Support NeoGAF

[pantsmith]

For anyone turned off by the narrators, its worth a mention that these guys at least really know their shit.

I consider the core Silent Hill games, 1-3, uppercase a "Art", in that everything is just as meticulously designed as any classic film or book. They're masterworks of interactive storytelling. If I was responsible for work of similar caliber, I'd hope to hell I had fans passionate enough to defend my creations the way these dudes do.

The one thing I will say is that I don't think Tomm deserves all the flak he gets. The dude clearly loves and appreciates Silent Hill, even if hes not as orthodox as the most die hard of fans. I seriously doubt hes the one greenlighting new Silent Hill games in the first place, so I don't know that theres not much he can do when the heart and soul of the series- Team Silent- no longer exists.

Best case scenario is they just put the series to rest and move on.

 

[jimi_dini]

But for music and voice acting, if a person hasn't played the original they wouldn't notice anything wrong with them at all. They second part of this analysis sounds like fanboys whining to me.

If a person hasn't seen the original, that someone wouldn't notice anything wrong with it at all.

 

[PumpkinPie]

I've been vaguely aware of some issues with this game, but it's not something which has been on my radar so I didn't know the scale of the problems. Watching this video leaves me speechless... What in the actual fuck were they thinking??

 

[Criminal Upper]

God, these guys are the most irritating people I've ever seen. Why couldn't they just list out all the problems and show the footage, and hire someone with a voice that's not nails on chalkboard to do the narration?

Christ.

 

[ranmafan]

Wow, the issues with this game are incredible. Can't believe it got released in this state. Glad someone went ahead and made such a detailed video on all it's problems. But I gotta say I agree with many that find the hosts to be quite annoying. I couldn't stand their style in presentation and at times almost stopped watching because of it. But I kept going to see just how bad this port was. Glad I haven't wasted my money on the game.

 

[kinoki]

I finally bit the bullet and ordered Silent Hill 3 and 4 for PS2. I played them back in the day but all this talk of the HD collection I got the urge to play them again. Can't wait.

 

[BLACKLAC]

I really enjoyed this two part video. Are there any non-SH videos that get as in-depth over a game or movie?

They knocked it out of the park with their Let the Right One In vs. Let Me In video.

 

[Mr_Zombie]

I agree with them about graphical glitches and slow down ruining experiences. But for music and voice acting, if a person hasn't played the original they wouldn't notice anything wrong with them at all. They second part of this analysis sounds like fanboys whining to me.

Uhm, nope. Whatever you think about the actual voice acting or music changes, they are still badly mixed. Music loops at wrong time, voices with cathedral aftersound, voices in SH2 GCI being superimposed over the old voices (you can still hear them in the background), lack of proper sound effects when the voice comes from a TV, telephone or tape recorder, missing sound effects, wrong music used at wrong time etc.

And just because the voices might sound ok to someone who hasn't played the original games doesn't mean we should not compare them to the old ones and criticize them. It's like saying people should not compare the 1998 Psycho remake to the Hitchcock's original. New voices might sound nice, but they alter characters' personalities too much. James doesn't sound so confused all the time. Mary's soothing and calm voice is lost. Maria's sexy, flirtatious voice is lost too. Douglas doesn't sound like a nice old man anymore. Vincent lost all those sarcastic, sadistic tones in his voice. And Stan, my god, they turned Stanley from a creepy stalker into some madman with multiple personalities disorder.

Not to mention, new voices are ruining facial animation, because they are out of sync. And Silent Hill 3 has amazing facial animation.

 

[KTallguy]

I think I asked this in another thread, but are the PS2 versions of Silent Hill emulated well on a fast computer? Hypothetically you could get the best of both worlds... HD graphics but all the VFX and sound are properly done. Anyone try this?

 

[Mr_Zombie]

I think I asked this in another thread, but are the PS2 versions of Silent Hill emulated well on a fast computer? Hypothetically you could get the best of both worlds... HD graphics but all the VFX and sound are properly done. Anyone try this?

Check this thread: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=488899

 

[Lime]

I think I asked this in another thread, but are the PS2 versions of Silent Hill emulated well on a fast computer? Hypothetically you could get the best of both worlds... HD graphics but all the VFX and sound are properly done. Anyone try this?

