So far I'm absolutely loving this game. It got below par reviews and I have no idea why. It's the closest to the original so far - in the way that it feels less 'linear' as you run around town looking for clues etc. The graphics are excellent and the story is pretty decent too. The only thing that niggles me slightly is the fact that now and again the music becomes noticably 'un-scary.'

From the minute I turned on my XBOX360, this game FELT like a Silent Hill game. I spent over 4 hours last night playing this before I realized I should probably go to bed. Running around the town I actually 'felt' like I was truly alone. Hearing the enemies before seeing them, the many 'puzzles' I encountered and the oddities (like missing pictures, ME missing from pictures, etc) added to the strange and haunting feel. It felt as this could have been, and maybe should have been, the sequel to Silent Hill 2.… Expand

Genuinely scary in several parts. One of the most beautiful games I've seen on the XBOX and a whole lotta' fun!

Ok, it's not the best Silent Hill game out there, but it doesn't mean it's bad as a game. I have actually finished it, unlike most negative reviewers here, and I have to say that I liked it. It may start a little slow but halfway through it starts to get interesting. The characters may be a little blunt and the dialog acting sometimes is off, but you can overlook that, because the atmosphere that the game emits is good. Good graphics, haunting atmosphere , some levels are classic hellish Silent Hill style, the gameplay is good ( but needs some getting used to ), Excellent music from the original SH music creator, it has some good moments, but sometimes you can be lost or a puzzle or two can be frustrating and if you are not used to the combat system, some monsters will make you want to break the controller. Overall it's worth it, nice experience.… Expand

Definitely a case where internet preconceptions steered me wrong. Silent Hill: Homecoming is a solid title that stands on its own as an individual and unique step into the SH universe, just as Silent Hill 2 branched off with a separate story from the main canon. The gameplay is changed for the better, giving the player the ability to actually get a close 360 degree view of his/her surroundings, which are rich with abandoned structure detail and hellish red industrial descents. The story is kind of laid bare but nonetheless creeped me the hell out with the reasons for each boss's incredible and horrific designs revealed throughout. Enemies are more formidable, but not so strong as to turn Homecoming into a typical action game and not so pathetic as to wait to get hit by a wooden plank a couple times and fall dead. Some of the substance and creeping dread of the series was removed, but the style and imagery was certainly not spared, despite lifting some elements from the film. Wonderful game.… Expand

After playing through this game many times (I have just gotten all 1000 achievement points) I must say that this game is a great effort by Double Helix and deserves at least an 8 out of 10. I am not new to this franchise at all (I still have every single SIlent Hill game!) and this game is a great addition to the series. It does not have the best story or endings out of the games (Silent Hill 2 does for sure) but it is still a awesome story with some good twists. Several reviews state that the combat is too easy and that is not the case. I died about 4 times through the game on normal difficulty and I never died in any of the other games. The combat can be quite challenging. The puzzles are well done also. Most people think that the puzzles are just there, but if you look around there are clues for every single one. Overall this is my third favorite in the series. Buy this game if you are a Silent Hill fan!!!! Best to Worst: Silent Hill 2 Silent Hill Silent Hill: Homecoming Silent Hill 3 Silent Hill: Origins Silent Hill 4: The Room… Expand

Awseome graphics but slow an poor history.. its quite notorious that is made by U.S. not by japanese people.. beto loves japanese people.. and le masca el pene..

This game has a really spooky soundtrack{the best} and the game is really well polished.though there are a few let down like a predictable story.SO,its a nine for this one.

It is silent hill! I know we are in the next gen but still i do not understand why people are upset that it feels "dated". It is a well developed game that should not be among the ranks of Alone in the Dark

As a huge fan of Silent Hill, I was expecting a lot from this game. The tone, music and horror elements live up to what Silent Hill is supposed to be. The game holds your hand through the story and the enemies this time around are crazy unforgiving. My one gripe about the game is the distances between save points. If you are a fan of the series, don't pass it up. It's better than "The Room" and "Origins", because it feels like a real Silent Hill game.… Expand

Clumsy controls, buggy encounters, a poorly implemented shooting system, and lack-luster voice acting seriously detract from an otherwise compelling addition to the Silent Hill franchise.

