Silent Hill or Resident Evil

[Andy]

I Was having this debate with a friend of mine, with silent hill homecoming out now and resi 5 out soon.. i absolutly love homecoming, i think its a class game, but ive been a mega silent hill fan even since the first game, ive followed it all the way to modern times. Resi went the other way, as we all know, were silent hill stayed with the traditional survival horror, resi turned more into a action based game, now ill be honest, i absolutly loved resident evil when it first came out on the playstation all those years ago, and the same for 2 and 3.. but then i lost interest, never got into code veronica or survivor or the umberella files.. i think resi really lost its way after the third one personally. Anywho, this turned into a huge debate seeing as resi evil and silent hill started out as similar games then went their seperate ways, so the question is simple, which game series do you prefer? and yes im talking about complete series, not a single game.

[ProfessorChaos]

even though the movies are awful and the games are total crap these days imo, i'd have to pick resident evil over silent hill. never really got into those games all that much.

[3pidemiC]

Of the non-spinoff games in the Resident Evil series, none of them are bad. Can't say the same for the Silent Hill series.

[capncnut]

Silent Hill by miles! I do love RE's 1-CV but they have never truly scared me, you know like shit flying out of your ass and throwing the controller up in the air screaming, "f**kbeans!!!" I was playing SH3 the other day and you know the part with the big mirror in the storeroom? I was actually shaking... Not only that but the SH games are way more intelligent. I like the way each one hangs on to the history and mythos, which paints a much more interesting picture, as opposed to a stupid Umbrella conspiracy. It's funny that this question should be asked because both franchises are a load of old grandad's cock now. RE's 4-5 have no zombies and SH Origins-Homecoming are just weak name rapes. But yeah, SH all the way. Oh, and if you want a good laugh - click this. Funniest damn review I have ever seen in my life.

[Danny]

definitely silent hill. right off the bat i can say you care about the characters more, and you never play anyone who doesn't look like they could exist in real life, they seem vulnerable and therefore you are scared for them more often. -and then when twist occurs in silent hill 2, and to a lesser degree the one in homecoming your nocked for six at something you wouldn't have expected could have happened. plus they take on bosses with pipes and handguns, not missile launchers and giant military laser projects. The worlds you inhabit is a toughie to judge, the spencer mansion was always kind of lame but resident evil 2 is well known to be heavily inspired by romeros movies and it shows when your running through the abandoned streets and alleys hearing a moan coming from out side your field of vision. but then youve got the combined silent hill, shepherds glen and ashfield cities all around toluca lake that seem possibly more creepy because they seem a little more homey and familiar, raccoon city seems like a place you would maybe work, not live in, whereas silent hill deals with things invading something more like a hometown. The more you can relate to a piece of horror entertainment, the more you can believe the same thing could be behind you, breathing down your neck. Soundtrack wise silent hill wins with no contest, Akira Yamaoka is a fucking genius and his videogame OST's are second only to nobou uematsu. If someones a silent hill fan, then that theme comes back to haunt them the moment you mention it. all you get from resident evil is the save room maybe. i could ramble for ages but silent hill is more than just a horror game for me, its a fantastic series in its own right and a homage to everything great about american and japanese horror movies and silent hill 2 is one of the greatest games ever made.

[mista_mo]

