The premise of Silent Hill 2 is simple. James Sunderland receives a letter from his wife about visiting their special place in Silent Hill. Sounds lovely, right? Well, James’ wife Mary has been dead for three years … Despite knowing that something isn't right, James bites and revisits the small town only to discover that he’s quite literally wandered into hell on Earth.

It will always be a challenge to remake a beloved classic, balancing the fine line between what made the original great whilst evolving the game for the modern generation. One of the standout comments from my interview with the developers at Bloober Team is rather than changing Silent Hill 2 in the remake, they wanted to expand it and that’s been achieved. Not only is the town of Silent Hill more open, but the gameplay has been improved too.

Check out the Silent Hill 2 trailer below!

The town of Silent Hill is more accessible. Granted, you can’t enter every building but you will discover plenty of open windows in the hope of finding ammo or health. But there’s a chance that you’ll find nothing but pure nightmare-fueled creatures. If a building looks accessible but there is no open door or window, then James might be able to smash his way in. What’s more, you can even smash car windows if you see ammo or health on passenger seats.

As much as I love the original Silent Hill 2, as I recently rediscovered with a fresh playthrough, the camera is absolute pants. This is something that Bloober Team wanted to improve. In this new version of Silent Hill 2, you are benefiting from an over-the-shoulder free-moving camera, similar to the Resident Evil 4 remake.

As welcome as this new camera is in Silent Hill 2, there’s the risk of removing the game's feeling of dread. A fixed camera obscures what may be lurking around the next corner. Bloober Team has countered that potential issue by hiding enemies within the environment. Enemies are often hidden in plain sight waiting to scare you witless.

Konami

In terms of combat, when wielding a weapon such as a firearm, James can now strafe. He’s also able to aim down the sights. Furthermore, James has a new dodge mechanic and to counter this to make sure the game doesn't become too easy, all enemies have new attacks to catch you off guard and some bosses even have additional forms. James’ new abilities feel like a natural evolution because if he was as stagnant as the original, then that aspect of Silent Hill 2 would have been stuck in the past.

The most obvious evolution of the remake is its visuals and today’s Silent Hill 2 looks gorgeous. From the character animations to its environment, shading and lighting are everything you’d expect a top-tier AAA game to be. The fog looks incredible and like the originals, adds to the atmosphere but is no longer just a method that exists to hide texture pop-ups. Silent Hill 2 also has one of the most impressive wind effects that I’ve ever seen. The heavy wind blowing with debris flying by and open windows flapping against concrete walls makes you feel that something more sinister than Mother Nature is coming to claim your soul.

Konami

Other than being easier on the eye, the improved visuals have another benefit and that’s the environmental storytelling. What you see is a large part of how the Silent Hill series tells its story, but due to the technical limitations of the original games, that subtlety wasn't always obvious. That’s no longer an issue. Now, I don’t need to make assumptions because the game's themes are a little more obvious through its environment.

There is a part of Silent Hill 2 that might hinder your enjoyment regardless of your experience with the series, and that’s a forced stealth section late in the game. For the record, this section was not in the original and it feels unnatural in the remake. I’m not sure why this section was included and if it was removed and the puzzle pieces that you need to acquire were placed elsewhere, the game would be better for it.

It doesn't matter what entry it is in the series, the music has always been top-notch and this remake is no exception. Rehiring the services of series veteran Akira Yamaoka to compose the soundtrack once more is a masterstroke. The soundtrack is inspired by the original sequel but has enough tweaks to make it feel fresh. The environmental sound effects are also incredible and do a great job of making you fear what can’t be seen.

Konami

I must also say, and this might be considered controversial, but the voice cast provides better performances in the remake and offers more believability and emotion to their respective roles adding to the fantastic facial animations for each major character.

The original sequel will always remain an all-time classic and I recommend checking it out, at least to see how the two versions compare. Bloober Team has treated this remake with the utmost respect and despite that forced stealth section, this is about a perfect remake of Silent Hill 2 and everything I could have hoped for. Bloober Team has finally realised its potential, and its remake of Silent Hill 2 deserves its place amongst the upper echelon of modern survival horror greats.

Pros: Captures the vibe of the original, Silent Hill feels more alive, fantastic performances

Cons: Forced stealth section hinders pacing

For fans of: Silent Hill (2001), psychological horror

Score: 9/10: Exceptional

Silent Hill 2 releases on 8 October 2024 for PC and PlayStation 5. A review code was provided by Konami. Find a complete guide to GAMINGbible's review scores here.