Without mincing words, the original Silent Hill 2 is one of my favourite video games of all time. Team Silent's iconic psychological horror game was not only groundbreaking for its time, it pushed the entire gaming horror genre into the spotlight - a serious art form that could be placed under a microscope to be dissected and studied for decades to come. Bloober Team had an immense task ahead with the remake. I've been watching the development progress of the game like a hawk since its announcement and now that we're finally here, back in that place, I'm glad to report that the promise has been fulfilled.



The story of Silent Hill 2 is legendary so I won't spend too much time on it. You play as James Sunderland, a man who receives a mysterious letter from his wife, Mary, asking him to go to their special place in the deserted town of Silent Hill. The only problem is, Mary has been dead for three years. James journeys to the town to get to the bottom of this mystery, only to encounter horrors beyond his imagination.



If you're familiar with the story of Silent Hill 2, the remake stays remarkably faithful to it. It's almost a beat-for-beat remake of the original, with only a few plot points shuffled around or expanded upon. Bloober Team wisely chooses to expand key plot details and characters instead of changing them completely, which is honestly appreciated. We've seen Capcom do something similar with the Resident Evil 2 remake, showing a respectfulness and reverence for the source material while honouring its legacy. Purists might not like these minor expansions, but Bloober Team very carefully curates the familiar narrative beats without undermining their impact.

If you're familiar with the story of Silent Hill 2, the remake stays remarkably faithful to it.

This is especially evident in our protagonist, James. Unlike the original game where it's hard to get a read on James' mental state until the end, the Silent Hill 2 remake immediately takes a few creative liberties in letting players know that there's more to him than meets the eye. While the original game spent its time masking certain plot revelations, the extraordinary motion capture work in the remake lets us see James' anguish and inner workings of his mind through his simple facial expressions or gestures alone. It's not overdone (and later twists still hit home), but it was a smart decision to give players an unreliable lead without explicitly telling us.



The characters in Silent Hill 2 are all beautifully realised in the remake - tragedy included. James runs into various people in the town that all harbour their own dark secrets or personal trauma, masking it just as well. Characters like Eddie and Angela are lost in this town too, though their grief and tragic histories have a firm grip on them. Bloober Team does a terrific job capturing the tortured personas of these characters, giving them ample time to be fleshed out, moreso than the original. The decision to make the game twice as long as the original works tremendously in situations like these, when it's for the benefit of expanding a character or specific story elements to make them weightier. As a result, I found myself emotionally invested every turn of the way.

Like the original, the remake begins with James trekking into the town from its outskirts. The town of Silent Hill is simply glorious in the remake. You can now enter almost any building - even buildings that were inaccessible in the original - to scout for supplies, ammunition, weapons or health via syringes. The dense fog hangs eerily over James, creating an almost claustrophobic experience. The remake, thanks to improved technology, is able to create the most terrifying, fantastic fog effects in the entire series. Silent Hill feels alive, suffocating James and by extension, the player, hosting untold terrors in its mist.



As mentioned before, the remake goes through the same motions as the original, along with the same locations that James needs to explore. Some areas are expanded to give James a bit more to do. Thankfully, most of them work in making the town feel more expansive and lived in. In the confines of a decrepit apartment building, James only has his torch to rely on. It's not a great torch, purposefully so, because the darkness still envelopes your vision, even staring directly down pitch black corridors, uncertain of what might leap out at you.

The remake, thanks to improved technology, is able to create the most terrifying, fantastic fog effects in the entire series.

To that effect, the Silent Hill 2 remake manages to be extremely tense and scary. I'd go as far as saying that it's scarier than Silent Hill 3 or even Resident Evil 7. The game constantly toys with the fear of the unknown. Veteran players might even find themselves caught off-guard by the new additions or shuffled enemy placements that Bloober Team brought to the remake, while newcomers are certainly in for one of the scariest games of the last decade.



