Silent Hill 2

Game Info

Publisher: Konami

Developer: Konami

Genre(s): Horror, Adventure, Action

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

Release Date: September 25, 2001

Summary

Players assume the role of James, who receives a cryptic letter from his wife (who has been dead for 3 years) beckoning him to meet her in Silent Hill, a place that holds great meaning for the couple. The mystery of the letter compels him to return to the surreal horror and all-too-real danger in Silent Hill.

Also On Metacritic

GAMES: Silent Hill Silent Hill 3 Silent Hill 4: The Room

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Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this game is 8.9 (out of 10) based on 57 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Jacob S. gave it a10:
While the gameplay is a little meh (what do you expect from an old survival horror game) the story and atmosphere more than make up for it. It is by far the best of the Silent HIll series, with a truly unique and disturbing story. Team Silent is still trying to match it's glory, but have fallen short everytime.

Grant Z gave it a9:
Silent Hill 2, is quite possibly one of the best horror's to grace the Playstation, creepy, tense and has good sound. However it's not as good as the original mainly because, the main protagonist is hateful. I cared about Harry Mason, he couldn't run right FGS, then James comes along, killing his own wife, and wondering why a massive man with a pyramid for a head and a huge sword is coming after him. Still it's a pretty epic game, let-down by some graphical glitches, it was my entry into the series, and i love it still. Story is just tacky. BUT WOOOO, it introduced us to the infamous Pyramid Head. "Hello Nice To Meet You" I LOVE HIM. "MARRY ME PYRAMID HEAD!!!!".

This Person gave it a9:
Silent Hill 2. The cult-hit, the game you hear mentioned over and over again when talking about horror games or deep stories in games. Considered often the best game in the series with the very first one. And for a good reason. Forget Resident Evil's "Monster-through-the-window"-scares, gore enough to fill a pool and hi-tech weaponry, Silent Hills focus on so called "Psychological horror", where the very disturbing images, settings and audio make you feel uneasy and disgusted. Most of the time it's the what you can't see but you hear that scares you the most, and that's what Team Silent knows. The game's nearly totally covered in either thick fog or darkness where the only light source you often have is your flashlight. Add creepy, disgusting and most importantly very... original sound effects and music track, and you'll find yourself being spooked by even complete emptiness. What about the story? Well, where SH1 mostly focused on "demonic-forces" pouring from the "possessed", suffering mind of certain victim of horrible past, SH2 offers a bit different kind of, "more gentle" story where it's not always clear what is "real", while still implying every thing's not just a dream, the "forces" of the town apparently just working in the background. All the characters have some sort of tragic past and are experiencing the town in their very own way, making the line between "reality", "delusion" and the "otherworld" blur even further, leading to some serious mind-screwing at best. Judging by some review here, not everybody has payed enough attention during the game, they either played it just once by rushing it or they have not researched about all the symbolism and gentle hints of the game that it offers. Add 6 different endings depending on HOW you play the game and what you have done while playing it, unlockable bonuses and a beautiful but sad and disgusting story, SH2 offers a great mature horror experience that does not just throw blood and guts at you. I also do recommend the other games in the series, especially the first and third ones, both of which present a quite a bit more "aggressive" experiences, still having some psychological-teasing and symbolisms.

Lam L gave it a7:
The date is 2009. I have heard so many awesome things about this game. XPLAY and others have called it the #1 scary game of all time. I still try and go in with an open mind and self awareness. Months earlier I played SH: Homecoming and liked it enough callin it good but not really a next gen experience. Of course my 1st exposeure to SH was the 2006 film, which I think is brilliant. The fact is I was a little disappointed in this last gen game. It played exactly like SH: H except the controls were more clunky. I thought the fog was better, and the town seemed more believable than in SH:H. Really, this makes SH:H look worse in my eyes. But the experience never raised itself to something sublime. I'm aware if I played it in 2001 when it was released I probably would have given it at least a full point higher. But still, to a new gamer coming it to it for the first time today it kinda delivers underwhelmingly. Next Gen horror games I like are "F.E.A.R.," "The Darkness" (my favorite, and a review here on metacritic actually described it as a next gen 1st person SH- I agree), "Condemned 2," "Dead Space." I realized there is a lot of shooting in my favorites. Somebody, please make a horror game that's really really good but the emphasis is not on shooting. I'd be the 1st in line.

Art V gave it a10:
My favorite game of all time. The graphics in the CG cutscenes were revolutionary at the time (it is now 2008 and I have just beaten SH: Homecoming). The best soundtrack of all time. The best story of all time (and I do not think that any other game will create the same emotions that this game stirs up EVER. Play this game with the lights off and pay attention to all cutscenes, notes and surroundings for the best experience. I am a 22 year old male and I seriously almost cried at the end. The story IS THAT GOOD!!!!!!

Herr T gave it a6:
Most reviews of this game totally ignore the fact that the story is so obnoxiously poor that you lose interest in completing it. The first game took place in an actual town overrun by sinister forces; this game takes place in a guy's psyche, as he deals with his guilt for euthanizing his wife. You watch your sidekick in this adventure die a few times, each time she returns acting as if nothing's wrong, and the game goes on, because it adds to the "dreamlike" setting. From this point on, the games don't really correlate to each other. I don't want to play some guy's dream. I don't want to make it to the end to find out it wasn't real, that it was all a dream, or that the protagonist is schizophrenic or whatever. It's stupid storytelling and Team Silent basically screwed up their chance of making the series remarkable starting with this entry.

Dante399 L gave it a10:
This game is not just a game, it is something beyond that. It is a creative and a beautiful story which is told in the most brilliant way. Fans of horror stories will love this game; because it is a mixture of Stephen King's, Dean Koontz' and James Herbert's stories!

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