IconiQ Studios - Silent Hill 2 - 1/6 Pyramid Head & Bubble Head Nurse Collectible Figure

[JorjeCroft]

Game starts slow but it gets more and more intense. Personally I love it. Atmosphere and sound design is amazing, especially if you are playing with headphones on. I'm scared.

 

[R_R_X]

I finished the remake yesterday, just like the original it sticks with you. There's slight variations here and there, some work others not so much but I really appreciate how this remake takes a meta approach and doesn't really replace the original it instead plays into all the fan theories out there, specifically the loop one, one of the secret endings is also hilariously recreated in a very clever way.

The combat is very enjoyable to me, much better than running around whacking creatures over the head with a plank. Several portions of the game are also better realized in the remake, Eddie's boss fight probably being the best example.

I was also pleasantly surprised when I realized Luke Roberts, Woodes Rogers from Black Sails was playing James, he did a phenomenal job.

The only issue I had with this was the annoying traversal stutter due to Unreal Engine 5, definitely sucks that a lot of studios are abandoning their inhouse engines for one that is plagued by this issue.

 

[zexion_armando]

I like the idea of the combat, but if they were gonna add more of it, I would have appreciated more enemy types or less monsters in general. By the Prison, other than the Spider Mannequins, you’d already beaten dozen of these enemies and they lose their spark.

So much was faithfully recreated and visually it’s so impressive. Cutscenes feel more natural and acted, and have actual camera work and style now, even if some of the voice changes aren’t as good (Eddie, Laura, and James are a delight, while Angela struggles occasionally but still sticks the important scenes. I’m not sure how I feel about Maria. She’s more flirty and personable, but she sort of loses the edge the original had.)

I think I rank it a little below RE4make but still a very very solid effort. 8/10.

 

[R_R_X]

I like the idea of the combat, but if they were gonna add more of it, I would have appreciated more enemy types or less monsters in general. By the Prison, other than the Spider Mannequins, you’d already beaten dozen of these enemies and they lose their spark.

So much was faithfully recreated and visually it’s so impressive. Cutscenes feel more natural and acted, and have actual camera work and style now, even if some of the voice changes aren’t as good (Eddie, Laura, and James are a delight, while Angela struggles occasionally but still sticks the important scenes. I’m not sure how I feel about Maria. She’s more flirty and personable, but she sort of loses the edge the original had.)

I think I rank it a little below RE4make but still a very very solid effort. 8/10.

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Unpopular opinion but I definitely preferred the Silent Hill 2 remake over the RE4 remake. RE4 remake deviated too much for me, a lot of cutscenes were worse, iconic and cheesy dialogue was replaced by forgettable lines and some areas of the game are just underdeveloped, poorly recreated and lacking in style compared to the original. The combat and gameplay is the best thing about it in my opinion, and Luis.

Silent Hill 2 remake however doesn't have the intention of replacing the original, instead it builds upon it, by playing into the loop fan theory among others. There are a few moments when the characters have a sense of déjà vu, it's a very meta and clever way of acknowledging the fact that a lot of people who played the original are feeling the same way.

The story remains as strong and impactful as ever, sure there's changes but it didn't really take anything away from the experience for me. The only thing I have a problem with is how some of the dialogue was delivered, especially Angela like you mentioned, but at the end of the day these are completely different actors putting their own spin on the same dialogue that was written over 20 years ago but man it still hits. A new ending in particular really pulls at the heart strings, and it simply builds upon the original material.

I also don't get some of the criticism people have about the combat or enemies, every game gets repetitive in that aspect, even the ones people consider masterpieces, this was no different in that aspect. Thankfully the combat is engaging enough to not wear thin with some surprises thrown in like the mannequins climbing walls.

Speaking of combat, I'm personally glad they didn't try to add in new enemies which would ruin the 9 delusions symbolism, or god forbid, remove some. Instead they took the better approach and made them more of a challenge for the player which I appreciate.

But that's just me, I like my remakes to be as faithful as possible. Bloober's remake toes the line between old and new with the necessary amount of respect, admiration and devotion to the original, bringing a new generation not a replacement for the original but a love letter to it.

 

[zexion_armando]

You’re very much right. And I appreciate the combat is a million times better than it was in the original. I think the over the shoulder angle made me yearn for RE4 more, which is a disservice to the game.

For a first playthrough, for sure, it’s great. The panic of getting swarmed or the dread as you count the last couple of bullets you have left was palpable. Plus I haven’t felt this visceral joy stomping on enemies since Dead Space.

Mannequins in general turned into my favorite enemy, after being entirely fodder in the original. Watching them saunter off into the dark, knowing it’s just playing games with me. Nurses too. The Jacob’s ladder twitch added to their animations was such a great choice.

