Introduction

So what are some key elements of any good Silent Hill game? A thick, dark, and suffocating atmosphere of emotional horrors? A grinding and metallic sound track and audio effects echoing some malevolent cacophony ringing forth from hell? A deep, symbolic storyline rich in allegories, metaphors, and disturbing imagery? Well the 2004 release, Silent Hill 4: The Room, does indeed have some of that but it also decided to try out a few new ideas. Some of them work and some of them didn't (in fact some of them I feel really put a tarnish on what could have been a really great game), but for better or worse it just didn't get that much attention and really it might be the least played Silent Hill out there....don't talk about the Silent Hill arcade game, we're not in glorious Nippon right now. I don't want to spoil the differences too much in the game just yet, suffice it to say that this will be a tough journey and I hope I can make it an enjoyable one.

Now you may be wondering what type of story lies in store for us; another missing daughter, a mysterious letter from a dead wife, a crazed cult maybe wishing to resurrect an evil god to cleanse the world in fire? No, no; this time we have a much simpler ghost story. Merely a man waking up from a dream into a nightmare as we find our main character, Henry Townshend, locked inside of his apartment. Seems like a simple enough premise but think about what that isolation can do to a brain; think about being stuck within a prison with the outside world merely inches away but deep down you know it may as well be an eternity. That is the type of horror Henry is going to have to face, but that's just the tip of the otherworldly horrors that wait for him....just beyond the shitter door.





Henry Townshend is the main protagonist of Silent Hill 4: The Room. As stated in the instruction booklet, Henry Townshend is noted as a "young man who never lets his feelings show." As such, Henry is somewhat of a quiet soul that is shy in personality. This is emphasized by the fact that he does not speak much, and is more of a listener. Henry's shyness and occasionally awkward behavior may indicate that he is somewhat of a hermit. No mention is made of any friends or family throughout the game, and even his neighbors only know him in passing. He is a keen and adept photographer, proven by the many scenic pictures that hang on the walls which he himself shot. He has an eye for natural beauty that goes beyond the superficial as he once remarks, "This is a photo of the church I ran across while I was visiting Silent Hill. For some reason I was really attracted by the way it looked, so I took the picture."


Eileen Galvin is Henry Townshend's young neighbor, living adjacent to his apartment in Room 303. Although Henry has lived at the South Ashfield Heights apartment building for over two years, Eileen has only a passing familiarity with him. The game booklet states that she has a kind personality, and this seems likely considering her neighbors' friendliness towards her. Eileen seems unnaturally aware of her surroundings and the comings-and-goings of her fellow residents. She is the first to notice that Henry has not left his apartment for some time and called the building's superintendent, Frank Sunderland, asking him to check up on Henry. Later, she questions other residents regarding Henry's background and activities, albeit to no avail.


Cynthia Velasquez is a character in Silent Hill 4: The Room. A flirtatious Spanish American woman, Cynthia becomes trapped in Walter Sullivan's Subway Otherworld. Henry Townshend finds Cynthia in the Subway world, South Ashfield Station, early in the game (she can be seen earlier through the window in Room 302, standing near the subway entrance). She is convinced that she had become trapped in a 'terrible dream'. After admitting her fear of the place, she asks Henry to help her find a way out of the station, stating that she will repay him with a "special favor"(implied to be sex).  During the escort, she becomes nauseous and rushes into the women's restroom and disappears. After Henry returns, he discovers her locked in a subway car and reunites with her. Later, Cynthia manages to find an exit of the station and calls Henry over the public address system, but she suddenly screams as Walter Sullivan attacks her. By the time Henry reaches her, Cynthia is already dying. She is covered in blood with the numbers '16121' carved into her left breast. Henry cradles Cynthia in his arms and she then apologizes to Henry for not being able to give him his special favor. Henry comforts her by telling her that it is just a dream and she dies in his arms. Her items left behind are her make-up items that were found scattered around the floor near the crime scene. 


Jasper Gein is a somewhat mentally unbalanced man who appears in Silent Hill 4: The Room. Along with his friends Bobby Randolph and Sein Martin, Jasper was fascinated by the mythology of the Order, making it his goal to find out all he could about the cult and its teachings. Henry Townshend meets Jasper while walking on a path through a forest outside of Wish House. Jasper tells Henry about the origins of the stone he is sitting beside, known as the Mother Stone. Henry leaves shortly after Jasper says how the stone is creepy.  Shortly after entering into the Wish House, Jasper enters and disappears into one of the rooms. Not too long after, Henry hears a blood-curdling scream and investigates the room that Jasper entered. Upon opening the door, Jasper is seen burning and writhing in agony. After Henry witnesses this act, Jasper shrieks that he saw "the red devil" he was searching for. Jasper carves the number "17121" into his own chest with an altar candle and collapses. 


