Silent Hill: Shatered Memories - for the Wii

[TVsAdam]

Anyone remember the game Clocktower? That's what this is reminding me of.

I'm afraid that that's what it's going to turn into, yeah.  I guess I sort of get the appeal of a game like Clock Tower, but for me it's just a frustrating experience; it's scary in a different and less satisfying way.  Games like that make me afraid that I'm going to get a game over and lose my progress since my last save, because once the monsters or whatever get their hands on me there's not much I can do about it.  Games like Silent Hill just freak me right the hell out.  I'll take the latter over the former anyday.

This is part of the reason why I never played Siren, which sounds like SUCH a neat idea, but zipping back and forth between a bunch of different powerless characters to sneak past the monsters...ugh.  I'm just not made for stealth-based gaming, I guess. 

[AllieLovesYou]

Anyone remember the game Clocktower? That's what this is reminding me of.

I'm afraid that that's what it's going to turn into, yeah.  I guess I sort of get the appeal of a game like Clock Tower, but for me it's just a frustrating experience; it's scary in a different and less satisfying way.  Games like that make me afraid that I'm going to get a game over and lose my progress since my last save, because once the monsters or whatever get their hands on me there's not much I can do about it.  Games like Silent Hill just freak me right the hell out.  I'll take the latter over the former anyday.

This is part of the reason why I never played Siren, which sounds like SUCH a neat idea, but zipping back and forth between a bunch of different powerless characters to sneak past the monsters...ugh.  I'm just not made for stealth-based gaming, I guess. 

I can understand what you mean when you say that its scary in a different way (ie: terrfied of losing your game progress). But in a way, I think that is supposed to be part of the fear, or at least the urgency of running from whatever is attacking you. You are always on guard for when it will show up, you are always trying to keep moving and have a real feeling of helplessness.

I never really associated it with stealthing, because I was hauling ass through the levels, just trying to get away (at least with Clocktower 3). But Ive only seen Siren played, so I don't really recall how that game went.

Like jewishcarpenter said about Clocktower, I never played the first two. But Clocktower 3 was damn scary game. I mean one hit and that was it for you. Id love to see a system similiar to that being used (the panic system).

Anywho, Im really psyched for this new idea of no combat, I just hope since its the new team taking the helm they don't screw it up. One of my biggest fears is that they will try to take some stuff from the movie.

[varietyofcells]

Well now that E3 is over we know a whole lot more about this game, which answerers some of the questions we had and gives rise to even further speculation. 

Here are links to the demo at e3.

Part 1 - http://wii.ign.com/dor/objects/14325477/silent-hill/videos/_silenthillwii_gmp_walk1_060109.html

Part 2 - http://wii.ign.com/dor/objects/14325477/silent-hill/videos/_silenthillwii_gmp_walk2_060109.html

Part 3 - http://wii.ign.com/dor/objects/14325477/silent-hill/videos/_silenthillwii_gmp_walk3_060109.html

And here were my reactions, posted in the E3 thread.

Oh, and you guys saw the Silent Hill Wii demo right?  I'm too excited now... the music is so awesome.  There seems to be less of the mediocre pop rock and more creepy ambiance / industrial scariness when everything freezes over.  I'm really digging having to run away from monsters.  Especially with that flashlight and it's incredibly fast falloff that goes from like an f22 to a f1.4 in a matter of inches; only showing you what you point it at....sorry... lighting nerd kicked in for a second.  The lighting does look really nice though, and the snow is very reminiscent of the first game.  And the story is already interesting.  He lives in Silent Hill but he doesn't remember that, or anything about the town?  Some thing's not right about that... I need to know more!

EDIT: Also, you can hop over fences and walls.  How many times have you just wanted to hop over a fence in a silent hill game?  And I forgot the most impressive thing dealing with light: the bending of light as it goes through blocks of ice is creepy and amazing.

Since then a new trailer has been released with more information. 

http://wii.ign.com/dor/objects/14325477/silent-hill/videos/shille3trailer.html

Apparently there are people living in the house that is supposedly yours, and Dalia is a bimbo.  Or, I guess she can be a bimbo, depending on how you play it.  They go a little more in depth into things that actually change here in this article.

Article - http://wii.ign.com/articles/992/992025p1.html

So if that's not enough to get you excited about the game, well I don't know what is.  I'll most likely be posting more thoughts later. 

