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The initial reaction to Silent Hill 2

Winston1

Winston1

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
2,108
The recent TLJ discussions have got me thinking about fan reactions to other franchises. Specifically, I'm remembering what Jeremy Blaustein, who worked as the translator and voice director on Silent Hill 2, 3 and 4, has mentioned in the past the initial response that Silent Hill 2 got from fans.

I don't have my old gaming magazines, so I barely remember some of the press, but when I intereviewed Jeremy Blaustein he mentioned that Silent Hill 3 was what it was because people thought Silent Hill 2 was "too psychological." So , in response to the backlash of some people, they made Silent Hill a direct sequel to the first game, including characters related to that story, the cult, Alessa, Lisa, the whole birthing god stuff, and even blood and rust. So the devs listening to what people were saying about the games is not something that has only happened recently.
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http://alchemillahospital.net/omg-silent-hill-is-dead-and-other-fallacies/

Jeremy Blaustein sad:

The thing is, when SH2 came out, I will NEVER forget the fan reaction. "Why wasn't it more like SH1??" "It's too psychological"" THAT is why SH3 went in the direction IT went. Creators should not listen to their critics and fan base overly much or their creativity will be diluted until it is beige, bland and boring.
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http://tokenflipguy.tumblr.com/post/116409990840/the-thing-is-when-sh2-came-out-i-will-never


I've also heard similar things from some people on the Silent Hill: Heaven and Silent Hill: Community forums who were around at the time of Silent Hill 2's release. They say that many fans hated Silent Hill 2 because it wasn't scary, the gameplay was too easy, and the plot had almost nothing to do with the first game.

Now I don't want this to devolve into another TLJ thread. I just find it interesting that something like Silent Hill 2 received such criticisms from fans which directly affected the development of the next installment in the series, and that this reaction has been completely forgotten.
 
JustAnotherOne

JustAnotherOne

Member
Jan 2, 2018
2,029
This is one of those games that I was way too young to play when it came out but I'm just DYING to play after all the things I have heard and read about it. OG XBOX BC is my last hope /:
 

Phediuk

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,327
It was initially overshadowed due to coming out right after 9/11 and during the ridiculous blitz of games in fall 2001.
 
TheIdiot

TheIdiot

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
2,729
Now I have an urge to replay one of the greatest survival horror games of all time.
 
Lurcharound

Lurcharound

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,068
UK
Plinko said:
Was Silent Hill 2 bad? I never played the series.
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The best psychological horror game to date and the best in the SH franchise and GOAT status in the industry.

So no!

It is great example of vocal minority wanting more of the same a'la TFA and less differences.

If the changes are more challenging and cerebral the backlash always seems to all the stronger IMO and more bitter.
 
Plinko

Plinko

Member
Oct 28, 2017
18,580
Thanks for the responses. I vaguely recall people saying it was great, but the OP quotes made it seem otherwise.

Is it on Vita PSN?
 
visvim

visvim

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
1,160
Along with RE4, It's actually aged better than almost every game from the PS2 era.

When it came out I can remember pretty much universal acclaim amongst my friends and magazine subscriptions in the uk at the time.
 
BocoDragon

BocoDragon

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
5,207
I remember being really disappointed in the rather slow intro and first level to the game, compared to SH1. Now it's a rather iconic opening to a game, but it just wasn't as initially shocking as SH1's dead end alley and school first level. It is a kind of long slow walk to a pretty drab opening environment.

I bounced off it, and only in the months leading up to SH3 (only 1-2 years later) did I hear the buzz that SH2 was beloved. I played through it and came to agree.
 
Joker13

Joker13

Banned
Oct 28, 2017
830
that plot twist solidified it for me as one of the all time greats

it was simply mesmerizing
 
Mr_Zombie

Mr_Zombie

Member
Oct 27, 2017
971
Poland
Plinko said:
Was Silent Hill 2 bad? I never played the series.
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No, it was and still is (mainly due to it's atmosphere, story, music, art direction and the storytelling through gameplay thing) great. But it was so, so different to what Silent Hill 1 was. Where SH1 was about an evil cult that wanted little girl to birth a new god, a town trapped in the little girl's nightmare, physical pain etc... SH2 was about saddness, depression, nostalgia, lost love and psychological pain. Where the theme of SH1's art was rust and blood, SH2's art was about decaying things, grayness.

