When we think of characters iconic to horror we have a few that come to mind. Leon S Kennedy is well known to many, helped by two Residential Evil remakes. Also from that series we have Jill Valentine, Chris Redfield and Ethan Winters. Alan Wake is another well known. However James Sunderland may not be a name that comes easily to mind. That is the case with Silent Hill 2 being so well known and the Bloober Team remake now available.

The story of Silent Hill 2 is not only being brought to the fore once more with a remake. We also know the story is the focus of the next film Return to Silent Hill. Now for the story that is set to tell along with the game remake, what can we tell you? We play James Sunderland who received a a letter from Mary his wife which led him to look for her at Silent Hill. At one point we know, that his wife Mary died three years previously. He encounters a a few characters along the way as well as some human creatures along with the famous Pyramid Head. We looked at the early stages of the game and now it’s time to dive fully into the world of Silent Hill 2

The Return Of James Sunderland After Two Decades – Let’s See How Bloober Team Handled The Silent Hill 2 Remake

So now I have had a chance to play through the game and have fond memories of the PlayStation 2 original I was really looking forward to the remake. However, remakes don’t always mean the same success will translate over time. Resident Evil 3 the remake received less praise from fans than the remake for Resident Evil 2. However we mentioned earlier I looked at the early stages of the game and was very happy with the work done by Bloober Team on this. Naturally, the next question was would the rest of the remake follow suit. Why not take a look together and find out?

Gameplay

This was one area in which most people would want to see some changes. If we look at how Silent Hill 2 played, then look at Resident Evil 2 the controls may be unfriendly. Though both are still playable, the over-the-shoulder perspective makes the game feel more intense. It’s also a far easier set up to fully explore each of the locations you are in. The combat has been overhauled and I found to offer a modern take on how the combat was. James is naturally no combat expert and the melee and gun combat feels smooth and well balanced.

Another aspect to the gameplay I was pleased with was the enemy AI in the remake. Bloober Team have been able to really go to work and flesh out what James will face as he works through various locations of the town. So enemies can run and hide or deliberately put themselves in a position to ambush or flank you. Meaning I had to be on my toes and alert in the presence of any threats and at times you will face many. With that in mind, you need to be able to counter this and with a good combat system and dodge mechanic this helps greatly. The use of the radio with sound and enemy presence is also well-created. This I will talk about more later on. The lights on the DualSense also indicate your health status. So for example a green light means full health.

Graphics

With a game from 2001 being brought back, it made sense to bring everything up to date. Which is exactly what Bloober Team have done. This is all aided by the fact the game is using Unreal Engine 5. This is a engine the studio used previously in the remakes of the Layers of Fear release last year. They showed how a dark foreboding environment could be delivered and we see Silent Hill 2 can deliver the same. The lighting is on point and really well-created.

The main NPC character models could look a little better though I have come across worse examples in this engine. Though on the other side as I stated previously we have some excellent lighting and textures used around the locations. An example can be seen in this mod. What they did with this was remove the fog and we can see how the game can look photo-realistic. Even with the fog in play we can see examples of the visual quality even with some possible niggles with characters. After playing games like Hellblade 2 and Red Dead Redemption 2, maybe I am being too critical towards Bloober Team. Though if Rockstar could pull off what they achieved there could we be fair to expect more? Overall the visual quality is excellent.

Audio

The use of audio is brilliantly implemented. On PlayStation 5 we can use the audio through the DualSense to predict danger. What happens is our radio plays static at the presence of the mannequins or nurses and other threats. The level of static indicates how close the enemy is as well. However it can pick up enemies in rooms you can’t access which can be annoying. Also, the game takes advantage of 3D audio so a headset can aid in certain fights. For example, you use the sound through the headset to ascertain where the threat is. Voice recording is of high quality for all the games cast. Not only that the soundtrack to match the gameplay and how the game is playing is incredibly well crafted.

Story

The area we see the least change and the game is all the better for it. The story back in 2001 was extremely well written and has stood the test of time. In fact I mentioned earlier it’s this story that is the basis of the next film in the franchise. That being Return To Silent Hill, a project directed by Christophe Gans. They also directed the adaptation of the original Silent Hill game. With that in mind we know the story is strong. What we also have is a powerful and emotional story seeing James go through various emotions on his journey to find Mary. The story of James Sunderland is a well written and for me, a story fans of the genre should experience. My only complaint is the game could explain the backstory a little more.

A Conclusion

To summarise it up, Bloober Team has done an incredible job and delivered the remake it seems worthy of the fans. For me, it’s an example of a remake done correctly. It didn’t need to deviate to improve what was there. Though any changes made were small ones to flesh out locations we had more freedom to see and explore. Not only that, these changes are just expanding but not harming the work of Team Silent back in 2001.

Back in the day, I had three main go to survival horrors which i never got tired of playing. One of them was Resident Evil 4 and another was Resident Evil 2. Both of these had remakes I felt were lovingly done and gave the games a new lease of life without harming the memory of the original. Silent Hill 2 was a game I loved dearly. Bloober Team has created a remake that for me holds it own as one of the best if not best out there. So the return of the story of James Sunderland and Silent Hill is definitely one I fully recommend.