You can read the PC thread: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=488899

In regards to how the PS2 versions of SH2+3 are emulated through hardware emulation I just did some tests with the latest PCSX2 revision. The below issues are avoidable if you do software emulation, but then you play it in 480p:

Silent Hill 2:

• FMV cutscenes do not seem to render properly.
• NO shadows, not even the soft PS2 version.
• Occasional glitches in the geometry of the game (outer screen space does not load the walls)
• Unstable performance (fluctuation between 40-60 fps depending on area)

Silent Hill 3:

• No shadows. No light at the intro at Happy Burger.
• Depth of field effect is not functioning properly.
• Unstable performance (fluctuation between 40-60 fps depending on area)

It's pretty clear to me that unless you are fine with playing in 480p in software emulation, that the PC versions of SH2 & 3 are superior in the sense that they allow for custom resolution, proper widescreen, different modes of AA, screenshot functionality, etc.

However, there's a specific PCSX2 build according to I NEED SCISSORS that renders shadows in the NTSC versions of SH2. Dunno about SH3.

Well I NEED SCISSORS was kind enough to message me his build of PCSX2 set up to render the shadows in Silent Hill 2 US Restless Dreams properly! I went ahead and tested it myself and it works quite well!

Grab it here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?u1loumd52elepd8

 

[Valentus]

Lol, They are aware of the shameful post-edits.

 

[Mr. Enigma]

I want to know where they got the SH2/SH3 subtitle font for those videos. So good.

 

[Broder Salsa]

The one thing I will say is that I don't think Tomm deserves all the flak he gets. The dude clearly loves and appreciates Silent Hill, even if hes not as orthodox as the most die hard of fans. I seriously doubt hes the one greenlighting new Silent Hill games in the first place, so I don't know that theres not much he can do when the heart and soul of the series- Team Silent- no longer exists.

Seeing the dickish way he constantly behaves, he kind of does deserve it.

 

[Izick]

I feel like that while the second part could come off as fans of the series being over-critical, the idea that this HD collection is some weird morph of old and new game is just odd and wrong. They basically thought they could make the SH games "better," and not just by increasing resolution and texture stuff. It's this strange line, and it just comes off as disrespectful to the series and its fans. Not to mention how shitty they handled this whole voice-actor mess with the original games casts.

This is coming from someone who's never played a game in the series.

 

[Broder Salsa]

EDIT: Look what I found http://www.tommhulett.com/

EDIT2: Its pretty obvious going through the comments that people are discussing the video. Its also pretty obvious that they seem a little biased to say the least.

Dear God... It's like his own little support group.

I deleted a post where I said SH2 was in my top 3 games of all time despite its combat.

I had this insane persecution complex and felt it would be used out of context if anybody happened to be e-stalking me to cherry pick quotes to use against me in an internet video."

"That’s not what you said though…

My heart goes out to you."

"At least now you know what character assassination actually looks like."

Character assassination :lol

 

[Krabboss]

I'm still really not understanding the dislike for these guys. They know what they're talking about, speak well and put a lot of effort into the presentation of their videos.

I'm looking forward to whatever they do with Downpour now.

 

[kunonabi]

I'm still really not understanding the dislike for these guys. They know what they're talking about, speak well and put a lot of effort into the presentation of their videos.

I'm looking forward to whatever they do with Downpour now.

Problem is like most of the SH fanbase they tend to pass off their opinions and theories as fact when they aren't. This HD collection review has probably been their best work since the opinionated stuff doesn't overpower the rest of it.

 

[Razek]

Finally getting a chance at going through these videos, can I just say: OH MY GOD to 30 minutes in the first video. Can you guys tell me if SH3 really plays like that, all slow-mo like? That is so unreal I don't even believe it. Serious. They totally exaggerated that in the video right? ....RIGHT?

 

[Nemesis_]

I cannot stand these guys. I hate the fact that in the first ten minutes they call people who want a HD Collection (be it due to a broken PS2 or whatever) "wrong".

They are so terrible

 

[Persona7]

Finally getting a chance at going through these videos, can I just say: OH MY GOD to 30 minutes in the first video. Can you guys tell me if SH3 really plays like that, all slow-mo like? That is so unreal I don't even believe it. Serious. They totally exaggerated that in the video right? ....RIGHT?

