Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Review

When the first thing you notice about a game is how unsettling its title screen is, you know that you are in for a quality survival horror experience. Actually, Silent Hill Shattered Memories is more akin to a psychological thriller or an episode of the Twilight Zone than it is to The Grudge or Dawn of The Dead. So much of what makes this game so excellent are story elements or gameplay set pieces that must not be spoiled in this review. However, what I can say is that despite their differences, Shattered Memories for Wii is the best Silent Hill title since Team Silent’s original trilogy. The PS2 and PSP versions are pretty good too.

Shattered Memories is the antithesis of Resident Evil 4. Both series started off as relatively similar survival horror games. But since both of those original games have aged terribly and now that we are beginning to realize that survival horror is barely a genre, both series have had to reinvent themselves in order to survive in today’s game space. Resident Evil 4 was an action-packed masterpiece partly responsible for the current third-person shooter revival. Meanwhile, Shattered Memories goes in the opposite direction, essentially becoming an adventure game with a very different sort of action. It’s not as palatable for the mainstream as Resident Evil 4 and therefore will not be as influential. But that does not mean its approach is not just as valid.

The most refreshing thing about Shattered Memories very prominent storyline is that, if interrupted correctly, there is nothing supernatural about it. This reboot of the PS1 original still sees Harry Mason searching for his daughter Cheryl in the eerie town of Silent Hill. He still goes through Midwich High, meets lady police officers, nurses and psychiatrists, and of course encounters monsters when the town violently shifts into its nightmare state. However, all of the demon/cult nonsense of the original game has been thrown out in favor of a new mind-bending prose that warrants a thesis essay in order to properly analyze it. Put as vaguely as possible, the “monsters” in this game are more like “daddy issues”.

Of course, daddy issues do not make for interesting gameplay by themselves. Luckily, the parts where you play Shattered Memories are as entertaining as its plot. Silent Hill, while not an open world, is still a vast, desolate and snow-filled wasteland for you to explore. The bulk of the game has you solving logic puzzles with fluid, natural motion controls in urban and natural environments so beautiful, they proves that the Wii can pull of non-stylized (a.k.a. realistic) graphics with flair. Your pointer based flashlight illuminates crisp textures and shadows are cast so well, some of the object twisting challenges are based on shadows. Add to that awesome uses of the tinny Wii remote speaker and you have one of the games built specifically for the platform.

PS2 and PSP see a graphical and control hit but it does not pull down the experience too much. The puzzles never get too difficult but having to spend too much time on a single one would halt the game’s momentum, and lessen the tense atmosphere which is more valuable. Adding to the immersion are unexpected first-person sequences, and a cell phone capable of calling various numbers, taking grainy photos, and receiving supernatural voicemails and text messages. It is ironic that in this game, the completely deserted town of Silent Hill, feels like a real, living, breathing place. 

The shortest but most intriguing sections of Shattered Memories are the occasional visits to your psychiatrist, returning character Dr. Kaufman. The answers you give during his session subtly influence the rest of the game which is even creepier to think about once the questions become sexual in nature. In a game with chillingly appropriate music by series composer Akira Yamaoka and excellent voice acting and writing, Dr. K’s performance stands out as my favorite. He can be both cool and dramatic, he plays into the conclusion quite nicely, and answering his question’s truthfully led to a frighteningly accurate psych analysis during the credits. Shattered Memories never lets up, which unfortunately also means that it ends in about six hours. But trying to see all of the ways the game can change itself adds considerable replay value. 

Finally, there are the “action” sequences. In an appreciated change of pace, during these set interludes Silent Hill will freeze over rather that its usual process of burning and rusting. Fleshy, skinless, humanoid monsters will then pursue you with wild abandon until you reach a waypoint of solve a puzzle. If you take the time to glance over your shoulder, you can see that these creatures change throughout the game. However, Silent Hill games have usually had various kinds of creepy monsters to throw at you and this game only has one. At least their designs actually mean something instead of the usual Japanese horror style of “weird stuff for the sake of weird stuff”. Being just an average dude with a flashlight, you can never fight these foes, at last justifying the game “survival” horror. Flares, obstacles and motion-controlled shoves can keep the beasts at bay but the real solution is to run. Icy markings show you the way but stiff running and a poor map can make these mazes more frustrating than frightening. When they work, they really work and its creates an intense, thrilling gameplay experience that perfectly compliments the slower, more methodically paced exploration and therapy portions. It adds straight up fear to go along with the general unrest. But Shattered Memories chase sections are hit and miss to the point where they are sometimes more fun in theory than in practice.

However, taken as a whole, Silent Hill Shattered Memories is a risky experiment that pays off incredibly well. Being a mature Wii game (as well as a 2010 PS2 game and a PSP game period) no one will buy it. Plus, its radical changes to the Silent Hill fiction and formula might turn away the more dedicated fans. But like the best cult movies, those in the know, whether they are veterans or newcomers, will have the best kept secret in psychological horror gaming all to themselves, perfect for those lonely winter nights.

Rating (Wii) 5 out of 5

Rating (PS2 & PSP): 4 out of 5

- Jordan Minor