EchoOfMidgar

Games: 652 Reviews: 44

**This review is based on my Steam review**KONAMI brought us a game that we will be talking about for years. For a mainstream game its story is surprisingly deep, extremely twisted and totally unpredictable (though you may have a feeling you know how the story will evolve, but nope). For a mainstream game its story is not one dimensional - it has multiple meanings which leads to multiple endings. Maybe you read that the game is so-called woke but I do not want to get into it. Just know, it is not true. The game, at first sight, tells just a story about a girl who is not quite happy with her family, but no, the main themes lie somewhere else.Gameplay-wise, the game is ALMOST a typical Silent Hill game, which is good. However, this almost is critical, but I will come back to it later. Exploration, keys, notes, everything is fantastic. But the best parts are puzzles. Very nicely designed, thoughtful and easy to understand but quite tricky to complete. The level design is fantastic and despite the fact the game takes place in one rural Japanese town, the environments are variable and provide always something new.The combat system takes an inspiration from the Soulslike subgenre. I must say it fits survival genre very well. The combat is very punishing and difficult on hard (did not play on easy yet) and it takes time to get used to it. Give it some time and you will understand the rhythm, which is its key element. Then you will know when to dodge, when to use hard attacks, etc. The game could provide a little bit more types of enemies, but at least you can focus on the movements of the existing types. It is a crucial factor in combat here. I liked also how the game handled boss fights.Graphics and music are also top notch. Fantastic vistas, tight streets, unsettling otherworld, from simple horror sounds to beautifully haunting ending credits theme. Graphics and composers gave all of their hearts into the game.But now it is time to come back to the ALMOST. Silent Hill f has one big, very big problem. Handholding. The series /or at least its best entries/ known for a great immersion consisting of the character itself making notes on the map and nothing else has turned into an abortion that literally - at same places - tells you to go through the door you have just opened. I am not kidding. GO THROUGH THE DOOR. What the hell has happened that we have fallen from the infamous piano puzzle in Silent Hill 1 to a game that thinks it needs to tell you to go through to a door because, I don't know, it thinks you are that stupid?I really do not know what is going on here. What the hell the developers thought? That the players would just stand and stare at the opened door? Or refund the game because the game did not tell them that they were supposed to go through it? While Silent Hill f is a bright example that AAA gaming can still be an 'art', it is also a game that represents everything bad with modern games.Objectives in Silent Hill are nonsense. You are not supposed to know what to do before the event even happens (meaning like some objectives here - Find a way to open the gate - even before you see any gate!). Players do not need the game to tell them they need to find a way to open the gate. When they finally appear in front of the gate, they will know what to do, because it is LOCKED and the only way forward is through the gate. Or you have a door locked by three sockets. Players know they need to find three things that fit the sockets. The game does not need to tell them and throw them away from the immersion. That ruins the game completely! You are not supposed to have the lifeline in a form of a text, you are not supposed to have your back secured by the game that pushes you forward and thinks instead of yourself. This is not how Silent Hill worked and is supposed to work.Listen, I have nothing against helping players with hints or objectives, but only when it is not mandatory. Silent Hill f needs options allowing players to experience classic Silent Hill, because not only Silent Hill f deserves it but mainly we players that have been with the series since 1999.

KarosuMaker

Verified owner

Games: 67 Reviews: 1

Just started it.The story goes too fast and the "message" is too on your nose, like they think the payer base are too dumb to put the pieces together.It's still a fun experience. But not very scary or similar to anything Silent Hill.

Akeashar

Verified owner

Games: 1245 Reviews: 9

Silent Hill f is a glorious mainline entry to the franchise, finally capturing the magic of the first two games after several decades of less than stellar entries.Firstly, the rough. Theres the fact we didn't get access to the preorder content, and I've had half a dozen crashes over 80 hours. There are also instances where the game would begin to stutter until I either paused it for a while, or I ended up laoding a save game.The good? Everything else. The graphics are beautiful, the japanese voice acting is perfect, the designs are stellar, and the writing is top notch. This is a game where the writing is layers within layers, of symbology, psychology and people that lie not only to others but themselves.This is a game that doesn't pull punches, that subjects you to horror, and as you pass through each NG+ the experience deepens.A few things to note: Go in blind, I can imagine some of the events are a lot less impactful to watch rather than experience playing.Each New Game cycle does bring new content until NG+++ with additional lore to collect and insights into the cast.They recently added a 'skip' function for a specific sequence in the game. If you're doing the True End route, do *not* skip it as you'll miss a major change regarding one of the cutscenes during the event. Theres also collectables and achievements to get in it.All in all, I can't recommend this enough for fans of Horror, J-Horror and the more psychological Silent Hill titles.

xoxoxalice

Verified owner

Games: 32 Reviews: 1

So, honestly, this is my new favorite game of all time.Silent Hill F captures exactly what Silent Hill is all about. Horror that is Primarily dark art. Art representing the complex and painful - In ways that are meant to capture how scary, grotesque, sad, or torturous it is to feel those feelings or have those experiences. Silent Hill F also packages it in a way that is so captivating - There's so many moments that are objectively beautiful, heart wrenchingly emotional, & as shocking as an ice bath.This isn't just a terrifying environment with incredible sound design and thrilling scares - it's a one of a kind experience.I love this game so much and i can't wait to keep playing more of it! ^w^ (even though it's genuinely giving me nightmares so bad i've been waking up in the middle of the night haha - which has never happened to me in all the horror media i've consumed.)There's so much more i want to say, but i'll just leave it at that lol.

Memecchi

Games: Reviews: 7

While there's a good amount of combat, especially towards the end, at its core Silent Hill f offers the traditional, classic SH experience, with a story that delves in the traumas of our protagonists, full of symbolism and a surprisingly good pacing with shorter levels, also if you like ryukishi's writing (Higurashi, Umineko no naku koro ni) you will probably enjoy SH f too in that regardThe game also offers a decent amount of replayability, so you will get more than the standard run of a Silent hill

Add a review

Edit a review

No reviews matching your criteria