The gameplay stayed the same, but the atmosphere, themes, story, mood was all different.
 
Acquiescence

Acquiescence

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
10,257
Lake Titicaca
My memory is vague at best, but I recall Silent Hill 2 being pretty damn acclaimed when it came out. One of the magazines I bought at the time, maybe Official UK PlayStation or something like that, gave it an 89 or 92. That review alone convinced me to get it even though I found the first one too scary lol. The response back then wasn't really all that different to how the game is treated now.

Plus I always found 2's story far more compelling than the cult stuff of 1 and 3.
 
Puddington

Puddington

Member
Nov 2, 2017
322
I don't recall any backlash about the story around that time.

The only thing I remember was that GameSpot gave it 7 at the time. I thought that was low after playing the game. But it was my first experience with Silent Hill. So I love Silent Hill 2 and didn't really feel like I was missing anything by not knowing the first game's storyline.
 
Naar

Naar

Member
Oct 29, 2017
3,069
I don't remember any backlash for this game. I thought people thought it was great when it came out?
 
Dust

Dust

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Oct 25, 2017
32,297
SH2 has the best take on SH concept and is one of the best games ever created.
Surreal psychological trap is better than "lol cult".
 
StuBurns

StuBurns

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Banned
Nov 12, 2017
7,273
I don't remember any fan reactions, because I was a kid without access to GAF or whatever, but the reaction at my school was that it was fucking awesome.

Same for MGS2 actually. I don't even remember any major talk about Raiden being bad.

I thought it was a revelation personally. SH1 was already far better than the REs of the time, but SH2... I actually think SH3 is for the most part just as good actually. Most people seem to heavily favour 2.
 
Blade Wolf

Blade Wolf

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
9,512
Taiwan
Plinko said:
Was Silent Hill 2 bad? I never played the series.
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It's a monument of a game, a shinning example of masterful video game writing and story telling, not just in cutscenes but in gameplay, enemy design and environment design as well. It wouldn't be nearly as powerful as a book or a movie.

Dust said:
SH2 has the best take on SH concept and is one of the best games ever created.
Surreal psychological trap is better than "lol cult".
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lol cult with some weird lady that doesn't have eyebrows.
 

Deleted member 4346

User requested account closure
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Oct 25, 2017
8,976
Yeah, the initial reviews and reaction on gaming forums to Silent Hill 2 were mixed. It's one of those games whose reputation has grown and grown over time, probably because it was ahead of its time. I was honestly in love with the game right when it launched in '01, played it not long after it came out and was floored... but in all honesty I didn't play the original, so I was coming from a different perspective than a lot of the critical Silent Hill fans were.
 
UnluckyKate

UnluckyKate

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Oct 25, 2017
10,553
I remember the hype, people saw the infamous trailer with Laura's theme and all praised the second coming
 
Sonicfan059

Sonicfan059

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Mar 4, 2018
3,024
BocoDragon said:
I remember being really disappointed in the rather slow intro and first level to the game, compared to SH1. Now it's a rather iconic opening to a game, but it just wasn't as initially shocking as SH1's dead end alley and school first level. It is a kind of long slow walk to a pretty drab opening environment.

I bounced off it, and only in the months leading up to SH3 (only 1-2 years later) did I hear the buzz that SH2 was beloved. I played through it and came to agree.
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Yeah the start was really slow, just running through areas for like 15 minutes. I preferred SH3 but SH2 was as close to second as anything could be imo.
 
Jombie

Jombie

Member
Oct 27, 2017
10,392
SH2 is my favorite game and always will be. It's a shame the team buckled to criticism, as they cult nonsense was by far the least interesting thing about SH1 and subsequently, SH3. It's also goes a bit too far with the "blood and rust" aesthetic, it's just garish. I prefer the quiet decay of 2.
 
7threst

7threst

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Oct 25, 2017
3,297
Netherlands
I can totally understand why the first reactions were negative. The first SH was great and the second was quite a departure from what the first game did. But let's be real, SH 2 is considered a classic now, right? At least that's how I view that game.
 
