Silent Hill: Homecoming (PS3)

The 6th installment of Silent Hill survival horror game and was planned to be titled "Silent Hill 5". This time player follows the journey of protagonist Alex Shepherd, a soldier returning from war, to his hometown of Shepherd's Glen, just to find that the town in disarray, and his younger brother missing. As he continues on his search to find his younger brother, he discovers more about the dark secrets of Shepherd's Glen and it's connection ...
...his brother, leading him to Silent Hill after searching his hometown of Shepherd's Glen.


Gameplay :


Overall gameplay is similar to previous Silent Hill series. There are two worlds in the world of Silent Hill, the real world and the alternate world, the real world is like our world but somehow abandoned and empty and always foggy, the alternate world resembles the real world but everything looks old, rusty, ... more

The 6th installment of Silent Hill survival horror game and was planned to be titled "Silent Hill 5". This time player follows the journey of protagonist Alex Shepherd, a soldier returning from war, to his hometown of Shepherd's Glen, just to find that the town in disarray, and his younger brother missing. As he continues on his search to find his younger brother, he discovers more about the dark secrets of Shepherd's Glen and it's connection to Silent Hill, as well his own past.

Plot :

The player assumes the role of the protagonist, Alex Shepherd, a Special Forces soldier who returns home from an overseas tour of duty. He finds that his father and younger brother are missing, and that his mother has gone into a syndrome of psychic and motoric disturbances known as catatonia. Alex begins to search for his brother, leading him to Silent Hill after searching his hometown of Shepherd's Glen.

Gameplay :

Overall gameplay is similar to previous Silent Hill series. There are two worlds in the world of Silent Hill, the real world and the alternate world, the real world is like our world but somehow abandoned and empty and always foggy, the alternate world resembles the real world but everything looks old, rusty, dark and sometimes filled with dead bodies.The player, as Alex, explores the surrounding environments, searching for clues to advance further into the game, clues are written inside Alex's journal, which the player may read at any time. To assist players spot items, Alex will turn his head towards items and clues to inform the player that the object may be picked up. Other recurring items such as weapons, ammunition, and recovery items will give off a glow as a visual cue to the player. Puzzle elements also play a part in the game, and Alex's journal may be used to refer back to photographs and other items that can help the player solves the puzzles. This is the first time in the series, the player may select responses when engaging in dialogue with other characters in the game, which may affect the progress of the game. Some areas are blocked preventing Alex to access until you found the appropriate tools to unblocked it (pry open doors or cabinet with pipe, hack open wooden barriers with Axe).

Flashlight is Alex's best friend in the dark, and the only means to illuminate dark places. Though you may think there is safety in the light, but sometimes the darkness can save your life. Most of the monsters in Silent Hill are attracted to light and sound. Flashlight can be switched on and off as you will, while sounds are produced by running, or knocking down objects.

Combat :

Combat is another major element to the gameplay, as players must fight various monsters while exploring the world of Silent Hill. The game developers introduce a new combat system, where players able to perform light and heavy attacks, or mix them to perform combinations attacks, heavy attack can be charged up to deal greater damage. Players may also perform a variety of finishing moves while the monsters are stunned to ensure that the monsters are dead. Attacking enemies also leaves wounds in them that match the motion carried out by Alex (Knife will leave open cut wound, etc). Players may also perform new maneuvers such as targeting the enemy before attacking them, dodging enemy attacks, and performing counter-attacks. The player is also able to fully control and rotate the camera as they choose

Weapons and Recovery items :

Weapons range from Knife to Laser Gun (secret weapon). As Alex progress much further into the story, he will discover new weapons such as fire axe, pistols, rifles and shotguns, and some of them will be upgraded to stronger versions later in the game. Each weapons have their own strength and weakness, Knife is short ranged and not very powerful, but it's swift and fast. Pistol is long ranged and packs a punch, but ammunition is limited, Shotgun is medium ranged and EXTREMELY packs a punch and can hit more than one enemies but it is slow, etc. There are some secret weapons which will be available once you finished the game.

