Those of you who, at the time of the first game, did not try to intrude unnecessarily in one of the mysterious doors of apartments and shops? The good thing is that these are stable in all respects to the missions, which will put you ahead of puzzles and narrative excerpts from unpublished, that will earn you a few extra supplies and more will enrich the gaming experience of disturbing aftertaste new and terrifying urban legends. All those who want (and have the courage) to explore the full Silent Hill, will enjoy the added value of these side quests.
Graphically speaking the title appears, unfortunately, lame. It is not merely a question of poly-count and texturing, whose goodness is guaranteed by the intrinsic qualities dell'Unreal Engine. Settings and characters are, indeed, a good visual quality, although fluctuating, suffering because of a framerate dancer. The real problem seems more related to style choices: despite suggestive settings and a general mood of convincing, will not adequately reflected in the designs of their enemies, quite anonymous and far from the peaks of disturbing deformities of the early chapters. The humanoids of Silent Hill 2 from disgusting torso wrapped in cocoons (designed inspired by Konami that a team member, entering office in the morning, listening to music on headphones with hands in pockets and the hood of his sweatshirt up) were and Tutt 'now light years ahead of the discounted and women held captive mutants who inhabit the bestiary of Silent Hill: Downpour.
The soundtrack manages to convince fully, thanks to the talents of American composer Daniel Licht, who counts among recent works on the theme of the American serial drama Dexter. The haunting and eerie mix of sounds that Licht has put up for Silent Hill: Downpour honors openly unforgettable works by Akira Yamaoka, Japanese composer who has lent his talents to Konami until 2009, creating the accompanying sound of Silent Hill the years of gold. There will be actual quotes, as when a pub jukebox play left, following the insertion of a few cents, the unforgettable main theme of Silent Hill 2. Among explicit references and original compositions, audio Downpour is probably the best part of all production.
Ultimately, this new Silent Hill gives his side a number of critical, yet despite its obvious flaws, manages to strike that particular type of terror that belonged to the first chapters of the series. While not shining its own light, Downpour reflects the splendor of the first Silent Hill perverse, partially restoring the series on track after a long period of derailment. Vatra Games has tried to revive the good things he had been offered in the past, some defect filing and making slight but interesting changes.
The reason for the success of Silent Hill: Downpour is, paradoxically, the source of the problems of this game, you can not escape from the ancient sown, but it is especially pleasing in the eyes of fans standing so close because (as in style and form) to the glories of the origins. Complete it in ten hours, but many will leave on the masochistic desire to return to play as Murphy Pendelton, to try to find some other horrifying truth hidden in the folds of Silent Hill.
Silent Hill: Downpour For PLAYSTATION 3
Silent Hill: Downpour For Xbox 360