Finally, a Silent Hill game for Xbox 360! I am pleased to say that this game is a winner-it stays true to the the formula which makes Silent Hill a success! Very remeniescent of Silent Hill 2- a definite purchase for any fan of the series.

Silent Hill Homecoming is the 6th installment in the world-renowned horror series Silent Hill. The simple mission of SHH is to take you back to where it all began. Does it bring back beautiful memories or disturbing images of the past or both? My venture into the world of Silent Hill began in 2003 at my grandmother’s house. I was 12 years old and my cousins and I had to find something to do. My eldest cousin was out for the week and left his Playstation behind with several games included, and one being Silent Hill. This peeked our interest the most because we thought it would be fun to curl up around the television at midnight and get the pants scared off of us. That is indeed what happened and it was one of the best moments of my life. I remember getting stuck on that ungodly annoying piano puzzle, so I woke up at 6 A.M. to beat it so when everyone else woke up, we would be past it. My cousin, Chelsea, sent me a copy of Silent Hill 4: The Room for my birthday the next year with a strategy guide included. I had heard about the game and watched some videos. I was literally terrified. The original Silent Hill didn’t affect me much, but this one was disturbing on a whole new level. Well, since my cousin spent the money and put the thought into getting me this game there was no way I couldn’t play it. That was probably one of the most freakish rides I’ve ever been through. The combat was a bit stiff and the camera was slightly malfunctioned, but it never took away from the haunting experience. So as you can tell from my long story, the Silent Hill series is near and dear to my heart. Silent Hill: Homecoming lived up to my expectations, but that’s about it. Silent Hill: Homecoming starts you off chained to a bed, in a hospital, covered in blood, in the middle of the Vietnam War. After freakish hell demons suddenly attack the doctors around you, you’re protagonist, Alex Shepard, (A middle aged soldier in the war) decides it’s time to break the chains he’s bound to. As soon as he steps out of the Emergency room, all hell breaks loose, and I mean ALL hell. Alex is on a mission to find his brother, Joshua, who ran away from home because of reason that would ruin the story if I told you. After running through hell hospital and fighting several creepy creatures for a while, you run into Joshua drawing a picture of his favorite toy, Robbie the Rabbit. You walk to say something to him and…turns out that the whole Hospital thing was just a dream! Alex wakes up in an eighteen-wheeler where he fell asleep after being picked up by a kind trucker. After getting dropped off, Alex returns to his hometown of Shepard’s Glenn to find out that something has gone terribly wrong. This game takes you through the troubling past of Silent Hill and some unsettling locations that have been a staple in the series since the beginning. This leads me to my first observation. The levels in Silent Hill: Homecoming are expertly crafted. The only problem is that most of the development team’s inspiration for the levels comes from the Silent Hill movie and not so much the past games; however, that doesn’t take away from how amazingly thorough and spine-chilling they are. On another note, this series has always had a love affair with locked doors. I’ve just about had it with all the bolted rooms I can’t enter! This game doesn’t skimp on extras and easter eggs even though there are so many places you can’t enter. On the issue of easter eggs, I only found a few my first play through and none of them included Silent Hill 4. It would have been so easy to throw an easter egg about that game in this one because of how many room 302’s you visit. Never mind my personal grievances, these maps are grotesquely gorgeous. The best and worst part about the game is the story that falls flat at the end and shine’s brightly in the beginning. As every fan of Silent Hill knows, there are alternate endings to every edition of Silent Hill and this one is no exception. Even though those endings are different, the overall conclusion to the story isn’t. It feels like a big giant slap in the face. My first time around I got the #4 ending which wasn’t a good ending. There are several moments in the game where you have to make crucial choices that will effect the outcome of the story; basically, the ending. As for everything else, you get a good look into the past of Silent Hill and how hell was brought upon the town. Not only that, but we actually have a protagonist that we can relate to and care for! It’s about time, because Henry wasn’t doing it for me. The dialogue suffered sometimes and it seemed like not much thought was put into the words they spoke. One thing that drove me crazy were Alex’s reaction to the monsters. Upon first sighting of these monsters, Alex looked un-phased and following that battle, his conversation with a patron in town didn’t even relate to the monsters. The first time you have a boss battle is the first time you see him genuinely react to the nightmarish beings that have been around him since he arrived back in his hometown. I’m sorry, if it were me in his shoes you probably would want to turn down the voice volume, because I wouldn’t stop screaming, ever. Sound production on this game will drive you loony, in a good way. This was the first game I played on our brand new surround sound system. Keep in mind that we’ve never had surround sound at our household so this was new to me. I think I made a great choice on the game to try it out with. I haven’t felt that claustrophobic since the time I was on the last level of Condemned: Criminal Origins. Everything you do makes a sound. If you bump into a chair, that chair will fall over; if you slow your run down to a walk, you steps are quiet; if monster falls from the ceiling out of nowhere, it sounds like it’s coming down on top of you. The music in the game is very memorable and as always perfectly timed with the game. It’s not as bone chilling as Silent Hill 4’s, but it gets the job done. Gameplay has finally improved and completely out does Silent Hill 4 on all levels. Combat is the second best part of the game. The static camera angles the series has been known for has been thrown out the window. It has been replaced with a more traditional and effective free moving camera which you control using the right analog stick. The weapons of choice include a crowbar, sledgehammer, butterfly knife, baseball bat, and of course your limited arsenal of firepower. Speaking of limited, this series has always had an issue with giving you ammunition for your firing weapons. Not only are the quantities given in very small doses, but these doses are also awkwardly spaced apart. This makes beating the game a chore, especially when most of the enemies don’t die easy and some can even block bullets. The games countering system, when using hand-to-hand weapons, works well for the most part. Its only issue is that enemies are a bit to smart. Sometimes the enemies will beat you to the punch and still land an attack even if you’re in the middle of dodging. Is it a glitch? It very well could be. The worst part about the game are the puzzles. Oh dear lord the puzzles. Only one is actually clever and well thought out. The others are nothing more than time wasters and involve nothing more than trial and error. We like to call these little nuisances experimental puzzles. These should have never been included and are a shame to the brilliant puzzles of past Silent Hill games (not including that freaking piano puzzle!) The only thing holding this game back from a purchase recommendation is how short it is. The game ends so abruptly and it felt like it needed one more level to give it that extra juice. It seems like the developers just said, we’ve done enough, when the sad truth is they were so close. Silent Hill: Homecoming tries to bring Silent Hill back to its roots, and it accomplishes that goal to some degree. You have your creepy locals and disturbing monsters, but at the very core of this game is a story that never truly fleshes out and leaves you wanting more. That being said, for the first time around for new developer Double Helix, I think it’s worth a trip back to Silent Hill.… Expand

