Silent Hill 2 Remake PS5 Review. Bloober Team hasn’t had it easy since announcing it was at the helm of a Silent Hill 2 Remake. Criticised for lacking the coding chops to deftly remake such a beloved title, the company has had an uphill struggle convincing fans that its retelling of James Sunderland’s blood-stained jaunt through Silent Hill is in good hands.
To be fair, it’s not hard to understand why fans are so precious about Silent Hill 2. Originally released in 2001 for the PS2, Team Silent’s horror classic is, for my money, one of the greatest video games ever made, let alone a top-tier horror romp. Weaving a cerebral and nuanced story that eschews cheap jump scares and nefarious corporations, Silent Hill 2 explores a number of mature themes and delving deep into the psychological traumas facing its troubled cast. Then there’s the monsters, writhing and grotesque as they are, but intrinsically linked to the central themes while also giving us one of gaming’s most memorable creatures: Pyramid Head.
It was never the most mechanically solid game out there – combat in particular could prove cumbersome due to the controls and camera – but somehow worked with the feeling of isolation and grainy visuals. Now, Bloober Team returns with a modern remake of the much-loved title; but is the trip back to Silent Hill 2 worth it?
Silent Hill 2 Remake PS5 Review
In My Restless Dreams, I See That Town…
Right from the opening beats, Silent Hill 2 Remake feels like stepping back into a comfy pair of slippers. James Sunderland arrives at the Observation Deck overlooking Toluca Lake, its pictureseque view obfuscated by the perpetual fog that cloaks the town throughout his journey. He’s here to find Mary, his deceased wife of three years, after receiving a letter from her calling him to their ‘special place.’ And so, off he sets, unaware of the horrors that await him.
It must be said immediately just how gorgeous Silent Hill 2 Remake is in terms of visuals. Whether it’s the lonely streets peppered with shops partially shrouded in fog, the dilapidated halls of Woodside Apartment, the rusted and peeling walls of Brookhaven Hospital or the mucky cells of Toluca Prison, Silent Hill 2 Remake is absolutely oozing with atmospheric chills.
Each location is brimming with character, telling its own macabre story. Bloober Team has also fleshed out many of the notes scattered throughout Silent Hill, giving you more background on the tormented souls who once lived there and the horrors they experienced.
Meanwhile, the character models are sumptuously detailed and really sell the performances during cutscenes. Every wince, flash of horror, glimpse of optimism and look of despair help bring the diverse cast to life to a level that simply wasn’t possible 23 years ago. A testament to this is a scene where Laura asks James if she can retrieve a letter she left in a hospital room; James is fed up of chasing her about and enduring her insults, but he relents and agrees to her wish. You can see the moment he surrenders in his eyes and a subtle expression; blink and you’ll miss it, but it’s superb stuff.
The graphical fidelity makes for a stunningly immersive experience when you’re exploring the foggy streets and rusted, decaying interiors. For the most part, the game is as you remember; Silent Hill 2 weaves a thrilling blend of puzzles solving, exploration and getting into scraps with its monstrous denizens, but Bloober has felt confident enough to stretch its arms on occasion.
For example, remember Woodside Apartment, the first major interior in Silent Hill 2? Well, that’s back, as grim as ever, but one the core puzzles has swelled into a multi-tiered brain-teaser, split between rooms both familiar and new that encompass their own small conundrums.
This is indeed true of other areas including the hospital and Toluca Prison, which are almost labyrinthine in their twisted, rotting husks with new rooms and expanded riddles. It has to be said that the original showed some restraint in terms of not locking you to an area for too long; by comparison, areas in the remake do sometimes outstay their welcome, with a feeling of unwelcome bloat seeping through the cracks.
Toluca Prison is probably the worst offender in that its corridors feel horribly claustrophobic and it’s easily the darkest area I’ve ever seen in a Silent Hill game, even with your flashlight. After dashing back and fourth through its malodorous interiors, you’ll be aching for a reprieve; it happened, but I was mentally exhausted afterwards. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a huge issue at all, but there’s a feeling that some fat could have been trimmed here and there.