No , that is literally the way it runs at multiple spots through out the game.

 

[Razek]

No , that is literally the way it runs at multiple spots through out the game.

Wow, that's pretty surreal. I'm kind of flabbergasted. Finishing part one, and again, wow. What a mess. I don't say that lightly. This is probably the worst video game disaster I have ever seen. Skyrim on PS3 was better. The repeating music is so comically bad, but that framerate locking the game speed is unplayable.

I'm surprised this hasn't raised a bigger stink here. I remember the first thread where people complained about sound choices and some texture remaps, but I had no idea it was this bad.

 

[AuthenticM]

I just finished part 1.

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

I had NO IDEA how fucked up this release was. This is flat-out unacceptable. I how Konami is ashamed and that they've learned their lesseon.

 

[Mr. Enigma]

Just started watching the video. Chuckled at the part where they ripped footage from my HD review videos (where the fog goes bananas outside Heaven's Night in SH3). Although I appreciate them leaving our livestream link and the channel watermark on it...

 

[Nemesis_]

I'm watching it slowly.

I don't understand why they complain about Trophy Notifications >_>

 

[Maddocks]

at first I was...2 hours? come on........yet I watched it all. wow thank goodness I did. That was bad, poor silent hill.

now people who want to play this game for the first time will hate the series.

 

[Mr. Enigma]

Cool. They ganked more footage from my video with the SH3 SMG noise.

 

[SketchTheArtist]

I'm watching it slowly.

I don't understand why they complain about Trophy Notifications >_>

I think it's personal taste but they're right about them being placed at the wrong time. Those things appear during tense, dramatic and sometimes emotional moments and it ruins them.

 

[Razek]

I just finished part 1.

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

I had NO IDEA how fucked up this release was. This is flat-out unacceptable. I how Konami is ashamed and that they've learned their lesseon.

I feel the same way. Part 2 isn't as bad since, while I feel their complaints have merits, it's personal taste in the end of it. Part 1 is absolutely objective proof at how awful this is a mistake on gaming. There are so many amateurish mistakes it's laughable some of these people have jobs doing this.

 

[Atomski]

I'm watching it slowly.

I don't understand why they complain about Trophy Notifications >_>

Honestly its about time.. it really is dumb seeing these little popups.

Ooh you did something, heres a pointless reward yayyyy! isnt this making the game more fun yayyyyy!

 

[AlphaTwo00]

I think it's personal taste but they're right about them being placed at the wrong time. Those things appear during tense, dramatic and sometimes emotional moments and it ruins them.

That one, I can't fault them for it. Both Sony and MS won't let you disable it (or delay it) because some players may think it didn't trigger, and I think even devs for Heavy Rain had to request Sony to let them do it just for their release.

 

[ranmafan]

I think it's personal taste but they're right about them being placed at the wrong time. Those things appear during tense, dramatic and sometimes emotional moments and it ruins them.

I love trophies and yet I agree with this in a lot of ways. They could be handled a lot better in the way they are shown as having been earned. While I don't agree with their feelings on trophies completely, I cant complain with their opinions on the fact there should be a way to turn off the notifications for people who want them not to ruin the mood for them. I think that would probably get rid of most of the complaints about them.

 

[Gentleman Jack]

I'm still really not understanding the dislike for these guys. They know what they're talking about, speak well and put a lot of effort into the presentation of their videos.

I agree with their fundamental points and analysis of what made SH2/3 so good.

I hate their smug, drawn-out attempts at comedy and constant strawmanning.

I hope this explains the dislike for these guys.

 

[Razek]

I agree with their fundamental points and analysis of what made SH2/3 so good.

I hate their smug, drawn-out attempts at comedy and constant strawmanning.

I hope this explains the dislike for these guys.

Their presentation is a bit grating at times. It reminds me of that old common poster argument "Bu bu but.... <insert smug comment>."

Some of their points fall flat too, especially in the second video. I felt the HD versions 'angry Heather scenes' to actually be better while they are stating it as fact that it's worse. I disagreed with other stuff but it's not worth mentioning it. The point is, this abomination of a game should have never been made, at least not like this. It's great they chose a leader who doesn't care or get what made the games special at all.

 

[kunonabi]

Their presentation is a bit grating at times. It reminds me of that old common poster argument "Bu bu but.... <insert smug comment>."

