Silent Hill Homecoming Excitement and Concerns

We are just over a month away from the release of Silent Hill Homecoming, the 6th installment in the Silent Hill franchise. I am both very excited to return to Silent Hill and wary of the release of its new, western development. I have been reading up on impressions from various trade shows and listening to podcasts to try and sort out my thoughts and address my concerns in my own mind. Here is what I have come up with.

Pros:

1.) All impressions have agreed that the game is well polished and has gone the extra step to provide intensity and immersion unlike any previous Silent Hill. Rather than blacking out and then awaking in the demonic world, the world will actually peel away around you to reveal the grunge beneath. Everyone has said that this effect is an incredibly cool effect and a welcomed addition to the series.

2.) The games soundtrack is once again produced by Akira Yamaoka and is apparently just as beautiful and brilliant as his past works. I can't wait to hear the music in this game.

3.) In addition to a well developed plot, the game will included bigger, creepier, and more threatening boss creatures. In the trailer above, you can see several of them and may notice that they come across quite differently than bosses from previous entries. In addition to new monsters, the game will feature the return of the infamous Pyramid Head.

4.) While apparently still a bit clunky, combat in Silent Hill Homecoming is supposedly the best in the series. Enemies will move at different speeds and demonstrate different attack patterns which will force the player to react differently to different enemies. The protagonist also demonstrates improved fighting ability with a variety of new melee and ranged weapons. Its also interesting that wounds will appear in real time depending on what part of the enemies body you attack.

5.) Lastly, trailers suggest that the protagonist will run into several characters from past games such as Travis Grady from Silent Hill Origins and Pyramid Head from Silent Hill 2. I really hope that the game will tie into some of the previous stories and provide some more insight into these characters.


Cons:
1.) While this may not be a problem for me, I can already hear Brad's rants in my head. Puzzle solving has returned in full force. Impressions have implied that the puzzles in this game do not seem to have evolved much since the previous titles. I have personally always been attached to Silent Hill's style of puzzle but I can definitely see how it could become frustrating for others.

2.) My biggest concern is that due to this games new western developer, it wont quite stand up to the previous games in the series. While Silent Hill: The Room received mixed reviews, many have hoped that the series would return to the same level of quality as the first 3 entries. Some don't even consider Silent Hill Origins and Silent Hill 4 legitimate sequels. My worst fear is that this game will fall short and wont become a widely accepted entry in the series.

3.) Combat, while I am happy with the apparent improvements, I can already tell the combat is going to be mediocre at best. I hope to be surprised.

Silent Hill Homecoming ships on September 30, 2008.

-Nick