This is a great game that while not as scary as Silent Hill 2 or 3, is definitely more enjoyable to play. The graphics and sound are amazing and the changes to the battle system as well as the environments make for a fun, interactive experience. Rather than walking into a pre rendered room and wildly swinging a pipe or sword or what have you and hope that it makes contact with something, the battle system's doge then strike and combo mechanics make fighting sequences fun and challenging since different enemies have different tactics. Though different from the previous installments of the series, Silent Hill Homecoming is worth checking out.… Expand

All the comments thus far have rung true for me. the game is far more action oriented, but maintains the psychological oppressiveness of past games. my problem is this... i use an inverted camera, and there is NO option to use it on release. i believe a patch is planned, but this sort of asinine omission is something to keep in mind if your are an inverted aimer, and have yet to give double helix your cash. there is an option to "aim" with inverted controls, but it does not affect any weapons except guns, and it is even more confusing having to switch back to invert for just a few weapons, like 1% of the time, in the most crucial moments. fortunately, there is a madcatz controller for the 360 that has an inverted analog option, and i plan on picking it up today, but you might want to figure in the extra $25 for it with the entry price to silent hill if you are an inverter... till they patch it. although the game is fantastic, for me, playing this game is a NAUSEATING experience, based around looking at my shoes, followed by looking at the ceiling. i spend so much time concentrating on the camera, that it COMPLETELY takes me out of the game. i never get motion sickness playing games, but i am getting close with this. FAIR WARNING TO ALL INVERTERS!… Expand

For a Silent Hill fan this game is more than a fleeting nightmare of carnage. But for everyone else this is a frightening experience that involves a frustrating battle system and a smart array of puzzles.

this is a great game,much better than the room,and its perfect for the new generetion of consoles,because the riddles are easier than the previous games