Silent hill. While I never played the original, I have played 2 and 3...both are incredibly atmospheric, spooky, and just plain old disturbing. the monster design is down right amazing, and wreaks of madness. I remember playing silent hill 2...the first time i walked into the town, I had this immense sense of claustrophobia, despite the fact i was walking through a city. The fog seemed to choke you and push you to the ground. you couldn't see very far ahead, and it had this sense of dread in it...something is off with this place, but everything seems normal, despite the lack of living souls. Then when you get the radio (and after you fuck that monsters shit up with a 2x4) the game gets progressively scarier...I remember walking through the town and hearing the radio static, and it made me shit bricks. In silent hill 3, I was god damned afraid to move a lot of the times. Every twist and turn could yield something. a new enemy, or just environmental effects. I remember making it to the subway, and experiencing the poltergeist phenomena, and I literally said to myself "fuck this game, I made it to the second level and I am shitting bricks constantly". The room with the big mirror in it that starts to get all bloody as you stay in longer, while the room itself stayed in fine condition made me turn the thing off. Everything up too then had this cumulative affect on me. The monsters won't kill me, but the god damned level itself will. Resident evil, while good, really never had the same affect on me...sure, I remember being intensely frightened during my first play through of 2 (and multiple playthroughs of nemesis) but the game never frightened me on a primal level like the silent hill series did. Sure, I dropped the controller the first time nemesis flew through the wall in the police station, and the subsequent chase made my heart pound, but overall I was never Fearful during the experience. While the series has taken a great course change with 4 and 5, it really isn't frightening...just fun. Silent hill is a more Cerebral and primal horror game...its what you don't see alot of the time that sets you off..the sounds, the level design..it's a bit like Dead Space, and how I found myself more frightened by the sounds the levels made, or the sounds of far off monsters, grates breaking down, random music playing etc, then by the actual enemies (minus a few occasions when I was being chased by 7 stabbers when I had no plasma cutter ammo left, while I was trying to beat the game on impossible mode with the one gun achievement). Resident Evil is more frightening when you sit down and read through the notes and files imo...The bosses never really made me feel scared (except the neptune encounters), and the enemies weren't spooky in themselves- it was the ammo shortages that were frightening. that's what I think anyways..bit long, but it makes sense to me. also silent Hill the room was balls compared to 2 and 3.

[Andy]

It's funny that this question should be asked because both franchises are a load of old grandad's cock now. RE's 4-5 have no zombies and SH Origins-Homecoming are just weak name rapes. I Actually dont get why your so down on homecoming, i got it on release day and have been playing it when i can and i love it, its just like old school silent hill.

[Danny]

I Actually dont get why your so down on homecoming, i got it on release day and have been playing it when i can and i love it, its just like old school silent hill. ive yet to put a review on my site, what with working on my new site thats an actual site, not a blogger site, but ive played through it 3 times and its much better that that piece of shit origins was. Pj should be proud of adding shepherd's glen into the mythos. -and virtual r'spec' knuckles for it.

[bassman]

Never purchased or got deep into Silent Hill, but I've seen some friends play several of them and while they were pretty cool.....RE and RE2 take the trophy. Easy.

[Danny]

Never purchased or got deep into Silent Hill, but I've seen some friends play several of them and while they were pretty cool.....RE and RE2 take the trophy. Easy. isnt your answer moot if youve not finished at least one of both though?, thats like saying "oh i dont like pineapple, its gross" when youve never tried it y'know?

[Andy]

Never purchased or got deep into Silent Hill, but I've seen some friends play several of them and while they were pretty cool.....RE and RE2 take the trophy. Easy. I Agree with hellsing, while Resident Evil 2 is the strongest game in the resi series, silent hill 2 is miles better still.

[AcesandEights]

Most of the SH storylines start out all well and good, then fall to self-indulgent narratives and overblown, bong-hit locales. I don't know if they try too hard when they make those games or don't try hard enough to think things through.

[bassman]

isnt your answer moot if youve not finished at least one of both though?, thats like saying "oh i dont like pineapple, its gross" when youve never tried it y'know? Well I don't think I would have to completely finish a game to form an opinion of it. I wouldn't have placed a vote if I thought I hadn't seen enough of the game I was voting on. I played a bit of it and watched some friends play loads of it, so I think I can make a decision between the two. And I've played RE 1 & 2 many many times.

[capncnut]

I Actually dont get why your so down on homecoming, i got it on release day and have been playing it when i can and i love it, its just like old school silent hill. I disagree, reverse peeling walls ala SH: The Movie is not old school. Homecoming is okay. I'm not a full-blown hater but the series was pretty much drowning in it's own blood by episode four. 1-3 is where it's at and 1-3 is where it stays. Pretty much like Resident Evil really.

[Andy]

Homecoming is far better than origins and id take it over resi 5 anyday of the week. I Dont get why everyone is going so crazy about pyramid head being in it, it was for one breif scene and i personally think its a good, respectful nod to silent hill 2. As for oldschool silent hill i mean after "the room" or "origins", i think its a return to the gameplay style of silent hill 1,2 or 3, another point brought up in that review you posted which i dont agree with is when it says it has removed the lonliness by pairing you up with a women, from what ive played so far, she dosnt fight anything.. and your only paired up with her briefly, and you have to defend her. This is no more than james and maria's relationship in silent hill 2.