Superb Puzzles And Moody Locations Make For An Immersive Treat
The puzzles themselves are superb , and a welcome distraction from whacking enemies with steel pipes and navigating the darkened rooms. Yes, there’s rudimentary keys and objects to nab that are pretty obvious in their application, but you’ll be working your brain a fair amount to decipher ambiguous scribblings, fiddle with complex picture puzzles and crunch a few numbers to open the way forward. Even on the standard puzzle difficulty, I found these challenges incredibly rewarding to solve and fans of the original will appreciate how some classic conundrums have been revamped for the remake, keeping things fresh.
Combat becomes a more intimate affair with the switch to an over-the-shoulder viewpoint, with gunplay in particular feeling punchy and responsive. Melee slugfests are decent enough, but can feel messy and uncoordinated at times during tight spaces; a dodge button helps James out in a pinch, and if you get into a rhythm of knowing when to evade attacks, it can be a precious ammo saving tool. Plus, giving your foe the boot to finish them off never gets old.
Masahiro Ito’s iconic creature designs shine through the grim fog of Silent Hill 2 Remake, staying true to their original look and feel. Lying Figures spew vile fluids as they shuffle aimlessly through the streets, Bubble Head Nurses haunt the halls of Brookhaven, heads twitching unnaturally as they brandish gnarly tools to dish out their own unique brand of First-Aid. Oh, and you’ll grow to loathe the slippery Mannequins, who now have a habit of hiding in plain sight before leaping out of the dark and whacking you with their rubbery limbs.
The bosses have been revamped completely, and for the better. I won’t spoil anything, but some of the key standouts such as Flesh Lip and Abstract Daddy are more ambitious than ever and have injected a layer of strategy into the mix, which makes for far more enjoyable and rewarding scraps.
A Fantastic Cast That Effortlessly Retells One Of Gaming’s Best Narratives
The voice cast deliver exceptional performances across the board. Luke Roberts’ heartfelt and nuanced performance as James Sunderland is a particular standout, conveying a man haunted by his personal demons. Sure, there’s a few lines that fall a bit flat, but the script adheres firmly to the original (sometimes word for word) and the new dialogue complements the narrative nicely. Admittedly a few new lines and extra scenes don’t so much as sagely nod to underlying themes but rather whack them with a sledgehammer (did we really need that new scene with Maria in the strip club? We get it, she’s a flirty sort), but they are easy enough to forgive as the overall narrative is just so impactful.
Composer Akira Yamaoka returns to soak the proceedings in his spine-chilling score, and much like the 2001 original, his efforts work wonders. A master at mood music, Yamaoka’s iconic themes are the perfect companion to the bleak and oppressive nature of Silent Hill, their impact further accentuated by some utterly terrifying ambience; a hair-raising concoction of grinding metal, industrial beats and otherwordly wails that will send a chill up your spine.
Silent Hill 2 Remake is packed with hidden collectibles of sorts for completionists to hoover up. This feeds into the more expanded nature of the town, which is littered with mysterious notes, hidden supply caches, and some superb nods to the original Silent Hill 2 that you can interact with – no spoilers here! The game never forces you to venture off the beaten path either; you’re free to explore as you feel, or simply focus on the task at hand. But the rewards are worth it, and the moody atmosphere makes it a joy to soak it all in.
I played the game on Performance Mode and experienced a buttery-smooth frame rate with little to no hiccups. The only issues I came across were some annoying instances where James could get stuck on bits of the environment, which was remedied with a quick dodge. I anticipated these will be ironed out in a future patch.
There’s a couple of modern wrinkles that also help to make life easier compared to the original, such as tapping or holding triangle to use a health drink or syringe, respectively, using R1 to do a quick turn, and hitting up on the d-pad to access your map.
Bloober Team has knocked it out of the park here. Not only has it showed respect for the source material and understood just what made Silent Hill 2 so revered among fans, the studio has expanded meaningfully in various avenues that bring it in line with modern standards. Silent Hill 2 Remake is not only one of the best remakes on the market, it’s a gripping, emotionally-charged and downright beautiful retelling of what I personally consider to be the greatest horror video game of all time.
Silent Hill 2 Remake is out now for PS5 and PC.
Review code kindly provided by publisher.