Retains enough of the origins of both the American and japanese sensibilities to make it an interesting evolution, and a minor departure. Silent Hill will always been the reviewers underdog, because it lacks a wide enough appeal to establish itself as pushing gameplay boundaries. Simply updating an existing formula does not mean innovating the genre. That said, the base originality and background to the silent hill story is something that appeals to a lot of people. It's just not something a reviewer can justify score on without seeming bias. So once again we have a small injustice in the way a consensus is judged, and it's source. However, all the reviews are not innacurate. The faults are true. Personally - from a biased user perspective, not taking the de-evolution of the setting into direct consideration, I would say this is one of the stronger silent hill games. As much as I liked the film, this film does follow in it's footsteps a little too closely. Yet at the same time it remains true to itself. A solid silent hill entry, but rather than innovating the gameplay, I would hope a sequel will actually innovate the GAME and STORY. Which relies on mystery, but never progresses. I know each story is seperate. But imagine being able to make a progression while keeping the mystery intact. Something like the popular show lost does (in terms of structure, http://www.metacritic.com/_images/button_votenow.gifnot actual story). Regardless, good game.… Expand

I just got my copy and hey, it's way better than part 4. Silent Hill Homecoming brings back the feel of the first 2 games but with great next gen graphics and great fighting. The series is finally back and much more true to it's roots than the recent Resident Evil entries (although 4 was great and 5 is looking even better!).

This game is a must for horror lovers. If I were to say this game had faults it would be the terrible torch alex has through the whole story, i had to check a couple of times to actually see if it was on in some dark places. Secondly would be the lack of ammo which is kinda annoying but more realistic and challenging to the gamer. Thirdly would be the lack of achievements, I havent finished the game yet but I got around 20 something from 39. but getting the moaning out of the way, I think this game deserves much more from some of the critics reviews. I HATE resident Evil 4 and now resident 5 style of play. Action /adventure?? it's ment to be a bloody horror game where the hells horror. There is enough shoot em ups out there. Please Silent hill makers dont change.… Expand

First let me just say that i love me some silent hill. the atmosphere, the creature design, the sound effects and scares that dont simply rely on "pop-out" scenes. Double Helix should be proud of themselves for capturing all of this, but most of all for capturing the real star (for me) of the silent hill games: the story. Silent hill is all about the troubled past of the protagonists either through personal pennance for forgotten sins or simply finding out what dark connection they share with silent hill. The story and endings are just what a silent hill fan would want. It's right up there with silent hill 2 (the best plot twist in a video game ever in my opinion). Just like in the sixth sense playing this game a second time through you'll notice the nice hints towards the ending you thought you may have peiced together. If you love silent hill games, dont fret, because this is certainly a silent hill game, more so than "the room".… Expand

Exceptional sound and great attention to detail make this the creepiest game I've played since Condemned. Clearly, Konami giving it to Double Helix was a very good call. A huge rebound from the disappointing Silent Hill 4.

I made it all the way to the sewers when a "glitch" forced me to restart the game from scratch. This wouldn't have been the end of the world if Homecoming wasn't such a blah Silent Hill. Even worse than encountering a game ending glitch is the combat system. Every enemy becomes a drag to encounter. Instead of being scary enemies become more an issue of chore management and timed ducking. What were the developers thinking? It is really a shame too because some of the boss fights later in the game (asphyxia and end boss) are truly some of the scariest looking things in any Silent Hill game. Strike one (The Room), Strike two (Homecoming).… Expand

A great addition to the silent hill franchise...creepy, eerie, and remember to bring your banky if you're playing in the dark alone!

The graphics and presentation are amazing. The story line, though linear, is interesting. Besides from a few flaws with lighting and the camera angle, this game is a large improvement over past entries in the series.

I love the Silent HIll series and it was with great anticipation that I popped this into my 360. I was both thrilled and disappointed at the same time, as much of what I loved about Silent Hill games was omitted (absurd and disturbing puzzles, psychological terror, etc) and was replaced with more American horror (scary art design, fast monsters, etc). However, when viewed in the light of action horror games like Resident Evil 4 and Doom 3, it still manages to thrill and terrorize in it's own way (just not in the way that SH fans are expecting). While the gameplay has been altered dramatically with mixed results depending on your likings of the SH series (good: free-camera, bad: action-oriented gameplay), the story is still haunting and incredibly disturbing mind-trip, and the first few hours in particular are amazing at rendering the kind of mind-numbing "WTF?!!" moments that SH is known for. This is a completely different kind of SH. It plays wildly different, controls wildly different, but at it's core, it still delivers the same shocking horror that SH fans want. A few bugs and "hunt the switch" design errors aside (which only mar up the experience once or twice during multiple playthroughs) this is well worth the purchase price of $60 if you're into horror games or especially if youre into the SH series in particular.… Expand