But I was glad I got the chainsaw so I could just mow down enemies in NG+ for all the new endings.

I’m really sad for all the faithfulness, they didn’t bring back the great knife fully. But I imagine modders will add that and weird blaster thing later. We already got nude mods for James and Pyramid Bae lol.

 

[Project_A]

Let’s get down more remakes and merch! Hoping for a 1/6 James someday…

 

[Brokenhandpuppet]

I would love a 1/6 James and Maria, monsters, Remake Accurate Pyramid Head (I need 2 to recreate the Ending).

 

[Garlador]

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Let’s get down more remakes and merch! Hoping for a 1/6 James someday…

Not bad! The original sold 1 million in a month. This is tracking to be the fastest-selling (and possibly best-selling) installment in the series.

 

[JorjeCroft]

I would love a 1/6 James and Maria, monsters, Remake Accurate Pyramid Head (I need 2 to recreate the Ending).

That would be amazing!!!

 

[R_R_X]

Not bad! The original sold 1 million in a month. This is tracking to be the fastest-selling (and possibly best-selling) installment in the series.

Well earned, I posted the announcement here with zero expectations, I pretty much believed the game was going to be another soulless remake with lots of cut content that misses the magic of the original. Just another product trying to cash in on this remake/remaster craze.

After seeing all the praise during those first couple of days after it released, I kid you not, I dreamt of Silent Hill.

So I got the remake the next day. Boy was I proved wrong... I'm still thinking about it. Bloober pulled through against all odds and delivered a passionate addition to the franchise and the original game.

 

[Garlador]

Well earned, I posted the announcement here with zero expectations, I pretty much believed the game was going to be another soulless remake with lots of cut content that misses the magic of the original. Just another product trying to cash in on this remake/remaster craze.

After seeing all the praise during those first couple of days after it released, I kid you not, I dreamt of Silent Hill.

So I got the remake the next day. Boy was I proved wrong... I'm still thinking about it. Bloober pulled through against all odds and delivered a passionate addition to the franchise and the original game.

I'll echo the praise. I've played nearly all the games since the PS1 original. I haven't felt this good about a Silent Hill game since Silent Hill 3, honestly (even if I have a lot of love for others after it).

 

[Brokenhandpuppet]

I started playing the SH series later, I actually got into it with the Movies when those came out.

Going back I liked SH 2 a lot, but always preferred 1 and 3. Playing through the remake it feels like, what I believe, people felt the first time they played the original. Like this is how I was supposed to feel while playing the original, but I didn't pick it up at that magical time during my personal journey when it all clicked. The intense emotions, equal parts fear and euphoria.

I cried immediately upon starting the game and seeing what I believe most imagined the OG looked when they were younger. Everything suddenly clicked, and as I played through it in 13 hours over 3 days my brain couldn't muster a thought more than "I love every second of this".

 

[chrisstbh]

Well earned, I posted the announcement here with zero expectations, I pretty much believed the game was going to be another soulless remake with lots of cut content that misses the magic of the original. Just another product trying to cash in on this remake/remaster craze.

I’m struggling to think of any soulless remakes. Pretty much all of the remakes I’ve experienced have been really high quality.

Maybe RE3 would be the worst remake I’ve played, £8 for it still felt like too much.

 

[Akiratang]

I’m struggling to think of any soulless remakes. Pretty much all of the remakes I’ve experienced have been really high quality.

Maybe RE3 would be the worst remake I’ve played, £8 for it still felt like too much.

I actually still really enjoyed RE3R, but RE2R was a masterpiece imo. It seems a lot of people were expecting the SH2R to be soulless, even hoping for it to fail. Recently, there was some childish behavior on the SH2R Wikipedia page, where someone kept editing the review scores to make them lower, and the page had to be locked. It’s sad that some trolls are just jealous of the success.

 

[Garlador]

I actually still really enjoyed RE3R, but RE2R was a masterpiece imo. It seems a lot of people were expecting the SH2R to be soulless, even hoping for it to fail. Recently, there was some childish behavior on the SH2R Wikipedia page, where someone kept editing the review scores to make them lower, and the page had to be locked. It’s sad that some trolls are just jealous of the success.

That's a very heartwarming part of this tale. There was a lot of justified (and unjustified) skepticism that Bloober could pull this off. A lot of dooming and glooming. A lot of jaded and cynical views. And in the end, Bloober proved the doubters wrong and delivered one of the finest horror experiences in decades.

It's great to see an underdog triumph.

 

[rocbolt]

I mean if you are effectively copying one of the finest games ever made its your race to lose

 

[R_R_X]

I’m struggling to think of any soulless remakes. Pretty much all of the remakes I’ve experienced have been really high quality.

