Silent Hill: Origins

"Silent Hill Origins: Now With More Fog! (and comparisons to the PSP version)"

Silent HIll Origins is a prequel to the successful series that began on the Playstation system. It tells the story of Travis Grady and how he was involved with Alessa Gillespie's plot. If that second name means nothing to you, you may want to wait to play this. Yes, it is a prequel, but the story will make a lot more sense after you play through at least the first game.

The storyline is good, but at times, it feels like Alessa's story is really pushed into the background to make way for Travis's tale. This would be fine, except that the integration of the cult plot is a little messy, occasionally popping up to remind you it's there. Still, if you're into the series, it probably won't disappoint. I wouldn't hesitate to say that this game plays out sort of like a collection of the series' most popular moments. It really mixes elements out of every previous SH game and comes out with something new, if admittedly derivative. Almost everything in this game was done better previously.

I will admit that the first time I played this game on PSP, I really did not like it. However, after playing again, my appreciation for it was heavily increased. I do still absolutely hate the entire sanitarium level. The story of that area is fine, it's just that it drags on and on for way too long.

The PS2 conversion is fairly good, and after I beat it, I popped in the PSP version to compare a bit. For the most part, the textures and details are MUCH better on the PS2, but for some reason, the opening scene (until you get out of the Gillespie's burning house) is lacking a lot of details that were in the original. All the paintings from that house in the PSP version are replaced with generic religious paintings on the PS2, except for a painting of a certain infamous triangular executioner. This really isn't a big deal, but those paintings did a bit to show what sort of household Alessa's mother ran.

Also, there is a lot more fog/smoke and the grain filter is far more noticeable on the PS2, at times this makes it a lot harder to see fine details (the PH pic is almost obscured, as is the second billboard on the way to the house. I literally couldn't remember what it was and couldn't tell until I booted it up on PSP.) The clarity in general is MUCH greater on PSP, but the textures and models aren't as detailed. At times it felt like someone smeared vaseline on the screen. But, it wasn't too bad; I really liked having things blown up for me, and I was able to pick out a lot more details on things like files and photos and environments.

Character models are significantly upgraded, and the enemies are a lot better looking. This holds true for the most part, but every once in a while, you're beat in the face with the fact that it originated on a weaker system. Flashbacks especially have really terrible looking character models (I don't think young Travis or his father were updated at all, which makes them stick out hugely).

Also, whenever there are corpses (hanging from things in the dark world, massacred, etc) I don't think they use the replaced models, but instead they use the original PSP ones. So for example, there was a patient demon that was gutted and hanging from a hook in a dark world hotel room. Instead of replacing it with the good-looking new model, they just left the old model in. That sort of thing really sticks out like a sore thumb.

The controls are left completely unchanged in this port. On the PS2, it's a lot more aggravating that you can't control the camera at all. They really should have added it, as there were a million times where I wanted to look at something closer and couldn't. That was obnoxious.

Aiming works fine, but the time it takes for Travis to turn around after you press down on the control stick is far too long. There are times in this game where you're surrounded by enemies, and it's very difficult to keep alive because Travis is taking so long to do anything you tell him to do. Some will argue that this keeps the feeling of "survival horror" intact, but so did the other games in the series, and their controls weren't nearly as painful.

The sound is fantastic, as usual. The music is a hundred times better than I remembered, part of that being that I was playing on my sound system and could hear it better (my headphones are of crap). Voice acting is par for the series, and monsters sound ever-so spooky.

Overall, Silent Hill Origins is a worthy entry to the series, though if you're VERY hardcore about it, it may take a few playthroughs to really appreciate what it does. Think of it as something of a "best of" collection, and you will probably like it. Unfortunately, it is very short (I beat it in 6 hours, and I was purposely going very slow), and some of the atmosphere and "scare factor" has been lost due to recycling of ideas. Still, it comes highly recommended from a huge Silent Hill nut.

If you already have it on PSP, I would not bother repurchasing, but if you haven't played it before, than it's highly recommended.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/10/08

Game Release: Silent Hill: Origins (US, 03/04/08)