"Silent Hill: Homecoming" is the next entry in the Survival Horror genre for this current generation of video game systems, which is pretty scarce. Immediately, fans of the series and the feature film will be able to experience pure horror in the tradition of the original "Silent Hill". The pacing is slow, but the atmosphere is creepy. The presentation is great. Monster designs are a mix of Clive Barker type stuff and updates to the classic returning creatures, such as the faceless nurses. The nurses' aren't all that scary, I was more fascinated at them since now they are so hot and voluptuous, including bouncing breasts like the DOA girls. The film grain, dark atmosphere, limited visibility with the fog, nice ambient sound effects....it's all here to bring the player into a wonderfully nightmarish experience. Sadly, Double Helix really did drop the ball in making this a true gem due to the controls. Generally, everything works great, from the newly implemented combat system, and moving the camera around freely. Unfortunately, players CAN NOT invert the axis of the look/camera controls....which if very basic stuff! So, if you like to press UP to look DOWN and DOWN to look UP, you won't be able to....not until Double Helix and Konami release a hopefully in the near future downloadable patch/update. Also, they should have included a 180 degree quick turn! So, Alex Shepherd, the war veteran you'll control can't do an "About face!", which would have been easier to run away from the monsters. I guess he'll need to go back to boot camp! The puzzles are good, some areas of missing sound effects (probably due to a rushed production), all the textures are really low resolution and blown out, which could have been better. Some lip syncing is off in the cut scenes. Lack of health bottles and very few save points, keeps your anxiety up and makes every encounter a high stakes experience. All of these are rookie decisions by a company that hopefully will learn from their mistakes when they create the next sequel. If you love horror games, pick it up, turn off the lights and turn up the sound. Fun, exciting, scary, challenging, rough around the edges...just like the original "Silent Hill"! It's nice to be home!… Expand

Silent Hill, being one of my favorite game series, I came into Silent Hill: Homecoming hungry for a great horror experience and expecting improvement over the previous titles. What I got was a mixed experience. The controls, while innovative, make the game seem more like an action title rather than a horror game. The graphics were outstanding, but it got a little buggy while squaring off with some of the monsters. (Particularly the Smog creature) The story was ok, but I was hugely disappointed in the endings and it seemed all too similiar to Silent Hill 2. My final verdict? As a Silent Hill fan, you'll most likely enjoy it, much as I did. If you can look past the unoriginal storyline and buggy gameplay.… Expand

In my opinion, this is was a huge let down - not because I didn't expect it from an American developer...I was just crossing every crossable extremity in my body that I would be totally surprised and that SH5 would be a worthy addition. Unfortunately, all my wishing came to nothing. From a psychologically heavy survival horror with good dashes of symbolism and all things good - SH has now reverted to the average Joe's "shootan and slashin" horror game, minus the horror. The Silent Hill movie, whilst some parts were acceptable as a game to movie adaptation - it ultimately seems to have spelt SH's doom since all the developers can seem to envision in their mind is that movie and SH5 is evidence of that. No creativity, nothing to make me look twice, nothing to make me want to run, nothing to make me pause the game and take a 30min break out of sensory overload. I don't make a thing about giving games 1, its not necessary as there are usually more saving graces to warrant a 2....but with Silent Hill 5, it had big shoes to fill and I don't think it even got around to putting its socks on. All cudos should go to Akira Yamaoka for making me want to buy the soundtrack and atleast enjoy that for years to come.… Expand

This game is WAY too dark. Apparently the developers of this game decided that dark=scary, because it was almost impossible to see anything half the time. I had to turn the brightness setting of my TV to full, and then everything just looked washed out.. also, the ammo/item distribution stinks. You don't not get enough supplies for the amount of enemies. The game is too short. The puzzles are interesting: either they are way too hard or way too easy... none in the middle area. This game did not satisfy me. I really like the Silent Hill series, the 2nd being my favorite so far.… Expand

