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GC 2008: Silent Hill: Homecoming Hands-On

By Guy Cocker, GameSpot UKPosted Aug 20, 2008 5:13 pm PT

Konami's survival horror series makes its first appearance on the Xbox 360 and PS3 soon. We shuffled along to the company's booth for a new hands-on.

Even in the hustle and bustle of a busy convention centre, there's something unsettling about playing Silent Hill. From the creepy intro to the grainy look of the game overall, we had an enjoyably scary time playing it on the Xbox 360 at this year's Leipzig Games Convention.

The demo itself was similar to the one that we played at this year's E3, but we were able play a different level of the game in Germany. It started with us viewing through the eyes of the protagonist, who was strapped down to a medical stretcher that was being led through a hospital. As we looked around, we could see people being operated on (or tortured, as is probably more accurate) by the crazed creatures who had taken over the establishment. Shortly after, we were left in an operating room while a strange creature waited outside. Thankfully, we were able to tap the X button to escape from the shackles, allowing us more freedom to explore the world.

It's clear that Silent Hill has taken a few tips from Resident Evil in updating the franchise. The main character moves more quickly and freely than in previous games, and though it can still be difficult to move quickly enough when engaging an enemy, the controls feel much more nimble than before. The combat also feels more frenetic, and we were able to finish off some of the nurses by grabbing their heads and stabbing them in the neck. Needless to say, gushers of blood sprayed all over the place, some of it even hitting the camera.

In terms of puzzles, the game seems to be in more familiar Silent Hill territory. We encountered a door with an electronic lock, but in the adjacent room we found a clue: half of an X-ray sheet that had a number scrawled across it. With a little help from our Konami representative, we were able to find the other half of the sheet and put together the code. Shortly after, we entered the hospital toilets (and what Silent Hill game would be complete without toilets?), where we saw the game slip into the "alternate universe" state, which should be familiar to fans of the series. The walls stripped away to reveal a much grimier hospital than before.

This Silent Hill takes the series' traditional art style and filters it through the Xbox 360 to create an arresting new look. The flashlight looks particularly realistic, especially in casting shadows, and a lot of the medical equipment lying around would shake if we bumped into it. The characters and environments are detailed, but the intentionally grimy look makes the game feel as if it has been captured on old, decaying film. It won't be to everyone's taste, but it certainly adds to the atmosphere of the game.

We're encouraged by what we saw of the new Silent Hill, and we'll hopefully get to see more of it on the show floor in the coming days. The game launches on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 later in the year.

75 Comments

  • Jackc8

    Posted Aug 1, 2009 6:15 am PT

    This game's been out for nearly a year - and still no review? What, Silent Hill isn't an important enough franchise for Gamespot to cover?

  • 486248624862486

    Posted Oct 9, 2008 1:43 am PT

    Where is the coverage of this game?!!!

  • Vasot

    Posted Oct 7, 2008 5:28 am PT

    The game is nothing special according to the people that played it

    IGN gave it a 6.7 score
    Yikeeessss

  • 10679

    Posted Oct 5, 2008 3:25 pm PT

    the game got a B or slightly higher. you can read the review at www.1up.com

  • rofolini

    Posted Oct 1, 2008 2:32 am PT

    Now that this game has been released there should be some reviews, right? What is going on... is this game not worth reviewer's time?

  • Joman1000

    Posted Sep 15, 2008 1:52 am PT

    Here's a question that maybe someone will have an answer to;

    Why is no one covering this game's progress anymore? It's like it's being kept completely under wraps, or publishers/journalists just don't care. I work at Gamestop and every day I come into work I pass through Barnes & Noble and read EGM, Game Informer, Play, PC Gamer, etc... and they're either making absolutely NO mention of Silent Hill Homecoming, or the mention they do make is brief and incredibly uninformative. It's frustrating because it's really the only game that I'm passionately awaiting some more info on, and I'm getting much, much less than basically every other game coming out.