There are three types of recovery items :

1. Health drink : will recover a small amount of health
2. First aid kit : will recover medium amount of health
3. Serum : will recover health to maximum

As you might expect, the stronger the item is (ammo or recovery items) the lesser amount you'll get throughout the game.

Monsters :

Monsters are attracted to both light and sound, so the best way to avoid a fight is to walk with your flashlight off. Monsters have a tendency to attack wildly when they spot you, so if they are close to one another, they will actually end up hurting each other.

Nurse : Nurse monsters made it's debut since the first Silent Hill and always make an appearance since. Nurses carry knives they use to quickly slash you to pieces. They can chain combos because of their speed, so it is vital to wait until you see one raise its knife to attack, perform your dodge, and then counter or strike before they do. Nurses can appear in small groups and only appear in health care facilities.

Swarm : Swarms are the easiest foes you will encounter. They are basically oversized roaches that emerge through holes in the walls and floor. Their only attack is to latch onto you and deplete your health. When they do tap the dodge key get Alex to tear it away and smash it onto the floor.

Lurker : Lurkers love water, so they appear wherever there is enough to wade in or a drainage vent or some other tight space to crawl out of. They get around by dragging themselves along by their front legs with claws that look like oversized fishing hooks. They will swipe with their claws and will ram into Alex in an attempt to knock him down. Lurkers are best taken care of with an axe: one heavy attack is enough to cut their heads clean off, but they can still attack without a head, so beware.

Feral : Ferals are the ever-present dog like monsters image in Silent Hill. Ferals can be seen chowing down on random fleshy piles left all over town, but they can sense Alex easily and will rush at him if he's in their range. They are very fast and will catch up to you if you try to outrun them, if they catch you and knock you to the ground, they will try to rip your throat out. The best way to take down Ferals is with the knife. Like Nurses, they can appear in groups.

Smog : A new type of demon that looks like a mental patient wrapped in their mental patient clothes. Smogs are armless monstrosities that spew acrid smoke from their fluorescent lungs. They're easy to see in the dark and are best taken out with a ranged weapon. Equip a pistol and aim for the lungs, wait until it opens its chest to spew its smoke and then fire. Smogs don't normally appear in groups or more than two, you can just run right past them since they are not fast at all.

Needlers : Needlers look and sound like a fleshy insect of some kind and have four knives for feet, enabling them to climb on walls and slash you. They are cautious and fast creatures and will wait for opportunities to attack. Wait for them to raise an arm and then roll to safety. They can use their two front legs to block attacks (even bullets).

Schism : Schisms are pale creatures with a split head that comes together to form a blade. These weak-looking creatures walk doubled over because they are so top heavy, but they use that weight to swing their heads in wide arcs. Schisms don't usually give a warning when they are going to attack. Shotgun blasts are very useful against these annoying enemies, especially when they appear in groups.

Siam : An apelike creature that sports both male and female features, Siam is truly a beast. It is surprisingly quick for its size and can swing its giant arms with great force and range, making dodging it a real task. Its backside (female side), is its weak point, but it can be difficult to get completely behind Siam without it catching on to you. It's a good thing that Siam does not appear too often.

Order Members : Order members are those who follow the religious cult of Silent Hill. They are the only human enemy in a Silent Hill game, they come in two varieties: pipe wielder and rifle toter, and they fight exactly like Alex when he uses these weapons.

Graphic :

Graphic is great, rendered smoothly and drawn beautifully. The eeriness of the darkness, the expression on the characters faces can be seen clearly. 8/10

Sound :

Horror games won't be scary enough without proper soundtrack and sound effects. Here both elements are done nicely to fit the scary atmosphere of the game. 8/10

Overall :

You like survival horror game with twisted story and scary looking monsters, get this one, you won't be disappointed. :-) 

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