They say “when it rains, it pours” – and boy does the atmosphere pour out of Silent Hill: Downpour like the sweat of an overtly masculine prison-cell bully. Murphy Pendleton is no such prison-cell bully, but that’s not to say that he doesn’t satisfy a lot of the convicts that dwell in the anonymous state prison of which the game begins. After a fond farewell from many of his inmates, Murphy is loaded onto a transportation bus which attempts to escort him from one anonymous prison to another… with disastrous consequences…
After his transportation bus crashes on the foggy outskirts of Silent Hill, it’s up to you and your criminal compadre to traverse the iconic landscapes of gaming’s most disturbing town. Murphy is no-doubt a brave and interesting protagonist choice, not only due to his Silent Hill trademark “emotional issues” – but because he’s essentially an anti-hero. He’s a violent criminal but simultaneously a likable guy, positioning the audience (or me, at least) in a unique situation whereby morals and justice are thrown away in favour of enduring Silent Hills’ wonderful and twisted survival horror experience.
After an engrossing and pretty brutal pre-title sequence, it’s evident to see that Silent Hill: Downpour seeks to refresh the combat-driven mess left in its path as a result of Silent Hill: Homecoming – a game which I personally couldn’t play through fully due to its ashamedly poor execution. Core mechanics such as blocking and attacking feel a lot more reliable in this entry, although swinging a weapon can feel clunky and frustrating when faced with enemies that rapidly dodge and evade. Similarly, the weapon system in Downpour has been brilliantly considered – where almost anything lying around can be picked up and used as a tool of destruction. Planks of wood, stones and bottles are just as powerful as wrenches and hammers, but they will undoubtedly vitiate much faster as you land shots off on your enemy, worsening with every successful blow. You can also throw your weapon (a mechanic which I found pretty loose and useless without the assist of an aiming reticule) and use firearms – although as you’d imagine, ammunition is scarce.
Graphically, Downpour still looks like a last-gen title and this is somewhat laughable when you compare it to the other Silent Hill game released this month – Silent Hill: HD Collection; a game consisting of two titles from over a decade ago which actually look much nicer than Konami’s 2012 entry. I can’t criticise this too heavily, however, as graphics have never really made Silent Hill what it is today and it’s clear to see that this is an area where money wasn’t really thrown at the game. There are various moments in the game whereby the poor graphics will disrupt the flow of the experience, but you’ll very rarely be progressing through Downpours’ linear locations with the constant frustrations of “this looks familiar, am I going round in circles?” On a lighter note, heavy fog is really downplayed in favour of relentless rain – a nice touch by the developers which helps diversify this entry from many of the others in the franchise.
Whilst enemies aren’t particularly “scary” this time round (they’ll jump out at you – that’s about it) I do appreciate their wonderfully creepy growls and screams; what I appreciate more, however, is the fact that they’re clearly based around Murphy’s psyche, a core franchise concept introduced back in the days of Silent Hill 2 (a concept that was later bastardized by Homecoming and Origins in favour of “glory-days” fan-service). Another interesting “enemy” (if it can be called that) is he purple hazy light that chases Murphy every time he enters the “otherworld”. Here, there is no other option but to run – and this is a unique device which really helps create a sense of panic and dread within the player. These running sequences are well designed, and choosing wrong paths doesn’t necessarily lead to failure; creative loops designed in order to give the player a multitude of chances to find the right path. These are all nice ideas that are well-executed, helping to give Silent Hill another go at dominating the survival horror market.
For a non Team-Silent game, Downpour can proudly boast that it is one of the better entries to the franchise that we’ve seen in recent years. It’s not without its flaws, however, and some clunky combat, poor visuals and lame horror really prevent Downpour from making the killer impact Silent Hill really requires if it is to dominate and establish itself within a contemporary audience. All in all though, a wonderful atmosphere and some well-executed design choices all contribute to making Silent Hill: Downpour a must-own game if you’re a fan of the series or of survival-horror in general.
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