This is the first Silent Hill I actually enjoyed playing rather than watching! The camera is an improvment and I only seen it mess up once. The health drinks and save points are far away but can you really complain about that? Challenge is what the Silent Hill games need. 2,3, & 4 were WAY too easy.

silent hill franchise is deffinitly is the frnchise that kicked off the real horror gaming style . its always been the best at creeping you out and keeping you on edge with its sound effects and music and creepy atmosphere . this one pretty much has alot of that but falls in some aspects . you really dont get much for guns and ammo . pretty much same gun selection with even less ammo then the other games . the melee combat is very mixed . the story really didnt capture my attention much . the game also just feels old hat and with this being the 5th game in the series i think konami could have taken a greater chance at trying to reinvent the game . its still a decent game but this series needs a shot in the ass much like what capcom did with RE4 to revitalise its aging game .… Expand

This is my first journey to Silent Hill, therefore comparisons to previous titles is impossible. I really liked the story, it played out very well with twists and turns a-plenty. Multiple endings help with replayability. Graphically, the game is 4 years old now, it still looks pretty good, however character models lack the realism of today's releases. The sound is fantastic, both the effects and the music. I played through with headphones, it was freaky listening to the various monsters not knowing exactly where they were. The controls, to me, are clunky and the lack of an option to invert the camera is shocking; yes I normally play with inverted up and down controls. I also found the controls rather unresponsive especially during some of the more heated moments of boss battles when I wanted to evade but kept quick striking. I was annoyed by some of the placement of the checkpoint system, especially at the beginning of one of the earlier (and in my opinion, most difficult) boss battle. The creatures are really demented looking, the only one that I didn't really like was the Smog. Homecoming is all so graphically violent, it gets you with short sharp stabs of horrendous scenes, especially later in the game. Personally the noticeably violent scenes are more hard hitting than those of Dead Space 1 or 2 and frankly remind me of the executions in Manhunt. I hear that other Silent Hill titles are 'better' and this one is a bit of an outsider.... If the others are better than this I can't wait to get the HD remakes of 1 & 2 in a couple of months time. I'd have given Homecoming a 9/10 if only the controls were better.… Expand

This game is punishingly hard, focuses too heavily on puzzles, and has a story that takes far too long to get going. The first half of the game is just visiting locations AROUND silent hill (if it doesn't take place in silent hill, then why call it silent hill?) and passing out into strange acid trips that involve some kind of hell prison. The second half of the game isn't so bad, being more forgiving and eventful, but I really have to wonder what the literal hell the designers thought they were doing when they designed the first half. I would recommend this game to the most loyal silent hill fans and no one else. It does get good towards the end, but you REALLY have to work to get there.… Expand

Silent Hill: Homecoming is not necessarily a bad game,I just do not recommend it for purchase or for rent.I think it's a mediocre game with some positive elements but with many flaws!!!!!!

I can't believe the people that are giving this game that high scores... This game is not only the worst Silent Hill game ever made, it's also one of the worst games I ever played. It's just a succession of awfully stuff from the start to the end. The only good thing is the soundtrack.

This Silent HIll is worked more around fighting the monsters than running away, and that really is what ruined it. It lacks any real scares, and though the story can hold well on its own and there's some decent psychological aspects behind it, it really is the worst game in the series. Compared to the other Silent Hills, this is like a ghost story you tell around a campfire than an actual nightmare. The other thing is this game is extremely short. I beat it in a matter of an hour, which really is extremely short! I also unlocked every achievement the same day I got it without breaking a sweat. It really is an easy game, even on its hardest difficulty, and the combat mechanics, though difficult at first, result in the game being more of an action game than survival horror. It tries to humor the movie rather than the actual story of the series and the inclusion of Pyramid Head - though different looking than he is in the movie and in SH2, still was out of line. The loss of fixed camera angles is a also a turn down and the atmosphere (which is an important part of the Silent Hill series) is pretty much gone. This is the first Silent Hill in the series I've played, and even when I first got it, I found it disappointing.… Expand

I'm a big survivor horror fan, and I did enjoy moments of this game. But in the end, it just wasn't for me. I found the story somewhat predictable, graphics average, and music irritating. Two of those three things were the main reasons that I played Silent Hill; things this game doesn't deliver.