Andrew DeSalvo is a nervous, middle aged man Henry Townshend meets locked in a cell in the Water Prison World in Silent Hill 4: The Room. Prior to the game, DeSalvo was employed by the Order as a guard at the Wish House Orphanage and the Water Prison (although he was apparently not a member of the Order himself), where he was abusive towards the children there.  After Henry frees him from the cell in the Water Prison, he is disturbed by the presence of young Walter and is last seen drowned as Walter's 18th victim.  


Richard Braintree is a character in Silent Hill 4: The Room. He is Henry Townshend's neighbor from Room 207, an angry middle aged man who hates children. Richard lived in Room 207 of South Ashfield Heights. He is an eccentric, angry and somewhat violent (possibly sadistic) man who carries a revolver along with him. Remembering Joseph Schreiber's sudden disappearance, he becomes concerned when he notices the same thing happening again in Room 302. Richard is also on good relations with Eileen Galvin, as Richard and Eileen are seen having a friendly conversation together. Henry Townshend first meets Richard Braintree personally in the building world on Hotel South Ashfield. He appears to fall out of the sky (which is never explained fully in the game) and suddenly points his revolver at Henry, but realizes that he is another resident of his apartment building. Richard tells Henry he wants to find a way out and suddenly leaves. As Henry enters and descends through an elevator, he sees Richard, who is chasing a young Walter Sullivan, having recognized him.  Henry makes his way to a large staircase when he suddenly hears Richard's scream. When Henry reaches the top of the staircase, he finds a replica of Room 207, Richard's own apartment room. He enters Room 207 and sees the child Walter point outside a window (possibly at Henry's next door neighbor) and eventually disappear into thin air. Henry tries to help Richard, who is being electrocuted in an electric chair, with "19/21" carved into his forehead. Henry is unable to free him and is forced to watch him die. 




A common enemy in Silent Hill 4: The Room, the Sniffer Dogs are dog-type creatures that have long, prehensile tongues that they use to drain the blood of their prey. They have dirty, leathery skin which appears to be decaying and, strangely, make snarling sounds which resemble that of a large feline rather than a canine. Their gums are prominent and hold large, dagger-like canines. The male Sniffer Dogs have green-yellow tinges to their skin and attack by charging up and lunging towards Henry Townshend's torso. Female Sniffer Dogs, which have a purple-pink appearance, are much more intelligent and tend to detect Henry's presence more quickly. The females are capable of grabbing onto the leg and pinning the player down while others of its companions attack him. The Sniffer Dogs often appear in groups and are usually witnessed feeding on other deceased monster carcasses.


Wall Men are monsters which appear almost everywhere in Silent Hill 4: The Room. They are very lanky humanoid monsters attached to the wall at the waist; they sink into the wall and are perfectly camouflaged until they attack by swinging their powerful arms at their prey. heir skin takes on the exact same color and texture of the wall in which they are adhered. They are also faceless, and their hands end in wicked claws. They are best avoided as much as possible or shot with the hand gun if needed to stun them so Henry can pass without getting hit. They attack when Henry Townshend comes too close to their hiding spot. They usually show themselves before Henry comes into striking range, however. Their reach makes them dangerous and their powerful arms will knock Henry flat on his back with a single strike. Unfortunately for them, they are stationary and cannot move from their location.


Mothbats, also known as Hummers, are flying creatures from Silent Hill 4: The Room. They appear as small, black mixtures between hummingbirds and bats. Their bodies are much like that of a bat, though they have long needle-like beaks similar to that of a hummingbird. In addition, their wings flap extremely quickly, making a buzzing sound as they dart about. Mothbats usually show up in swarms and attack Henry Townshend on sight. They are not particularly dangerous alone, merely doing tiny bits of damage to Henry until they die. However, in swarms or in conjunction with other foes they can be quite irritating. Dealing with them is simple, as Henry can merely swat them out of the air and stomp on them to finish them off. However, if not crushed, they will quickly recompose themselves and begin flying again.