Maybe RE3 would be the worst remake I’ve played, £8 for it still felt like too much.

Well RE3 remake is certainly one of them. There's a bunch of others I'm not that fond of but it all comes down to personal taste, most remakes aren't actually bad from a technical perspective, they just miss the mark on what made the originals special in my opinion.

Also, this is one of Konami's most influential titles but we know Konami hasn't been the same for a long time, and then we found out it was outsourced to a studio which didn't have a fantastic track record, my hopes for it being any good couldn't have been lower.

I'm really glad I was 100% wrong.

 

[Garlador]

I mean if you are effectively copying one of the finest games ever made its your race to lose

It's not that easy. Even Konami botched it before with a simple HD Remaster that was vastly inferior to the original version, and port after port has been plagued with issues and setbacks that don't quite match up to the initial release. Silent Hill fans are notoriously unpleasable and nitpicky (I should know), and were watching every second of footage we had to criticize - from the inflection of a voice line, to the design of a face or outfit, to camera, to the font, to the way the fog worked, to combat, to minor sound effects and UI elements, etc. When the original game had the HD Remaster with optional (and more "professional") voices included, it was widely criticized for any minor deviation from the source material. It's ridiculously EASY to screw up even a little thing and hurt the experience with hardcore fans, especially when so much of the awkward and dated elements were considered part of the charm. The struggle to modernize the game while retaining essential elements that were divisive 20 years ago is no small feat.

But they met and exceeded expectations.

 

[Uravgcollector]

Eh I played it when I was pretty young so I barely even remember it. So I wonder how many peoples experience is being elevated with nostalgia.

Whenever I see an enemy I don’t feel scared or even threatened by them I just sigh at the thought of hitting the same pair of legs with a stick for the millionth time.

I know it’s a good game on the narrative side of things but the tedious and monotonous gameplay loop has stopped me from experiencing that.

I may just watch it on Youtube and eat the £40 loss.

In what sense? Do you mean nostalgia elevating the original game or the remake? I can't speak for others, nostalgia isn't something that elevates or saves a game. I may be nostalgic for a game I haven't played for years, but that all goes away the second I start playing it again; if something was meticulously put together and well-thought, it will always stand out to me and vice versa.

With SH2, I only recently completed the original game (finished downpour a few weeks ago) and I prefer that overall over the remake. I could share my thoughts but this ain't a review thread. That said, the remake is very solid. And the sound-design in particular is phenomenal. Playing this game with a good set of open-back headphones is a must imo.

 

[Uravgcollector]

Unpopular opinion but I definitely preferred the Silent Hill 2 remake over the RE4 remake. RE4 remake deviated too much for me, a lot of cutscenes were worse, iconic and cheesy dialogue was replaced by forgettable lines and some areas of the game are just underdeveloped, poorly recreated and lacking in style compared to the original. The combat and gameplay is the best thing about it in my opinion, and Luis.

Silent Hill 2 remake however doesn't have the intention of replacing the original, instead it builds upon it, by playing into the loop fan theory among others. There are a few moments when the characters have a sense of déjà vu, it's a very meta and clever way of acknowledging the fact that a lot of people who played the original are feeling the same way.

The story remains as strong and impactful as ever, sure there's changes but it didn't really take anything away from the experience for me. The only thing I have a problem with is how some of the dialogue was delivered, especially Angela like you mentioned, but at the end of the day these are completely different actors putting their own spin on the same dialogue that was written over 20 years ago but man it still hits. A new ending in particular really pulls at the heart strings, and it simply builds upon the original material.

I also don't get some of the criticism people have about the combat or enemies, every game gets repetitive in that aspect, even the ones people consider masterpieces, this was no different in that aspect. Thankfully the combat is engaging enough to not wear thin with some surprises thrown in like the mannequins climbing walls.

Speaking of combat, I'm personally glad they didn't try to add in new enemies which would ruin the 9 delusions symbolism, or god forbid, remove some. Instead they took the better approach and made them more of a challenge for the player which I appreciate.

But that's just me, I like my remakes to be as faithful as possible. Bloober's remake toes the line between old and new with the necessary amount of respect, admiration and devotion to the original, bringing a new generation not a replacement for the original but a love letter to it.

I don't really agree about the combat but you are not wrong. The most notable exceptions to what you said is obviously games that are built around their combat like, most recently, Sifu, I have played that game on and off since 2022, and the combat has never gotten stale. It remains fresh and exciting as the first time I played it. But again, doesn't really apply to SH2. Though I would not have mind if they did cut down the number of enemies, but that would probably mean making the locations smaller too.