    Is Konami keeping this one behind lock & key or something?

  • etramleinad12

    Posted Sep 9, 2008 8:42 pm PT

    Prepare to be paranoid in HD.

  • Laughlin13

    Posted Sep 5, 2008 3:50 pm PT

    i hope this makes up for SH4,and thank god that we get a main character that looks like he has killed someone before,but its looks like its going to be awesome

  • crudmanIV

    Posted Sep 4, 2008 11:37 pm PT

    cool. the only SH experience I have is the movie but this might be something I'll look into

  • shoks64

    Posted Sep 4, 2008 11:15 am PT

    september 30th only in north america.Later in november in europe

  • Pompon_2

    Posted Sep 4, 2008 10:11 am PT

    Does anyone know the exact time of the release??? Its saids in september olny what day?

  • Genocide901

    Posted Sep 3, 2008 6:53 pm PT

    Yes, I too have high hopes for the game's story and atmosphere. I've only recently gotten into Silent Hill and have only played 2 and 4 (although I have educated myself on the other games in the series), and I am hopeful because the developers stated in an interview (I believe) that they are trying to go with a Silent Hill 2-esque story and atmosphere.

    Xavier, believe me, I can tell that you aren't trying to fight with me. Chances are you'd sound a lot madder and dumber if you were. I do kind of see where you're coming from with the combat system. I actually thought that the combat in The Room was pretty good: auto lock was pretty appropriate, and the controls were actually pretty fluid but Henry's attacks still gave a sense of his lack of combat experience. If we're talking about a character with not combat experience, then I think that the combat would be best implemented if you could easily control the protagonist's movement and time of attack, but then the actual attack animations would have to play out in some way that made them seem inexperienced....you know what I mean? The player has complete control although the character may be inept in skill.

    Obviously this is not the case with Homecoming, what with the whole dodging and counter system a la Origins. I have faith in the developers, though, despite everyone else's doubts. Who knows, maybe the combat will actually be scarier because of its increased intensity. Of course, this is not what everyone wants.

    We'll just have to see come September 30.

  • Darth_Xavier

    Posted Sep 3, 2008 1:29 pm PT

    Ok Genocide once again I am completely on your side with everything but the combat. Yes, we dont know much about the story or the characters and I personally have high hopes for that. I really want the series to go back to the psychological horror roots. While I understand what youre saying about the combat system in the previous games, thats what I personally liked. Yes, they were clunky and sometimes irritating. But like I said before, the characters were ordinary people. They werent some super commandos going in to save the world from some otherworldly menace. They were ordinary people who were in the wrong place at the right time.

    Not trying to pick a fight with you dude, but I am a huge fan of the series and I want to see this series go back to its roots.

  • Genocide901

    Posted Sep 2, 2008 4:53 pm PT

    In response to Joman1000: Here is an excerpt from your most recent post: "The previous Silent Hill games, regardless of what anyone says, stood on their own because each one of them was a sort of a representation of a nightmare or all of our paranoid delusions/religious and spiritual fears. This game, however, appears to be nothing more than a shallow interpretation of the previous games, therefore, as far as I can tell, it has a fraction of the atmosphere and emotive nature of the previous games. It's more high budget American nonsense."

    Now, please keep in mind that I am NOT attacking you, but I do have to wonder what exactly you are basing this interpretation on. Of the gameplay videos that I have seen, there has been little to no information on the development of the story, only combat/puzzle/exploration scenes. The trailer gives a little insights as does one film of a cutscene early in the game, but aside from these we have been presented with very little insight into the characters. So I ask you, how can you be so certain that the protagonist will NOT have a terrifying story that plays on both his and our own nightmares and delusions? What I'm getting at here is, do you really not see any potential in this game, or do you just have no faith because of the development team?

