Introduction

Silent Hill 2 is the second installment of the Silent Hill series and the first game of the series to be released for Sony PlayStation 2. It launched in North America on September 24th, 2001 for the PS2 and was later ported to Microsoft Xbox (with the subtitle "Restless Dreams" and included previously unreleased features such as a playable sub-scenario) and the PC. James Sunderland has arrived in the town of Silent Hill after receiving a letter from his wife, Mary, despite the fact that she had died from an illness three years ago. The letter states that Mary is waiting for James in their "special place", which confuses James, as the whole town of Silent Hill was their "special place".

Characters

James Sunderland: James Sunderland is the protagonist of Silent Hill 2. As the game begins, James states that his wife, Mary Shepherd-Sunderland, has been dead for three years. Regardless, James has received a mysterious letter in Mary's handwriting, stating that she is alive and waiting for him in their "special place," somewhere in Silent Hill. When James arrives at the town, he becomes ensnared in a series of bizarre and nightmarish events which force him to question his sanity, memory and personality.


Angela Orosco: Angela Orosco is a disturbed, unstable teenage girl who is on a search for her mother. She is 19 years old in Silent Hill 2.  Her mental state appears to be damaged by her emotionally, physically and sexually abusive past.  Angela is voiced in the game by Donna Burke, who also voiced Claudia Wolf in Silent Hill 3. Donna Burke also sang the theme song of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Heavens Divide.


Eddie Dombrowski: Eddie was drawn to Silent Hill by his deeply troubled past and feelings of guilt. Not much is known about Eddie's life before his arrival in Silent Hill, aside from the fact he worked at a gas station. Due to his obesity, Eddie had been verbally abused all his life, until his repressed anger began to manifest itself in the form of violent outbursts. Per the creators 'In the initial stages of the scenario, Eddie was actually a very cheerful character. Therefore, the name was borrowed from Eddie Murphy. In the end however, we changed his personality completely.'


Maria: A rather enigmatic character that James runs into upon reaching Rosewater Park, Maria bears many physical resemblances to his dead wife Mary. Though there is a physical appearance a number of emotional traits seem to make James weary of her, as she somehow embodies what his wife used to be like before the sickness took full effect. Additional Maria seems to suffer from the same emotional shortcomings as some of the other people that James has seen in town and appears to fluctuate from being lustful to co-dependent to rather cold with James. What her true purpose is and it's relation to James will be found out in due time.


Laura: A rude 8 year old that seems to find her way rather easily around Silent Hill, Laura seems to be apt at pointing out the faults in others and digging at them. What her true role actually is in the game or her relation to Mary is something that will develop over time, but as of right now she is at least seemingly more emotional balanced than any other person we've met in town so far.

Enemies

Lying Figure: Trapped in what appears to be straitjackets made from their own flesh, they attack by spewing a spray of poisonous mist from an opening in their chest. They are slow while standing upright, however, when knocked down, they can easily hit James Sunderland by skittering very quickly along the ground, easily outrunning the player. When moving along the ground they make a high pitched noise that sounds like the scraping of metal against cement. They also appear to have platform shoes hidden underneath their flesh. Their main form of attack is a ranged acid spit though they can also cause damage while skittering along the ground.


Creeper: The Creeper is a giant insect that moves with great speed and reacts strongly to light. They appear in both Silent Hill and Silent Hill 2. In Silent Hill 2, they are slightly smaller and have a stronger green tinge to their bodies. Their small size and flat bodies make them difficult targets, however, both protagonists can stomp on the creatures in order to kill them. As such, they are fairly easy to dispose of, but they are still quite annoying opponents.


Mannequin: These monsters consist of a feminine human torso, clad in what looks like a leotard made from putrid skin, and legs, upon which rest two more legs standing upright, though they noticeably lack feet. The top pair of legs are used for striking while the bottom pair are used for walking. When on the attack, they rub their upper legs together like an insect's mandibles. The creatures stand completely still at plain sight, like statues, and react strongly to the flashlight's light, springing to life and starting to attack, but only when the light strikes them from a relatively short distance, in contrast to most other creatures which react to light even when they are far from the light's source. A mannequin will also come to life when James Sunderland steps within a radius of about three to five feet around it, even with the flashlight turned off. Although they are not overly strong creatures, they may be hard to detect in dark environments due to their immobility, which can trick the player's vision, making mannequins blend in with the environment, and they also have the advantage of stealth, as the radio will not emit any static to warn the player of a mannequin's presence until the mannequin moves.


Flesh Lips: Continuing on with the female themed enemies, the Flesh Lips is a monster from Silent Hill 2 that appears as a bloated, malformed mass of meat and flesh with human-like limbs jutting out from its top and bottom, suspended in a rusty metal frame. A pair of big, smacking lips appears on the bottom of the creature, and it attacks by strangling the player with its legs. While not directly threatening and not really faced anywhere else in the game, the relatively small arena that they are faced in and the fact that the perspective is so odd cause the Flesh Lips to be a bit of an annoyance though not exceptionally dangerous.


'Bubble Head' Nurse: They wear provocative attire, exposing cleavage and sporting miniskirts. Their heads face backwards, appearing swollen and bloodied, convulsing violently as they wobble toward James Sunderland. The nurses move in an awkward manner, their legs carrying them in a shaky and crooked fashion, making them out to be slow opponents, yet they are surprisingly fast on the attack. They emit shrieks and gurgles when approaching. These monsters carry their own melee weapons, usually pipes similar to James'. They are fairly aggressive and will surround James if he encounters more than one in an area. However, if they come in close contact with one another and decide to attack, chances are they'll knock out one of their own close by.


Mandarin: They hang from the mesh grating floors, commonly found in the Otherworld, by the tips of their arms. They reach out to attack with tentacles that sprout from the lip-like openings in their arms. They are trapped below the floor and James Sunderland never encounters one above the floor he's currently standing on. They appear to be distorted, female figures with grotesquely large arms, and a straight-jacket-like garment covering their upper body. Their legs dangle uselessly below them. They are uncommon and not very dangerous. The only method in which to kill one is to use firearms, as James cannot reach them with any melee weapon. The best tactic to deal with them is to not waste much-needed ammo and to instead run past them. They are very easily avoided so long as the player doesn't stand still above them for too long.


Abstract Daddy: The Abstract Daddy appears as two figures lying on a bed, covered in a "blanket" of putrid skin, with the two forms apparently having intercourse. The two figures seem to be trapped in a rectangular board, with the "male" or upper figure's arms and legs dangling out the bottom. It moves on all fours, and the lower portion of the beast has the appearance of a bed with four posts. It is a slow moving opponent, but it can take a fair amount of punishment before dying. It attacks simply by rearing up and slamming its huge body against its potential prey, or by hopping on top of James and apparently suffocating him by forcing his head into its "mouth", which resembles a vaginal opening.


Pyramid Head: Pyramid Head's appearance is that of a large, well-built human male. He wears a helmet, which is always hidining his face completely, and typically is seen wielding a Great Knife or a spear. He never speaks, but muffled noises can be heard from beneath his helmet on two occasions. He is very strong and can lift James off the ground with one hand. In Silent Hill 2, his first appearance, he dons a white robe-like outfit with no sleeves, and what appears to be rubber gloves with fused fingers. His iconic pyramid-shaped helmet appears to be a rusty hunk of metal grafted onto his head, with a single hole drilled into it.

Videos

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: P.M.F.