PhazonBlonde

PhazonBlonde

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May 18, 2018
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Yeah a lot of fans hated it because it "made no sense" and didn't tie into the original in any kind of easy way. It's the best in the series, though. Fans are stupid much of the time
 
OP
OP
Winston1

Winston1

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
2,108
7threst said:
I can totally understand why the first reactions were negative. The first SH was great and the second was quite a departure from what the first game did. But let's be real, SH 2 is considered a classic now, right? At least that's how I view that game.
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Most certainly. It's considered far more of a classic than even SH1, ironically enough.

(Though, personally, I think SH1 is the superior horror game.)
 
Dreamboum

Dreamboum

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Oct 28, 2017
22,868
that's why SH3 is such a disappointment. It's a by the book game. Masahiro Ito hinted as much that his boss pressured him to make changes
 
InquisitorAles

InquisitorAles

Member
Oct 26, 2017
3,201
Belarus
This is ridiculous, Silent Hill 2 is one of the best games ever made and I was wondering why the heck Silent Hill 3 was nothing like it, now I know why. Developers shouldn't always listen to every angry hardcore fan
 
Potato_Control

Potato_Control

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Jun 30, 2018
117
I remember being really depressed (college problems) when I played it the first time, honestly I was playing it just to escape my problems but when I got to the ending (car suicide one) it really hit me hard. That game has a special place in my heart, I hope they do a re-release on steam one day and also #F_Konami
 
JigglesBunny

JigglesBunny

Prophet of Truth
Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
31,153
Chicago
Silent Hill 3 is by far my favorite game in the series but Silent Hill 2 is also one of my favorite games of all time so to see any sort of backlash against it feels weird.

I think nowadays you'd be hard pressed to find many who dislike it.
 

Dark1x

Digital Foundry
Verified
Oct 26, 2017
3,530
I dunno, I was around on GAF at the time and I seem to recall a positive reaction overall.

Silent Hill 2 and ICO were released on the same day and I bought them both at the time. Spent the afternoon playing ICO then the evening playing Silent Hill 2. It absolutely blew me away. That first run through Silent Hill 2 is one of the most memorable gaming moments in my personal history. I'm not sure anything could ever recapture that feeling - of that specific time and place. It was perfect.

Silent Hill 2 also released at a perfect time for me personally - I had only just discovered horror games in the past year. I mean, Resident Evil and Alone in the Dark I had played but I never found them terrifying.

It started for me with the original Thief in late 98 - some of the stages I found terrifying. Thief 2 as well.

Then System Shock 2 which left a huge impression on me.

...after that, a friend recommended Silent Hill 1 and I loved it. Silent Hill 2 became one of my most anticipated titles as a result and, well, the rest is history.

I also loved part 3 in its own way. It was different but still a great Silent Hill experience.
 
7threst

7threst

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Oct 25, 2017
3,297
Netherlands
Potato_Control said:
I remember being really depressed (college problems) when I played it the first time, honestly I was playing it just to escape my problems but when I got to the ending (car suicide one) it really hit me hard. That game has a special place in my heart, I hope they do a re-release on steam one day and also #F_Konami
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I can't imagine playing SH 2 when being depressed. I mean, the motives in this game are pretty strong (not sure if this is correct English, sorry!) and the game hits like a brick even when feeling fine.

It does sound you ended up ok, so that's cool! Still, games like these aren't for everybody, especially if you're not feeling mentally all well.
 
Starlatine

Starlatine

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Oct 28, 2017
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Someone saying Silent Hill 2 wasnt scary after playing SH makes no sense. The game is way more heavy and reliant on true psychological horror than the first one, which many might forget that still overused cheap jump scares and beaten horror tropes at many points. The graphical jump alone is to this day jawdropping. The plot at the date (and frankly to this day) was unmatched in the genre and still miles better than the rest of the cult plotline. There is a reason every other new game in the serie tried to copy it instead of the first or the newer, 'improved' SH3
 
Sirank

Sirank

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Oct 27, 2017
1,323
I remember renting it right when it came out and absolutely loving the vibe and graphics so much I went and bought it. My friend and I played it together during christmas break working out the puzzles together and beat it over a few days. Got all the different endings and what not.

Haven't played it since then, really need to one of these days. I think I could understand the themes and what not better now.
 
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