    Secondly, while I do understand everyone's concerns with the combat system and increased emphasis on action in the game, I'd like to point out that the control schemes and combat systems in the previous games were never something to be admired. In most instances they were clunky and irritating at times. And I must remind everyone that a control scheme should not make a game unfun. Granted, as joman stated, this is a survival/psychological horror game, and as such it is intended to disturb the player to a degree. However, creating a disturbing atmosphere and moderate sense of helplessness is not accomplished by providing the player with poor controls. Because, we must all keep in mind that while Silent Hill is meant to be a disturbing game, it should also be FUN TO PLAY.

    Thanks for reading.

  • Darth_Xavier

    Posted Sep 2, 2008 3:21 pm PT

    I get where Joman1000 is coming from. And as far as the combat goes I agree, it shouldnt be another version of Resident Evil (no offense to the fans of that series) as one of the main reasons that Silent Hill was so scary and great was the fact that the protagonists were regular people. They didnt know how to use the weapons they had, they didnt know how to use a gun, and that added to the fear you gained from the games.

    But on the other hand, they had already lost the psychological aspect of the game with Silent Hill 4, I didnt really feel that Henry had the connection with the town that the others did and I couldnt really connect with him like I could the others.

    As long as we are able to connect with the character there shouldnt be any problems on my part personally.

  • applesause24

    Posted Sep 1, 2008 1:26 am PT

    Silent Hill 3 by far is the best one. The graphics were amazing and the story was unique and scary as hell.

  • Danial_Zahin

    Posted Aug 26, 2008 9:27 am PT

    can't wait for this game. Need the spooks and goosebumps at night.

  • ichtus

    Posted Aug 25, 2008 1:36 am PT

    Right now I'm on my way to complete Silent Hill 1 6th time - this time to show it to my girlfriend. I try to get her addicted

    I completed Silent Hill 2 three times, SH3 - 3 times, SH4 - 2 times, SH:O - one time.

    So, it is obvious, that Silent Hill 1 is my favourite.
    There is something, that completely fortify the following statement: "Once you get into The Silent Hill, there will be no way out".
    I thinh, that this is the combination of story, weirdness, emotions, atmosphere, puzzles (including the mega-puzzle - story itself) and weirdness again.
    I think, that the first part is the benchmark for what Silent Hill game should be like - as a scary, dark, bloodstained and weird travel into someones hellishly dark psyche.

  • Joman1000

    Posted Aug 24, 2008 8:18 pm PT

    You know, all these insiders that keep managing to get their hands on Silent Hill homecoming try to assure us that the atmosphere and the aesthetic value of the series is intact, but then all they can find to talk about is the refined combat system and improved graphics.

    Are these really the only things that matter to people in this country (America)?

    Seriously, there shouldn't be a single person commenting in this thread that hasn't spent multiple nights in a row, sitting in the dark by themselves, playing all the way through a Silent Hill game (particularly one or two). You WILL feel unsettled, and you'll understand why people like me watch these videos and immediately ream on the new game and the developers.

    The previous Silent Hill games, regardless of what anyone says, stood on their own because each one of them was a sort of a representation of a nightmare or all of our paranoid delusions/religious and spiritual fears. This game, however, appears to be nothing more than a shallow interpretation of the previous games, therefore, as far as I can tell, it has a fraction of the atmosphere and emotive nature of the previous games. It's more high budget American nonsense.

    Yes, even Silent Hill Origins got it right. Anyone who wasn't just casually playing it on a bus ride or something, and actually went out of their way to turn off the lights and just play the game by themselves, knows that Climax gets it. The drawn-out hallways, the muddied visuals, the obscurity is all intact. It doesn't matter if the combat was generic or whatever. Those are all complaints based on your comfort level. Well, here's a news flash; you're not supposed to be comfortable when you play a survival horror game.

    Maybe I'm too preachy. Tear my head off. But I think if you care about this series as much as I do, you'll understand where I'm coming from.

    God, what I would do to be proven wrong when this game comes out.

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