It's worth mentioning that the Silent Hill 2 remake, like the original, is a slow-burn psychological horror. Bloober Team has respected the original's design philosophy because it's not a fast-paced horror carnival ride. The game is intentionally paced to let characters, moments and scenarios simmer so that you feel the full weight of the horror or tragedy. To that end, it might not be everyone's cup of tea - especially those expecting a thrill ride like the Resident Evil remakes - but if anything, I'm really glad that the remake stuck to its guns and didn't try to cater to the action-oriented crwods.

The core gameplay, however, has seen the most drastic changes in the remake. Instead of fixed camera angles, the remake opts for an over-the-shoulder perspective like the Resident Evil remakes. Again, this was an incredibly smart move for Bloober Team to modernise the experience without taking away the impact of its scares. Rest assured, hallways still feel small and soul-crushing under the darkness and you're still running into the fog without knowing who - or what - you might bump into.



Combat is broken down into shooting with the scarce amount of guns you're able to collect, and using melee weapons to trade blows with enemies. You can shoot at an enemy's legs to cripple them, then use your melee attack to swoop in for a killing blow. Like most great horror games, you're still constantly pinching ammo and reserving your resources. It can be a fairly challenging ordeal, even on the normal difficulty, as enemies are relentless - many of which will keep pursuing you, even into buildings. This heightened sense of panic is what gets your heart racing and gives the remake its tremendous scares. Melee combat can feel a tad bit clunky but I'll gladly take it over the original's admittedly clunkier gameplay.

Rest assured, hallways still feel small and soul-crushing under the darkness and you're still running into the fog without knowing who - or what - you might bump into.

The quality-of-life improvements that the remake brings to the table really help sell the package. Instead of shuffling through your inventory to look for key items, James now automatically uses it (as long as it's in his inventory to begin with). The health bar is gone and replaced with red blood stains around the screen, indicating James' status. The effects are a bit bright and I hope Bloober Team tones it down or makes it darker in a future patch, but that's just a nitpick.



The map now shows where James is in the town, so you're not completely lost on your journey. Considering that the remake actually increases the scope and size of Silent Hill, this is an important feature to include. It also helps you re-orientate yourself towards the next objective or point of interest without relying completely on shrouded landmarks to determine your location. You can't just take your map out randomly either. Creatures will take it as an opportunity to attack you, adding plenty of suspense to even simple actions like trying to figure out where the hell you are - and trust me, you'll be doing this a lot.

The visuals and overall presentation of the Silent Hill 2 remake is stellar, with a few notable, disappointingly glaring hiccups. Character's facial animations are very expressive, which helps a lot in getting us attached to their plights, while the motion capture work is equally great. The town itself looks magnificent - this is easily the best that Silent Hill has ever looked in a video game. More importantly, it's the best that it's ever felt to be lost in. It's extremely polished overall, and I didn't encounter a single bug or glitch while reviewing it on PS5.



The sound design is where the Silent Hill 2 remake unfortunately slips up. Bloober Team does a good job of coating the atmosphere with weird, creaking sounds and low growls to keep you on the edge, but the ambience leaves a bit to be desired. In the original, Team Silent relied heavily on using sound to create its terifying atmosphere, whereas in the remake, it can feel like a bit of an afterthought. There's also no more of that brooding ambience driven by Akira Yamaoka's haunting soundtrack when exploring interiors. Instead, it's all very quiet. I understand why Bloober Team did this - and there are moments where the soundtrack is used effectively to paint a scene - but I wish there was just a bit more of it. The good thing is, the remake still manages to capture that dreamlike, surreal feeling of the original very well. Yamaoka's re-recorded soundtrack is also exceptional, as always.

Against all odds, the Silent Hill 2 remake is an extraordinary reimagining of Team Silent's landmark title. Bloober Team went out of their way to honour the original without sacrificing any of the important elements that made it a masterpiece. Whether you're a veteran or newcomer, you're going to find a lot to love about this faithful remake that actually elevates the source material in many surprising and unique ways. Silent Hill is finally lives again and I couldn't be happier.

*PS5 Review code provided by Konami