[varietyofcells]

Oh dear god... they just released new screen shots, and this new monster is absolutely horrifying.  They weren't joking when they said this game plays off your inner most fears, this is freaky.  It's not a big spoiler, but I'll spoiler it for those who aren't curious.

[mrbasehart]

Oh dear god... they just released new screen shots, and this new monster is absolutely horrifying.  They weren't joking when they said this game plays off your inner most fears, this is freaky.  It's not a big spoiler, but I'll spoiler it for those who aren't curious.

[Rude]

...

GameStop's listing for Silent Hill: Shattered Memories (also on PS2, PSP) includes a pre-order item that seems perfect for a Silent Hill game: a soundtrack disc containing "18 of your favorite tracks from the Silent Hill series." Akira Yamaoka's music is one of the standout elements of the series...

Rest of article: here.

-Rude

[Rude]

...

There's about eight minutes of gameplay over at Kotaku: here.

Looks pretty freakin' sweet. I love the fact that you just have to run for it sometimes, aimlessly jumping through doors, while trying to escape the monsters. It actually had me tense just watching the footage. I love to explore and check out every inch of a level if i can, so forcing me to run blindly to avoid death adds a whole new level of anxiety.

"Wait, what was that door? Maybe i should have gone that way! Damn it, they're everywhere! I need health or something, should i go into that room or keep running down the hallway. Oh no, there's a monster in that doorway... shouldn't go in there. But can i go back later? Crap... they're right behind me! Keep running, keep running!"

-Rude

[varietyofcells]

The music is great too.  Wasn't a big fan of the music in Silent Hill 4, but I'm glad it's back to its more industrial roots.  I'm just nervous that they are going to push the release date.  There has been little news on it, and it's coming up soon.  Maybe they just don't want to ruin any of the surprises.  But I love that it comes out the day before my birthday.  Very excited.

[Rude]

...

Just a quick heads up: I think Shattered Memories drops next Tuesday.

-Rude

[Rude]

...

So this was pretty disappointing. Overall, it just feels like an old point-and-click computer game from the early nineties or something. And there are basically only two modes of play; in one you wander around and collect things, and in the other you run from monsters.

The first isn't so bad. I enjoy exploring every nook and cranny in these sorts of games. But for the most part Shattered Memories is very linear, so there's not much you'll find by going out of the way. I'm also about five hours in, and so far the puzzles haven't been very challenging at all.

The other mode basically has you running for your life from the creepy Silent Hill monsters. I think the trick is to memorize a route that gets you out of the nightmare world the fastest. Unfortunately the in-game map is useless, the Wii controls don't respond very well, and the third person view can get confusing after jumping or ducking. The result is death by monster... repeatedly.

There are some really fun elements though, like using the controller as a flashlight... which works great. And receiving phone calls through your Wiimote is pretty fun. You actually have to hold the controller like a cell phone and listen to the calls through the built-in speaker. I'd heard of that being used in other games, but it works really well in Shattered Memories. And it's actually very creepy at times.

The other neat thing is that the game sort of responds to the way you play by changing the world and the characters that you interact with. I haven't finished my first play through yet, but i can already see where some of these changes will happen. For example, my friend met one character in a bar. I actually met the same character in a family restaurant. Probably superficial for the most part, but knowing about Silent Hill's penchant for multiple endings... i have to imagine that at least a few of these differences will eventually play out for a significantly different experience in the end.

Basically, it's just another average game so far. There's good and bad, and it is one of the few mature titles available for the Wii. I'm not a Silent Hill junkie, so i'm not sure how it compares to the rest of the series. But there's some good atmosphere and a few creepy scares to be had.  But if you haven't picked it up yet... ya' might want to want until it goes on sale and save yourself a few bucks.

-Rude

[jewishcarpenter]

In related news the disappointing Silent Hill: Homecoming is only $13 on newegg.
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16874149012&CMP=AFC-C8Junction

[Rude]

...

I kinda' liked Homecoming. Although, it was one of the first games that i ever played on my 360. So it might have just been part of the overall experience or something.

-Rude

[Edward J Grug III]

The reviews I've read of it so far makes it sound great.

I think the fact that I've never played a Silent Hill game before might be to my advantage.