The Silent Hill series’ literary take on survival horror divides opinions greatly. A small, cult-like following promotes the virtues of its subtle art-house styling, but most gamers are left cold by the cumbersome gameplay rather than the chills on offer. This instalment attempts to address these criticisms with overhauled game mechanics, whilst fresh locations and a more visceral direction will have even hardened fans jumping behind the sofa.
The premise concerns Henry Townsend, a young man who has become inexplicably trapped inside his apartment. Whilst inside the flat we see through Henry’s eyes, a first (no pun intended) for the series that really draws you into Henry’s claustrophobic nightmare. A brief tour of his meagre lodgings reveals that the telephone and electricity are cut off, the windows are sealed and all contact with the outside world is impossible. The front door has even been chained up – from the inside. Left with some cryptic messages and few options, Henry’s only escape route is a hole that appears in his bathroom wall – but where does it go’
Telling you would spoil the fantastic plot, but once on the other side you’ll realise that perhaps the kooky apartment wasn’t so bad after all. The twisted worlds beyond the portal are inhabited by strange people and even stranger monsters, not to mention the ghosts which force their way in through the walls. Fortunately, Henry is far more agile than previous Silent Hill characters and doesn’t need to be steered like a truck. The controls feel far more natural and the combat benefits from the increased freedom of movement too, with new dodging moves and less swivelling around on boot-heels. Another new feature is chargeable melee attacks, allowing Henry to deliver some skull-shattering blows providing you time them correctly – miss, and you leave him open to attack as he follows through with his swing.
If it all becomes a little too much, it’s possible to return to the apartment via special portals which appear throughout the game. Hiding under the bedclothes isn’t really an option though, since the room itself gradually becomes invaded by the otherworld as your concerned neighbours try in vain to contact you. Watching these events unfold helps to salve the increasingly irritating need to return here for inventory management, caused by a new ten-item carrying limit that adds to the fear factor at first, but ultimately feels more like a step backward.
A more refreshing change is the new locations, almost all of which are not in Silent Hill itself. Fans need not fear; dropping the original setting has allowed Konami to present a fresh batch of their most outlandish and detailed environments yet, presented with the usual high-standards of texturing and lighting that give every scene a stunningly horrific appearance. The trademark ambient-industrial soundtrack makes a welcome return, accompanied by sound effects that have far more impact than the somewhat weak squelching of previous games.
These improvements are very welcome to a franchise which has traditionally relied on strong narratives to make up for any perceived shortfall in the gameplay, but The Room doesn’t scrimp on story, either. The complex tale builds up piece by tantalising piece as you discover more clues, and with four possible endings there’s plenty of ambiguity for horror fans to mull over.
The general feel, then, is one of great progress but still not one of perfection, meaning that Silent Hill 4 is far more likely to reinforce your current opinion on survival horror than change it completely. For those who can live with the formula, the only real flaw is the latter half of the game where too much trudging through previously visited areas creates something of an anti-climax after such a gripping start. That said, The Room is by far the best play experience of the whole series, and a more than worthy addition to this unique franchise.
