Written by Matt Cabral, 10/1/2008
Played on:
Xbox 360
Oh how I’ve missed you faceless zombie nurse, choking fog, and thing that goes “bump” in the night--it's been too long since I’ve dug into a decent Silent Hill-style survival horror romp (meaning one that favors atmosphere over ass-kicking.) Sony’s recent Siren: Blood Curse and even SH’s own PSP effort from earlier this year have partially managed to scratch my itch for creepy storytelling, grotesque mutations, and undie-soiling scenarios. But, more than just being scratched I’ve been waiting for that itch to be rubbed bloody raw ever since the next-gen consoles arrived. Now, with Silent Hill: Homecoming, one of my two favorite (the other being Resident Evil, of course) horror franchises has finally arrived on my horsepower-pushing Xbox 360.
For the first time Double Helix has taken the reins of Konami’s fright-filled franchise, and, for the most part, it seems a changing of the guard was the right move. Team Silent, Konami’s in-house developer began to lose ground after the series crowning creep-fest Silent Hill 2; SH3 wasn’t great, and The Room was worse. With Homecoming, Double Helix have crafted far from a perfect game, but one that at least gets the series back on the right track. Like Resident Evil, before its game-changing fourth entry was released, this franchise has been long in need of a serious update. It was time to do away with the clunky, tank-like controls, frustrating cinematic camera, and head-scratching narrative threads. Homecoming addresses all these issues and more, offering the best Silent Hill since 2.
The most significant change comes in the character movement and combat controls; playing as Alex Sheperd—a recently returned-home soldier—you’re given abilities far outshining those of previous SH protagonists. This may be a sticking point for fans of the series’ previous, more helpless heroes, but putting a more combat capable character at the forefront feels like a positive evolutionary step for the series. As Alex, you’ll possess a variety of quick counters, dodges and combos, assuring you’ll do less running away than you’ve done in previous games. You’re also equipped with a variety of upgradeable blunt melee weapons and guns. Unfortunately, the developers off-set our better-prepared protagonist by making some enemy encounters excruciatingly difficult. There are far too many frustrating moments where you’re simply overwhelmed by re-spawning menaces, that eventually send you packing to your last check point. This is too bad because the new combat mechanics are otherwise well implemented. At least the camera, now far more in the player’s control, doesn’t aggravate these situations.
When you’re not beating on (or being beaten by) Homecoming’s impressive line-up of multi-limbed, oozing, spitting, jerking monstrosities—the creatures are impressively creep-inducing—you’ll be tackling a variety of puzzles. Many, especially those that help flesh-out the story, are very clever, but others are a snooze. You’ll spend lots of time lost in same-y hallways, hunting for dumb objects, and being rejected by locked doors. Fetch quests and needless backtracking were okay in the PS2 era, but gamers demand more from their interactive experiences today. Still, enough of the puzzling is story-driving and inventive enough to keep you slogging through the non-sensical stuff.
Homecoming’s mind-melting tale will also have you hanging in there through the murky moments. In fact, for the first time ever with a SH title, I completed the campaign with a full understanding of what just transpired in the cursed town. Not only does the story make perfect sense, it packs enough twists to nudge you toward the edge of your seat multiple times. As with all games in this spine-tingling series, you begin by searching for a loved one who's--big surprise--disappeared mysteriously, but things go expectedly haywire from there, and the creep quotient ratchets up at a nice pace. The second half, especially, excels at weaving an unsettling narrative, so stick with it even if some of the earlier frustrations have you contemplating throwing in the towel.
The entire production is complemented by the excellent atmosphere the franchise is famous for creating. The score and gut-wrenching sound effects nicely set the macabre mood, and the visual presentation—aside from just being too damn dark some of the time—is equally successful at setting your neck hairs on end. Enemies are as sickening as ever, and some of the bosses will have you calling for your mommy. Pyramid Head, of course, is on board in all his five-pointed-noggin' glory. Additionally, the titular town’s hellish counterpart, the Otherworld, will likely live in your nightmares long after you’ve completed the game. Despite a bit more focus on action, the series, first and foremost, continues to deliver frightening atmosphere in spades.
Homecoming shows a significant improvement over the franchise’s last console outing, but there’s still work to be done. Combat is much improved despite being nerfed by screwy balancing, the new camera hits the right balance between controllable and cinematic, and the story—supported by super creepy audio and visual work—is outstanding. Now, if we can get the mundane puzzling up to snuff, tweak the combat difficulty and maybe shed just a bit more light—it’s even hard to see with your flashlight, sometimes—on the drenched-in-darkness presentation, we’ll have good reason to visit this cursed town again. Homecoming is superior to the series' last two console efforts, and a must-play for those that have been hankering for a horror-filled fix in a console generation that’s seemed to left the moody genre in the darkness.
