New Silent Hill is a Dead Ringer for Alan Wake

Logan Westbrook

Transform, Roll Out, Etc
Feb 21, 2008
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New Silent Hill is a Dead Ringer for Alan Wake

Foggy streets are seemingly out in Silent Hill: Downpour, replaced with sunshine, mountains and cable cars.

While Remedy is busy talking [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/101586-Remedy-Confident-of-Alan-Wake-Sequel ] about a sequel to Alan Wake, Czech developer Vatra Games seems to be already working on one, or at the very least, a game that looks a great deal like it. Vatra has released a new batch of screenshots for Silent Hill: Downpour and they make Silent Hill look an awful lot like Bright Falls.

[gallery=202]

Unlike other games in the series, which have been set in the heart Silent Hill, Downpour is set on the outskirts, in the south eastern part of the town that appeared on the maps, but that the player never visited. Previous screenshots had already showed that corner of town to be a little on the rustic side, but this new batch shows that it also includes a mine, a cable car, and what could possibly be a lodge - although it could equally be part of the cable car station.

It's probably a little unfair to make comparisons between Downpour and Alan Wake, even though the resemblance between the two is quite striking in these images. It seems likely that that similarities are literally just skin-deep, as Alan Wake was fairly action orientated for a survival horror game, whereas Downpour - with its breakable weapons and hard to kill enemies - goes to great lengths to make combat sound like a very bad idea.

Shinji Hirano, head of Konami Digital Entertainment, said that Downpour would honor the "rich history and strong following of Silent Hill," and that Vatra and Konami were working hard to make a horror game that fans "truly deserved." It seems like Vatra is deliberately trying to distance itself from the old Silent Hill games, and make something new. Whether it works of not remains to be seen, but it doesn't seem like it will be a retread of familiar - and therefore unscary - ground.

Silent Hill: Downpour is scheduled for release on Xbox 360 and PS3 later this year.

Source: Evil Avatar [http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2000077#post2000077]









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Onyx Oblivion

Borderlands Addict. Again.
Sep 9, 2008
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Bah.

It's still no Deadly Premonition, is it Zach?


*is an Alan Wake fan*

*was never a Silent Hill fan*

This is good news to me.
 

Just_A_Glitch

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Dec 10, 2009
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This is not a problem.

This is a very, very good thing. I need more Alan Wake, so this will do while I wait.
 

Dora

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Jul 13, 2009
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Looks and sounds a lot visually like Resident Evil 4 to me, actually. But admittedly I haven't played Alan Wake.
 

Chewy2nd

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Apr 18, 2011
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*cough* foggy streets are in and don't look anything like Alan Wake *cough*


http://files.g4tv.com/rimg_606x0/ImageDb3/258860_l/silent-hill-downpour.jpg
http://files.g4tv.com/rimg_606x0/ImageDb3/258861_l/silent-hill-downpour.jpg

Oh and the cable car? That's inspired by a nearby attraction to the area in the Czech Republic that the game is being developed in



These screenshots lack fog because the game at that point isn't taking place in the foggy world
 

Cuddly Knife

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May 20, 2009
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HankMan said:
Looks good.
I think it's safe to say Downpour will be drenched in atmosphere?
TA-TA, TSSS!!!!

Seriously though, since after 4, I haven't played a Silent Hill game I've enjoyed enough to beat. Only played Origins and Homecoming though, so maybe the Wii version was good? I'll buy this game anyways, because I support my favorite franchises, but hopefully it will be on par with the first four games.
 

manythings

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Nov 7, 2009
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HankMan said:
Looks good.
I think it's safe to say Downpour will be drenched in atmosphere?
*guffaw*

OT: I'll wait and see. Never been a survival horror player but I am an avid Spectator.
 

Proverbial Jon

Not evil, just mildly malevolent
Nov 10, 2009
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Chewy2nd said:
In any case it looks a lot better than Homecoming did, LOL
ANYTHING would be better than Homecoming.

I LOVED Alan Wake so anything that resembles it is good in my books. But the lip synch had BETTER be bloody good, that really ruined AW for me.

