Even with its hefty reputation it still blew me away. Silent Hill 2 is absorbing, I beat it in two sittings, playing until almost two in the morning the first day. I think the main reason for this was because of its excellent atmosphere, which engulfs you like the fog has the sleepy town of Silent Hill. This is primarily achieved by its outstanding sound design which is instantly recognisable. The OST is another highlight and does an exceptional job reinforcing the themes and atmosphere of the game.

I love the small-scale exploration present in Silent Hill 2. Gradually, familiarising myself with the layout of a building, using the map to make sure nothing goes unchecked and ultimately solving these environmental puzzles was always really satisfying. Whilst the other puzzles here aren’t exactly complex, they do well enough to serve their purpose.

The quality of the story in Silent Hill 2 took me by surprise. It is a masterful meditation on grief and guilt and is for me the closest a video game has gotten to telling a story comparable to an arthouse film, in the way it desires to stimulate instead of just simply entertaining. The way it is integrated into the game was perfect too, there never felt like there was a disconnect between the story and gameplay segments, which I think is a problem in modern games which try to be cinematic to a fault. In conclusion play this game! It is an essential masterpiece which will be remembered for just how much ground it broke at the time it released and finally how it continues to be one of the finest examples of video games as art to this day.