Silent Hill 2 update

Konami Europe had special plans when they invited journalists from across Europe to Paris for a Silent Hill 2 event recently. A witty letter of invitation from a mysterious zombie nurse asked the media to arrive in Paris in order to meet up with a few friends of hers. The two-day event included a night at a spooky horror house and a press conference where members from the development team answered questions related to the game. Additionally, Konami Europe supplied the media with loads of new screenshots, which can be accessed by clicking on the image above.

Silent Hill 2 tells the story of James Sunderland, whose wife fell ill three years before the game's onset and subsequently passed away. Still not over his wife's death emotionally, Sunderland receives a letter signed by a woman named Mary. His wife had the same name, but at first Sunderland can't believe that the letter could come from his dead wife. The letter reads, "Silent Hill, our sanctuary of memories. I'll be waiting for you there." In grief and disbelief, Sunderland reconsiders and comes to believe that there is a slight chance that the letter is from his wife. Eventually overcome by a sense of hysteria, he finds himself driving to Silent Hill through the dense fog that has become a signature of the series. Sunderland stops the car when he recognizes that the tunnel leading to the town is blocked. However, it's the only way to get into Silent Hill by car, so he pulls back and drives to a lookout point. At the lookout point, Sunderland finds a single footpath through a forest that connects that area with the town. He decides that he will head for Silent Hill on foot. He exits the car and takes a look around, but he can only see the thick fog.

After some aimless wandering, Sunderland sees a run-down building. Feeling uncomfortable outside, he decides to barge in and investigate, but he finds no one inside. The game then shows Sunderland looking into a mirror, as he says, "Mary, could you really be in this town?" Following these events, Sunderland walks back outside and encounters a woman named Angela at a cemetery. Angela looks almost identical to Mary, a point that, according to the development team, will become a major plot point in the game. Sunderland can't decide if the mysterious woman is really Mary or not. Angela informs him that there's something strange going on in Silent Hill and that he can't go back now. He walks away from the cemetery and heads toward the town, which is where the game begins.

The PlayStation 2 version of the game was the primary topic of discussion at the event, and little was said about the Xbox version. However, when asked about the status of the Xbox version, producer Akihiro Imamura said that the development team has recently begun working with the Xbox hardware. "The Xbox version is taking shape," Imamura said. "You could say that developing on the Xbox is easy, compared with the PlayStation 2."

Konami Europe confirmed that the game will be released in November in that territory. The US release of the PlayStation 2 version is scheduled for September. GameSpot will have more in the coming weeks.