I admire developers who want to try something new, but straying away from the tried and trusted forumla of the first 3 games has not worked out well for the series so far. As long as Pyramid Head isn't in it, I'll likely be some ways to being happy about it.

Cuddly Knife said:
Seriously though, since after 4, I haven't played a Silent Hill game I've enjoyed enough to beat. Only played Origins and Homecoming though, so maybe the Wii version was good? I'll buy this game anyways, because I support my favorite franchises, but hopefully it will be on par with the first four games.
You're really not missing much, anything after 4 just isn't worth your time, not when considered as Silent Hill games at any rate.

The Wii game you reference is Silent Hill: Shattered Mmeories, a "re-imagining" of the very first SH game. It's not scary at all but it does take a unique approach and the storyline is quite interesting with a final twist I DID NOT see coming at the end. I think it's worth a play just for that. It was ported for the PS2 as well, if you don't have a Wii... I don't, why would I?
 

Chewy2nd

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Apr 18, 2011
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^ Pyramid Head deffo isnt in it lol

Cuddly Knife said:
HankMan said:
Looks good.
I think it's safe to say Downpour will be drenched in atmosphere?
TA-TA, TSSS!!!!

Seriously though, since after 4, I haven't played a Silent Hill game I've enjoyed enough to beat. Only played Origins and Homecoming though, so maybe the Wii version was good? I'll buy this game anyways, because I support my favorite franchises, but hopefully it will be on par with the first four games.
Shattered Memories was a very different SH game, it turned the franchise on it's head because it dared to rid itself of blood drenched hospitals and big boobed nurses lol, and it worked, the story was really well done, I'd personally say it was on par with Silent Hill 2's story (though maybe that's because I was able to really relate to the ending)
 

thethingthatlurks

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Feb 16, 2010
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*yawn*
Sorry, the twilight does not frighten me, and I love me that Silent Hill fog. My interest in this is waning quickly...
 

Chewy2nd

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Apr 18, 2011
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thethingthatlurks said:
*yawn*
Sorry, the twilight does not frighten me, and I love me that Silent Hill fog. My interest in this is waning quickly...
It gets foggy when you reach town lol

The main reasons I'm so excited about this game
- Free roaming
- Fixed camera angles (mixed with controllable angles)
- Puzzle difficulty finally returning
 

Grey_Focks

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Jan 12, 2010
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Wow, I honestly thought those screenshots were of Alan Wake before I actually read the article... still, I really liked Alan Wake, and I've never been much of a Silent Hill fan, so I guess making it more like the former is a good thing? Probably still won't get it, but hey, learning that a sequel for Alan Wake is atleast possible makes me a happy panda.
 

Mahorfeus

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Feb 21, 2011
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Silent Hill 4 was forgivable with its significantly different gameplay and mild connection to the mythos.

Origins was pushing it with the whole "throw TVs at monsters" thing.

And Homecoming was basically Silent Hill: The Movie: The Game, a bastardization I hardly even acknowledge.

I like what I see of this game so far, but a lot of the series' fans have either lost hope - if this game bombs, I fear I'll become one of them.
 

Proverbial Jon

Not evil, just mildly malevolent
Nov 10, 2009
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Mahorfeus said:
Silent Hill 4 was forgivable with its significantly different gameplay and mild connection to the mythos.

Origins was pushing it with the whole "throw TVs at monsters" thing.

And Homecoming was basically Silent Hill: The Movie: The Game, a bastardization I hardly even acknowledge.

I like what I see of this game so far, but a lot of the series' fans have either lost hope - if this game bombs, I fear I'll become one of them.
I agree with every one of your points there. I don't think I'll ever get over the fact that Travis could carry a whole portable TV, a toaster and a typewriter in his pocket, I mean, seriously?

I'm ashamed to have Homecoming in my collection, truly I am.
 

BreakfastMan

Scandinavian Jawbreaker
Jul 22, 2010
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Looking good. I love the Silent Hill series, and this new entry is looking pretty awesome. Also, taking inspiration from Alan Wake is never a bad thing in my book, considering the game rocked socks.