Surreal and quite artful
It plays well, though the camera tends to be more focused on capturing the scenery than helping with the often-times-awkward controls. Certain abilities, like firing off a gun, actually handled better in the original. The game is very dark, and mostly lit by a dinky pocket flashlight, but that only adds to the overall eeriness of the game.
You will want to play this in the dark. The experience of Silent Hill is very moody, and the creepiness of it really works wonders getting under your skin. You will jump at least one or two times every time you sit down to play it, assuming you have a pulse.
Overall, one of the best early PS2 games around.