Fluorescent lights flicker, casting shadows against the walls of a dingy, dirty bathroom. A man stands in front of a mirror, his hands trembling and a pale band of skin noticeable on his ring finger. He stares, long and hard, at his reflection, scrutinizing, before he gathers himself and steps outside. Fog blankets the horizon, with the tops of trees and a distant lake all that remains visible. "I got a letter from my wife.." He begins, and with it, the story of Silent Hill 2.

I had some reservations when I learned that Bloober Team would be the developers handling the Silent Hill 2 remake. I did not care for The Medium at all, and I still consider it one of the worst psychological horror games I have ever played for a myriad of reasons -- largely for how it handles sensitive topics such as child sexual assault, PTSD, and suicidal ideation. Given that Silent Hill 2 has similar themes, albeit it constructed in a different way due to their execution, I was not confident that Bloober Team would be able to execute on them properly, despite having direct supervision from Konami. I was equal parts happy and surprised to be proven wrong.

For those unfamiliar with the critically acclaimed and hugely influential horror game, on the surface Silent Hill 2 is about James Sunderland who has returned to the quiet, lakeside town, in search of his wife after receiving a letter from her posthumously. It's a strong hook that immediately informs the player that something isn't quite right, with James or the titular town. But digging deeper into the meat of Silent Hill 2, it's about guilt, punishment (sometimes well deserved, other times not), and retribution. There are other individuals who are drawn to the town for this reason, desperate to find a loved one or to escape the retribution that follows a guilty conscious in the form of Angela and Eddie. There too, is Laura, a young girl that seems unphased by the grotesqueries that wander through the foggy streets of Silent Hill and Maria, a woman who shares an uncanny resemblance to James' dead wife. Narrative threads tie these characters together, and James seems as though he is inflicted upon each individual he meets, neither making their situations better or worse, but simply a driving force as he carries his guilt, weighing heavy, on his back.

Since the game is so old, I won't be diving into any spoilers as the original isn't immediately accessible on modern hardware. The last time Silent Hill 2 was readily available was through the botched HD Collection that continues to live in infamy. Just know that the symbolism can at times be heavy handed in the remake, but doesn't detract from the overall feeling of the game. Certain monster redesigns, such as the Abstract Daddy or Lying Figures don't feel as impactful for various reasons, which kind of hampers their significance to the narrative and what they represent. But I can absolutely understand why something like the Abstract Daddy couldn't make it into a game in 2024 as it did in the early 00's, especially with the level of graphical fidelity was have now.

But concerning the actually atmosphere of the game, the Silent Hill 2 remake nails it. Silent Hill as a town feels alive, much like the Spencer Mansion from Resident Evil, it is very much it's own character. Dense fog blankets the town, making streets hard to navigate, and there is a clear sense that Silent Hill could turn on you at any moment. In fact, there was an instance in which I had progressed to a point and the otherwise quiet town (with the exception of Lying Figures slithering around under cars and hurling streams of tar-like acid at me) was suddenly encased in howling winds that seemed to want to keep me from reaching my destination. It was an interesting change from the original that made the town seem hostile.

Environments also change as you proceed through them. While the town is not in the best shape, with the apartments, various shops and bars, and the Brookhaven Hospital all in some state of decay, this is pushed further as James continues in his desperate pursuit of finding out whether or not his wife could truly be alive. Wallpaper peels away, revealing barbed wire and rotten wood, darkness blankets the sky and rain seeps in through the cracks. The change is gradual, sometimes hardly noticeable and other times it's happens so abruptly you know that you've been pulled into another world. Your radio hisses with static as monsters of James' own making approach, staggering through the darkness as you wildly swing your pipe in their direction.

Combat is a lot more refined, but encounters are still dangerous. Generally when I play a Silent Hill game I don't use any of my ammunition until I hit a boss fight. I tend to just whack away at whatever feels bold enough to approach me or I just sprint past it. (Most of the time I just run. Resources are valuable and scarce in survival horror games after all.) But the Silent Hill 2 remake forced me to use the guns I had collected as I worked my way through the apartments, the hospital, and deeper into a mysterious chasm in an abandoned historical center that led me into a prison. I was playing on the Light combat difficulty, and even then I struggled at times, because enemies hit hard. That said, the game is pretty generous when it comes to healing items, which does remove some of that tension. But it was nice to know that the game wasn't exactly a cakewalk.

Puzzles are mostly the same, with a few new ones thrown into the mix, and all of the locations have had some adjustments made to improve their level design. The apartment has had some much needed changes, making it a far less labyrinthian experience. I felt as though the game provided me with just enough breadcrumbs to lead me from location to location without making me feel as though it was holding my hand. Which was great, because it made me feel like I was capable of solving these puzzles on my own even if some solutions were staggeringly obvious. And I really can't speak enough as to how much the level design has improved. It's made it easier for me to consider a third of fourth playthrough, whereas with the original it felt like pulling teeth having to revisit certain locations. (I'm already on a NG+ playthrough, and will definitely shave down my original 11 hour playtime significantly.)

The voice acting can sometimes be hit or miss, but I feel like that more or less boils down to personal opinion. The original Silent Hill 2 had an unmistakable uncanniness to it, with the exception of Laura who just sounded and was written like an actual child, and the remake more or less refines some line deliveries. I don't think it's to the detriment of the game necessarily, though it does provide a different feeling and tone. James sounds less detached and strange, and straddles the line of pitiful and desperate well enough. Eddie is more or less exactly the same, and Laura is fine. She could be ruder, louder, more annoying, but that's a matter of taste. Angela is also mostly just fine. The issue I take is more the extra bits of dialogue she's given that peel back a certain mystery that existed in the original Silent Hill 2. But maybe the game does need to be more overt for a modern audience. What do I know. Concerning Maria, I do have a bias towards her original voice actress, but the new actress does a decent job of it. She sounds sultry when she needs to, furious at James' lack of consideration, or sometimes on the edge of being someone else entirely. While it might not be for me, it does the job.

What most enticed me about the remake, however, were the new notes and polaroids you can collect. You see, while most will argue about what makes Silent Hill truly Silent Hill, for me it has always been about theory crafting. Silent Hill as a series has required you to read, to piece together information to solve puzzles, but to also understand what is being inflicted upon it's numerous protagonists. There is always some kind of revelation at the end, one that feels satisfying in it's conclusion, but always leaves you wanting more and thinking about the little details that have been left unsolved. Silent Hill 2 remake has a lot of that in terms of how it seems more connected to Silent Hill 4: The Room than ever, outside of it's reference to Walter Sullivan, and the suggestion of James possibly being stuck in a time loop of suffering and despair has only continued to fuel long dormant fan theories. In that way, the Silent Hill series is very much alive and well once again. And I'm happy for it.

Overall, the Silent Hill 2 remake was surprising. It's surprising in the way that I'm already playing it over for a second time. It's surprising in the way that I enjoyed what the game had to offer, not being the biggest Silent Hill 2 fan myself. (Silent Hill 4 will always be my favorite, even if it isn't the best.) Maybe that distance is what has allowed me to appreciate it more. Though I highly doubt it. The Silent Hill 2 remake shows that Konami is just as capable as it's competitors in breathing life into their classic horror games. And I earnestly hope that other Silent Hill games will be given this treatment, or that it's success means a certainty of more new stories in this horrible haunted town in the future.