Silent Hill

Silent Hill is a survival horror video game series created and published by Konami, with its first installment released in 1999 for the PS1. For this website, I will be focusing on the first four games which were developed by Team Silent. Originally conceived as way to compete with other survival horror titles, particularly Capcom's Resident Evil, Team Silent aimed to create a game that focused more on having a deep and complex narrative rather than action-oriented gameplay. Each game follows various protagonists who find themselves in the eerie, fog-shrouded town of Silent Hill, which serves as a psychological landscape that reflects inner fears and traumas.

The 90s Classic

The first Silent Hill follows the story of Harry Mason, who searches for his adopted daughter, Cheryl, after she mysteriously disappears during a car accident in the fog-covered town of Silent Hill. The original game set the tone for the series, introducing players to a disturbing world filled with grotesque creatures and complex narratives that explore themes of guilt, loss, grief, and depression. The setting of Silent Hill is infamous for its dark and oppresive atmosphere, with violent and gory imagery combined with enviroments comprised of metallic, rusting walls. Reviews at the time gave it an 86/100 on Metacritic. It was considered a massive success by Konami, which quickly led to the development of a sequel. This game was my introduction to the Silent Hill series when I first played it over a decade ago. Despite its age, it still leaves a lasting impression to this day.

The Magnum Opus

Released for the PS2 in 2001, Silent Hill 2 follows the story of James Sunderland. He receives a mysterious letter from his deceased wife, Mary, beckoning him to the town of Silent Hill. Along the way, he meets other characters who are facing their own personal horrors in the town. Silent Hill 2 moves away from the violent and oppressive atmoshphere of the first game and goes for a mysterious and dream-like one instead, akin to the works of filmmaker David Lynch. Reviews at the time land it at a 89/100 on Metacritic, making it one of highest rated horror games of all time. It received praise for its focus and handling of taboo topics such as suicide and sexual assault, something that was rarely explored in video games at the time. The soundtrack by composer Akira Yamaoka is considered by many to be some of the best music ever composed for a video game. Many consider Silent Hill 2 to be not only the best game in the series, but one of the best video games of all time. Although it did not sell as well as the first game, it was still considered to be a financial success. I didn't play this game for myself until about a year or two ago, but its easy to see why its still considered an all time great to this day.

The Underrated Gem

Silent Hill 3, released in 2003, serves as a direct sequel to the first Silent Hill and follows the story of Heather, a teenager who unwillingly becomes entangled in the dark mysteries of Silent Hill, and her connections to the town. It goes back to the oppresive and violent atmosphere of the first game, which is greatly enhanced by the improvement in graphics since the first game. Rather than focusing on the inner struggles of an adult man like in Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill 3 examines the struggles of a teenage girl and explores themes such as body image, motherhood, abortion, stalking, and the societal expectations for women. The game earned itself an 85/100 on Metacritic. While it did not see as much critical acclaim as the first two games, Silent Hill 3 is still considered to be a fan favorite by many. Unfortunately, the game saw a significant drop-off in sales for the series, which was a sign of things to come. I would consider this to be the most frightning game in the series, and also my personal favorite.

The Controversial Entry

Silent Hill 4: The Room was released in 2004 and takes a different approach from its predecessors by taking place outside the town of Silent Hill. It focuses on a young man, Henry Townshend, who is trapped in his apartment but finds a gateway to various otherworldly locations that seem to be connected to a series of murders. This one mainly focuses on themes of childhood abuse and loneliness. Silent Hill 4 received mixed reviews at the time, earning a 76/100 on Metacritic. It's my least favorite of the original four games, but I would still consider it well worth playing for the narrative. Team Silent was shut down by Konami a few years later in 2007. The development of all subsequent Silent Hill games has shifted to many different Western studios since 2007, but none of these games saw the same critical or commercial success of the first four entries. Silent Hill as a franchise went on a 12-year hiatus from 2012 to 2024. However, in 2024, Silent Hill made a comeback with the remake of Silent Hill 2, which saw critical acclaim.

Where to play

Unfortunately, it has become very difficult to play the original Silent Hill games through official means. They have never been rereleased in their original form on modern hardware. You need to either already own a copy of the game or expect to shell out hundreds of dollars for each game from third-party sellers such as eBay. An HD collection for 2 and 3 were released for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, but these were very poorly received due to numerous bugs, issues, and their failure to stay true to the original vision. In the side-by-side below, you can see how much darker it is compared to the original PS2 release. The edges of the map are also visible, something that was not intended to be seen by the player. This poor quality is consistent throughout the PS3 and 360 version.

The easiest (and arguably best) way to play these games today would be through emulation, which requires a bit of technical knowledge. If you prefer a more modern game, the remake of Silent Hill 2 recently released to glowing reviews, and is avaliable for purchase on PS5 and PC.