Great game, lousy porting

Silent Hill 2 is certainly one of the best games ever released for Sony's PlayStation2. The title has, like its predecessor, in addition to dense atmosphere and a geheimnisumwogenen story a lot of tension, suspense and the use of human primal fears. The higher the expectations were, as has been announced, the game time to port to Microsoft's fledgling Xbox console and the PC, as both platforms were technically stronger than the PS2 and put Konami exclusive bonus content for the ports in view. Unfortunately, Konami underwent when porting to PC some annoying Schlampigkeitsfehler.

On the one hand there are the technical shortcomings, starting with the graphics. What still looked good on the PS2, must not act equally well on PC. Often there are small pop-ups and polygon errors, disturbed most have me in the end but the shadows. It may sound stupid, but most 'frightened' I was playing the PC version of my own shadow. I walked through narrow, dark lanes, use the flashlight, turn around - and how it nowhere suddenly appeared on my shadow somewhere. Short shock, acceptance, an opponent would be close - these are just a graphics error. The characters and monsters were, however, by the standards of 2002, implemented well and in detail, here there is absolutely no reason to complain. The biggest technical problem is in any case not the graphics are, but stability.

I have Silent Hill 2 patched before I started playing under Windows XP - and yet I could not finish without a crash (when I went on 'Quit' from the menu, it remained just hang). Since I run it in Windows 2000 compatibility mode, it's better, but it is shameful that the Director's Cut one year after the release of Windows XP can not have a better compatibility to. I also hat under 1024x768 resolution as no smooth gaming (cutscenes froze, sometimes it crashed me right in the game to the desktop, ...), although my monitor would still support higher resolutions, and had therefore at a lower play what the Graphics had become blurry and grainy and my game a little slowed down. Apparently I had these problems not the only such a short search on the Internet showed so I prefer this from a star. Konami PC ports are in principle of a lower quality, PC gamers should be such consequently usual - so you have it but in no way accept uncritically.

Another star deduction is available for the controller, which may be in the standard layout would not impractical. Instead, as usual in the majority of my well-known PC-Adventures to place the control of the figure on WASD and assign the surrounding keys all other functions, so that they all are always available with a handle, Konami distributed his orders extremely generous on the whole Keyboard. Well, the controller can be adapted, what bothered me more was the also familiar from other adventures, but here entirely missing missing mouse support. Why has 'Search' set (to Look Around) on the S button when the mouse could use this to what the whole thing had something 'softer' made? I do not understand - and a clear downside.

Of course is also Silent Hill 2 is no perfect video game. The camera position is often chaotic and often has to be readjusted if, and only very vague of goes - another reason why it would have been great to mutualise this feature on the mouse. Otherwise, however, I can not fault Konami's horror sequel, because the game itself captivates from the first moment and manages to maintain its voltage until Ending and Credits constantly maintained. Silent Hill 2 This can definitely with his well-largest competitor, which appeared about the same time and more as an equal, in Germany, however indexed 'Resident Evil Code: Veronica X' measure.

Silent Hill 2 is also - or especially - as a Director's Cut a großrtiges game - at least on the consoles. The PC version suffers especially in the industrial sector from the effects of a loveless porting and to conceptual weaknesses in the field of control. Who no PS2 or Xbox calls his own, but should access if he has the nerve for it - Silent Hill 2 is definitely not for children and the faint of heart natures. Should you however have a console, you shall necessarily to the corresponding version, as this is much more sophisticated. Three stars for a great title in its weakest implementation.