Some of their points fall flat too, especially in the second video. I felt the HD versions 'angry Heather scenes' to actually be better while they are stating it as fact that it's worse. I disagreed with other stuff but it's not worth mentioning it. The point is, this abomination of a game should have never been made, at least not like this. It's great they chose a leader who doesn't care or get what made the games special at all.

Heather's new scenes are worse. There are aspects of her character important to the emotional core of the story that are missing with the new performance.

 

[Aku-Audi]

Have these guys made any mention if they are gonna review Downpour? I watched their Real Experience of Silent Hill over the weekend and found it enjoyable, though they really need to tone their "personalities" down. Just act normal and let your humor flow naturally, christ.

 

[Mzo]

I'm watching it slowly.

I don't understand why they complain about Trophy Notifications >_>

Silent Hill games rely on atmosphere more than most video games.

There are times when you're not really supposed to be feeling great about what just happened and then its ding ding ding, achievement unlocked, you killed your wife again, yaaaaay!

 

[Razek]

Heather's new scenes are worse. There are aspects of her character important to the emotional core of the story that are missing with the new performance.

I agree with them being worse other than her angry outbursts. During that compilation in the video the HD version sounded better each time. While I only have the youtube video as my evidence, she genuinely sounds more aggravated and realistic. Again though, this is just my opinion.

 

[RagnarokX]

In the original she sounds compassionate, worried, confused, vengeful. In the new version she just sounds like a petulant teen who's upset the Hot Topic closed.

 

[kunonabi]

I agree with them being worse other than her angry outbursts. During that compilation in the video the HD version sounded better each time. While I only have the youtube video as my evidence, she genuinely sounds more aggravated and realistic. Again though, this is just my opinion.

The problem is the type of anger doesn't match the character. It's supposed to come from a different place and is supposed to reflect on the character differently. There is more to voice work than fitting preconceived notions of what is realistic and expected. Current actors tend to miss that especially when the direction is subpar.

I don't mean to rant at you but this has come up several times over these threads and I just find it irritating. Heather Morris created a complete character with her original performance that developed over the course of the game and fed into other themes and character dynamics that needed to be conveyed through her. All of this is missing with an actress who's only real direction was to sound like a teenager.

 

[Razek]

The problem is the type of anger doesn't match the character. It's supposed to come from a different place and is supposed to reflect on the character differently. There is more to voice work than fitting preconceived notions of what is realistic and expected. Current actors tend to miss that especially when the direction is subpar.

I don't mean to rant at you but this has come up several times over these threads and I just find it irritating. Heather Morris created a complete character with her original performance that developed over the course of the game and fed into other themes and character dynamics that needed to be conveyed through her. All of this is missing with an actress who's only real direction was to sound like a teenager.

No, it's fine. I'm no expert. It's just what I heard and picked in a ~minute sound bite. I haven't played SH3 in forever so it's completely understandable I would miss out on those queues. (Though something like Angela was very obvious to me)

 

[kunonabi]

No, it's fine. I'm no expert. It's just what I heard and picked in a ~minute sound bite. I haven't played SH3 in forever so it's completely understandable I would miss out on those queues. (Though something like Angela was very obvious to me)

Yeah Angela was a little more overt. Going in I thought I would actually prefer a new Angela but boy was I wrong there. Heather is just a complex character. Not only does elements of her character have to be covered but she is also responsible for her father and their dynamic since you never get to hear from him. She gets some help from the text files and her anecdotes but it still falls squarely on the actress's shoulders while she also has to cover her entire arc.

As I say I'm mostly just venting at nobody in particular. Most people miss out on quite a bit of SH3 anyway since they tend not to put it on the same pedestal as SH2. Even the great Tom Hulett tends to completely miss the point of it.

 

[NinjaBoiX]

I brought my PS3 copy to work today trade in, decided against it. I've never played them, and although I don't want to play a sub par version if I can help it, I have no other option. I don't have a PS2 or a PC, and the 360 version is even worse.

I'll grin and bear it i think!

 

[reggie]

.

 

[Broder Salsa]

I brought my PS3 copy to work today trade in, decided against it. I've never played them, and although I don't want to play a sub par version if I can help it, I have no other option. I don't have a PS2 or a PC, and the 360 version is even worse.

