To say that I was excited to get the opportunity to play Silent Hill: Downpour at Konami’s Gamer Day in New York City would be a ginormous understatement. While the location of gamer’s day, at the classy SNAP sports bar and grill, was very cool I barely had time to notice my surroundings as I headed straight to the demo unit that had Silent Hill: Downpour. Clothed in my Bubble Head Nurse tee shirt and shaking with anticipation I jumped right into world of Downpour.
Check out my impressions of the game below.
Despite any shortcomings the recent Silent Hill games may have had, like Silent Hill: Homecoming or Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, I’m always excited to play a new Silent Hill game. I will always cherish the original four games made by Team Konami but I am a fan of the Silent Hill universe so I’m always willing to try out a new SH title. So with that in mind I set out to play Downpour immediately as I arrived at Konami’s Gamer Day Event. I have to say right off the bat that my experience was somewhat hampered by the fact that they did not have headphones set up on the demo unit. If you have played any SH game in the past you know that to really experience the game you not only have to see it but you really have to HEAR it, and I was really disappointed I could not fully experience composer’s Dan Licht’s (Dexter) soundtrack while playing in a noisy environment. Also despite playing on a PlayStation 3, the version of Downpour that I played was not being shown in 3D. So with those little drawbacks I set out to control the latest unlucky visitor of Silent Hill, prison inmate Murphy Pendleton.
If you aren’t familiar with Murphy’s story, he has apparently been incarcerated for several years for a crime, which is not yet known to us. On they way to being transported to a maximum security facility, the prison bus is involved in an accident and Murphy wakes up outside of the wrecked bus and sees his opportunity to escape. Right from the get go the game offers you a choice as to whether or not to rescue one of the prison guards, and it is this choice (as well as others in the game) that will effect your experience throughout the game. Although this choice will be available when the game is released, the demo I played had the choice pre-determined for me and I watched the cutscene showing the prison guard fall to her death off a cliff (sucks to be her). After that dramatic scene I was able to take control of Murphy, who was stranded on a desolate road. I walked to one side of the road only to see that the asphalt has been ripped out of the ground, preventing my escape in that direction. As I tried to find safe passage in the other direction I come in contact with the most random postman, Howard. Because, you know it’s normal for the postal service to keep delivering the mail when the road is destroyed and everything is all foggy and creepy, Howard really takes that oath seriously. After Howard gives me a little introduction to Silent Hill and I continue exploring the area I come across a building structure that is a cable car attraction to see The Devils Pit.
One thing I noticed about this game is that it is built as an amalgamation of gameplay styles from the original four games of the series and some of the newer iterations. Controlling Murphy felt pretty good considering it was an alpha build. The view is in third person, with the camera over Murphy’s right shoulder. The camera can be moved around 360 degrees but the game harkens back to the original SH with some areas only viewed with a fixed camera angle. Unlike Silent Hill: Shattered Memories your character CAN fight back any baddies that cross your path. Murphy can use all types of objects he finds in the environment as weapons, which will break over time (similar to the weapons in Silent Hill: Origins). Also similar to Origins is that you can throw any weapon you have in your hand, so if you pick up a wine bottle you can either attack an enemy up close with it or if you can throw it at a distance. Although I never encounter them in this demo, I was told that Murphy will be able to use guns in the game but he will not come across many and ammo for said guns will not be readily available.
After exploring the cable car house I moved on to another area where there was an abandoned diner. I found a crowbar and used it to break open a lock on a door to gain access to the diner. This method is how you will be getting into a lot of locked areas that don’t require a key. Once in the diner I found a few more useful weapons like a broom and a chair, but I could only carry one large object at a time so no more holding six coat racks in my magical pocket (a la SH: Origins). Fortunately every area you walk into is loaded with a multitude of weapons so if the one you are using breaks during a battle there’s always a replacement near by, if you can get to it in time. As I explore the back kitchen I see that there is a gas leak, I turn a valve thinking I’m shutting it off but instead I make it spark and start a fire. I find the sprinkler switch and put out the fire but then the room changes drastically. In previous Silent Hill games transformations into the Otherworld were triggered by fire or snow but in Downpour the Otherworld is brought about by water. As the transformation takes place the floor tiles lift away, the ceiling rises up, and the walls peel away to reveal a new room with pipes, brick walls and metal bars. It kinda looks like, a prison…hmmmmmm.
After walking up a rusty metal staircase I ended up in a room that appeared to be a dead end. To find an exit I had to figure out one of the environmental puzzles and turn a painting on a wall to reveal a hidden door. Doing so lead me down a hallway where at the end of it was a light but as I approached it a voice tells me to run as the light turned into a dark vortex looking to suck me in. I started running down a hallway that turns to the left but just as I get to the turn the hallway extends again, pulling the escape route away from me. This chase sequence was so exciting and stress inducing as the hall kept pulling away from me and the raging vortex behind me kept getting closer. While running you can hit the top trigger button to look behind you, which just makes the chase even scarier, and as you approach cabinets in the hall a button prompt pops up to let you pull it down to slow down whatever is chasing you. I ended up in a room that looked like a dead end but saw a break in a wall to escape through, which lead me to a room with a drop. I jump down and end up sliding down a watery ramp and off into blackness, only to wake up back in the foggy world. Back in the woods behind some kind of utility shed I look for a way to get out, just as I’m exploring the area looking for some kind of exit I am suddenly attacked by a creature called the Screamer. I gotta say although I was in a noisy bar I still jumped when I was attacked, thanks to the game not giving any kind of obvious sound queues I was completely surprised and ambushed by the Screamer. The Screamer attacks with elongated claws when she is up close and uses a brain splitting sonic yell when at a distance. After dispatching that bitch I had three more Screamers to kill, which ended the demo.
Despite not having headphones to really experience the game properly I really enjoyed the demo. I was still engaged with what was going on the screen and still had a few thrills and scares to keep the game exciting. The graphics were decent although it was an alpha build so I’d imagine that the visuals will get even sharper. Vatra games looks to have done a good job of blending all the good elements of the past and present games and forming them into an exciting new entry into the Silent Hill library. The fall can’t come soon enough for the full release of Silent Hill: Downpour. I will be playing it the moment it hits shelves and I’ll have a full review to share with you. Just keep it here for any new Silent Hill news we come across.
