Silent Hill 2
GRAPHICS - Since when were these top-notch graphics? I think these magazine reviewers need GLASSES! I know a good optician for ya! Grainy, rigid, blurry... ugh! Definately not good. They serve their purpose and are FAR from terrible. But I think people are far too nice to the graphics. They suck. And the fog, although I know it's there for atmosphere, does mask some pop-up. And I've seen it so there. Hey, you don't expect them to use fog for effect do you? I do Quake and UT maps and mods, I know the score!
SOUND - It's OK. The same radio effects, some groans, shuffling... *yawn* tell me when theres something interesting about them. It's standard fare. Nothing special about them at all... and the chainsaw sounds pretty terrible. Certainly nothing special here.
LIGHT - The one thing I expected the game to excel at was the use of the torch. After playing Alone In The Dark, my expectations were high. But nope. Light has been used poorly. Almost TOO poorly. Try turning the torch off... sometimes it makes no difference! Noit much more than a cheap gimmick. Hey, if Alone in the Dark can use a torch and light in an inventive manner, surely other games can too! I'm not asking miracles, I'm asking for more uses to the torch than lighting rooms.
ENEMIES - OK, I have to be nice at some point, so I'll do it here. The enemies are inventive. They are a bit gruesome. And they made me pay attention. But after you see one or two of the same enemy, well, the novelty wears off. They are also far too easy to beat (even on Hard, they're still not hard enough!). The bosses are inventive, Pyramid Head being pretty cool, but still predictable and dull.
ATMOSPHERE - *cough*None*cough*. The scariest game ever? Err, right, since when? What next? Tellytubbies? People should get a grip. I desperately played the game... almost pleading with the screen to scare me. I just wanted to jump ONCE! Not much to ask, is it? Well, it seems it is. I played the game with the lights off, in the dark... nope. No effect. The only reason I think people think it's scary is because they convinced themselves it IS scary, when actually it's pretty timid compared to CVx and AITD. Such a shame. Scary? To whom? A bunch of gibbons? Puh-lease. You insult my intelligence!
PLOT - I got lost about halfway through with the plot, and I never recovered it. If you're going to pose a question, please answer it and make sure it's sensible. It makes for a rounded experience. And to me, a good plot can always rescue the most laborious of games (AITD being a nice example!). But the ending made no sense whatsoever, events are left with no explanation and theres no clue to what Maria really is. I have a good mind to beat up the storywriters. How much are they being payed to write this trash? Jeez, I get paid zilch for my stories and they're infinately better. Note to Team Silent - MUST. DO. BETTER.
ANIMATIONS - Wooden. The same old flaws from the original. Terrible running animation. Jerky movements when you don't want them. Motion captured? From what? Monkeys? What a total waste of money... as for the facial animations... don't get me started... oh alright, please do. Bad lip sync. Terrible detail (some detail INSIDE the mouth would have helped!). Jerky. Uninspiring. Terrible. Team Silent, be ashamed. Be very, VERY ashamed.
WEAPONS - Not much to say on this. Standard fare. Nothing extra special. Chainsaw on second play - big whoop. Wood Plank, Handgun, Steel Pole, Shotgun, Rifle... zzzzz... oh, sorry, must have dozed off there for a second!