I'll grin and bear it i think!

Someone send this man a PS2 and the games.

 

[Fredrick2003]

I brought my PS3 copy to work today trade in, decided against it. I've never played them, and although I don't want to play a sub par version if I can help it, I have no other option. I don't have a PS2 or a PC, and the 360 version is even worse.

I'll grin and bear it i think!

In the video they say something like "if you have a computer made this century you can run at the games at the same or better resolution".

Are you sure you don't have a PC? Like at all?

 

[Xero]

I still really enjoyed the silent hill movie, and I'm looking forward to the new movie. The actress for heather looks perfect. That said I haven't played the hd versions since I luckily own all the originals, but I too didn't expect to watch the whole thing. I was even preparing for the second half to be largely nitpicking, as I was never a huge fan of silent hill 2's voice acting aside from james. (dude just nailed how utterly destroyed, and how hollow emotionally he was) That said the comparisons they showed were definitely worse. Laura sounded like a generic anime voice. Why couldn't they get an actual little girl again?

I've actually always loved heather's performance in 3 though, so I was expecting not to like that one, however I wasn't expecting the new voice actor to sound nothing like a teenager at all, whereas heather morris was spot on for it. Also the douglas in the new one sounds like mcgruff the crime dog.

 

[kunonabi]

I still really enjoyed the silent hill movie, and I'm looking forward to the new movie. The actress for heather looks perfect. That said I haven't played the hd versions since I luckily own all the originals, but I too didn't expect to watch the whole thing. I was even preparing for the second half to be largely nitpicking, as I was never a huge fan of silent hill 2's voice acting aside from james. (dude just nailed how utterly destroyed, and how hollow emotionally he was) That said the comparisons they showed were definitely worse. Laura sounded like a generic anime voice. Why couldn't they get an actual little girl again?

I've actually always loved heather's performance in 3 though, so I was expecting not to like that one, however I wasn't expecting the new voice actor to sound nothing like a teenager at all, whereas heather morris was spot on for it. Also the douglas in the new one sounds like mcgruff the crime dog.

yeah I expected the new voices to be bad but for them to be that off was unexpected. That's what happens when you hire a bunch of anime VAs and the voice director is completely clueless and self-involved. I'm not saying anime VAs couldn't do a good job but you can't leave them to their own devices without any real context.

 

[Z3M0G]

At the very end of the first video, I believe they said you can select original voices for SH2, even though not all of the originals are there. Is this true?

and LOL at both old and new voices overlapped during FMVs...

I watched part 2 before finishing part 1... I can't believe they basically remixed / replaced all the music. The audio experience is my favorite part of Silent Hill.

Silent Hill 2 is one of my favorite games of all time... if I would have purchased the collection and found it like this, I probably would have smashed it.

 

[we.are.the.armada]

So is piracy a valid form of preservation in lieu of this garbage port?

I still really enjoyed the silent hill movie, and I'm looking forward to the new movie. The actress for heather looks perfect. That said I haven't played the hd versions since I luckily own all the originals, but I too didn't expect to watch the whole thing. I was even preparing for the second half to be largely nitpicking, as I was never a huge fan of silent hill 2's voice acting aside from james. (dude just nailed how utterly destroyed, and how hollow emotionally he was) That said the comparisons they showed were definitely worse. Laura sounded like a generic anime voice. Why couldn't they get an actual little girl again?

I've actually always loved heather's performance in 3 though, so I was expecting not to like that one, however I wasn't expecting the new voice actor to sound nothing like a teenager at all, whereas heather morris was spot on for it. Also the douglas in the new one sounds like mcgruff the crime dog.

This so much. Also, it is disgusting to me how the new voice overs were in passive aggressive contention with the work previously done and contractual matters. It's obvious that there wasn't anybody intelligent enough in the hierarchy to keep them quiet over something that they are ignorant about. In the end, it hurts the image of Konami, the new anime voice actors, and the fools that butchered the port.

Also, the whole thing about the "new script"? Holy shit, do these morons have no concept of game preservation?

Silent Hill 2 is one of my favorite games of all time... if I would have purchased the collection and found it like this, I probably would have smashed it.

Well, they certainly beat you to the vandalism of Silent Hill.