Tremers are large, leech-like creatures that inhabit the Otherworlds. They are only a minor threat and are a nuisance at best. They appear to be huge leeches, varying in size between a foot long and the size of a man's torso. They are consistently coated in slime and adhere themselves to walls, floors, and ceilings, leaving a trail of slime behind them in their wake. They come in two, negligible varieties: Blue Tremer and Red Tremer. Blues are a dark blue, almost black, and have a segmented, pointed appearance, whereas Reds are a solid, teardrop shaped creature with a dull red tinge. When killed, they release a splatter of gooey blood, supposedly from recent meals. Tremers are almost non-threatening in general. Their only method of attack is if they come into contact with Henry Townshend and then explode, causing minor damage to him. They may also drop from the ceiling and damage Henry on contact in this manner. They are killed by simply stomping on them, as they have no method of self-defense. Also, Henry can splatter them with a melee weapon when they are adhered to a wall, or simply knock them down and then stomp on them. Red Tremers do slightly more damage than Blue ones.


The Twin Victims (also known as Doublehead) are an enemy from Silent Hill 4: The Room. The creature appears to be a large set of sleeping Siamese twin infants wearing a tattered, dirty smock and what looks like a scarf. The twins will point at Henry Townshend and whisper "receiver", but they will not attack him unless he wanders too close to them or provokes them (i.e. shooting at or attacking), in which case they will lash out and strike at him with their long arms. After being disturbed, they will dart about the room fairly quickly, continuously harassing Henry and then running away until killed. They are capable of dealing heavy damage by hitting Henry or jumping on him. When they fall by being attacked, they start "sobbing" like young children.


A Gum Head, also known as a Rubber Face, is a type of monster in Silent Hill 4: The Room. They are ape-like beings that are often found in groups. Gum Heads have gray, mottled skin that appears to be decaying. Their faces appear somewhat human, however, they make monkey-like screeching and grunting noises. They also have a tendency to steal golf clubs or pipes from Henry Townshend if he is carrying any, which can be retrieved once Henry has killed them. They come in two varieties, called Old Types and New Types. Old Type Gum Heads are completely gray and are much more common. They have large tumors growing out of their throats, which almost appear like an exposed heart or another head emerging. The flesh on the face seems to be melted and stretched downward, leading into the second head. The New Types have red patches on their bodies that appear like scrapes and cuts and the tumor-like appendage is now a bloody red. Both heads have faces. They have two walking modes, one of which is bounding around quickly on all-fours, and the other is shambling slowly on two. Their primary method of attack is to strike with their arms and bite Henry; however, they can inflict greater damage if they happen to procure a weapon. New Types are much more likely to carry a weapon, and are faster on the attack.


Patient is a type of enemy found in Silent Hill 4: The Room. They are large humanoid creatures, standing well over six feet in height and towering over Henry Townshend. They resemble a feminine monster with grotesquely distorted facial features. They have mottled grey skin with chunks missing from their bodies and wear bloody grey hospital gowns as well. They move very fluidly and lack the twitching movements common to many other monsters. They always wield pipes in their hands, with which they use to attack victims. Normally they make low-pitched breathing and growling noises, and when struck they make grunts that sound very much like belching. They often appear in groups of two or more, making it much more difficult to defeat them. The Rusty Axe is the recommended method of dealing with them. Another method is to use Richard's Revolver that you find in his apartment in the Otherworld, as it is capable of knocking down these enemies in 1-2 shots.


Wheelchairs are an environmental staple in the Silent Hill series, appearing quite often in a variety of locations such as alley ways, hospitals and even abandoned buildings. In Silent Hill 4: The Room, an enemy in the form of a possessed wheelchair makes itself a hazardous foe. The Wheelchairs themselves don't look too interesting, appearing as simple wheelchairs with an aluminum frame and red padding; however, they move erratically and do a great deal of damage to Henry Townshend if they ram into him. Despite their mockable appearance, they can be quite dangerous to Henry. They have the same sort of supernatural damaging presence as Ghosts, including invulnerability, and often appear in large numbers. Wheelchairs do not actively attack Henry, and instead just mill about quickly in a random pattern. When struck repeatedly they will slow down and eventually stop, as well as lose their supernatural powers. In this state they are just ordinary wheelchairs, but will regain their possessed abilities before long.


Bottom is a monster from Silent Hill 4: The Room and appears during the second visit to South Ashfield Heights. It's a stronger version of the Twin Victims. They are naked, with their faces horribly deformed and their bodies a cancerous, lumpy, deformed mass of flesh. Bottoms also have a face dangling from the bottom of their torso, hence their name, which bears strong resemblance to the Gum Head. They only attack Henry Townshend if he gets close; otherwise they merely stand stationary, pointing at him and whispering "receiver" over and over. Bottoms are slightly more dangerous than Twin Victims and are much faster and tenacious.

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