Silent Hill 2 Turns 20 Years Today

 

It's been two decades since Konami and Team Silent released one of the best survival horror entries in Silent Hill 2 - a sequel that enhances everything that its predecessor laid out by giving us a much more terrifying experience into the cursed town that the game derives its name from. Released on this day in 2001 for the Sony PlayStation 2, the game introduces us to widower James Sunderland - who is drawn into the mysterious town of Silent Hill due to a letter sent by his wife Mary... Who died three years prior to the events of the game. Exploring the town to find answers, he is instead drawn to the mystery of his surroundings - encountering people with their own problems as well as creatures that are demonic manifestations of a person's own dark nature.

The backstory of Silent Hill is a convoluted case - which is built on the notes and mysterious letters that center on a town that had a cult worshipping a demon and unleashing dark energies that have remained a part of it even after the events of the first game. Silent Hill 2 and the other sequels explore in great detail other aspects of the town and expand on its lore - as well as the poor unfortunate souls like James who are drawn to go there and their "skeletons in the closet" are brought to life because of the dark energies that still reside inside the haunted town. 

Gameplay of course is typical Survival Horror fare - you guide the character through a town and explore collecting items, solving puzzles, and defeating enemies to progress through the story. There are multiple endings for this entry as well - the most out of any installment, and one that is dependent on the choices you make and conditions you set about completing the game. It's this attention to detail and these design choices that among the great aspects of the games Team Silent made, and why this sequel is beloved by many fans to this day.

Happy 20th Anniversary, Silent Hill 2.

Throwback: The PlayStation 2 launched in Japan 21 years ago today

 

March 4, 2000 would be a date for the video game history books - as Sony officially launched their long awaited successor to the original Sony PlayStation console in the PlayStation 2 - a sleek black rectangular DVD powered console that was 128-bit and was hotly anticipated by the masses of gamers in Japan and the world over. Announced in 1999 and with backwards compatibility for the huge library of games its predecessor had, the system abbreviated as the PS2 had a lot to live up to... And boy did it live up to that legacy of gaming through the years. As a sixth generation console, it faced competition with the Sega Dreamcast, Microsoft Xbox, and Nintendo Gamecube - but it powered on and would go on to hold so many memorable titles and memories.

Taking a trip back memory lane, here's archived video footage of the launch of the PS2 back in Japan on this day 21 years ago.

JAPAN: SONY PLAYSTATION 2 LAUNCH

With its rich library of games that includes the likes Final Fantasy X, Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3, Silent Hill 2, 3, and 4, GTA 3, Vice City, and San Andreas, Devil May Cry 1-3, and so many other games - you'd be hard pressed to find someone who didn't know about the PlayStation 2. Three generations later, we get a new successor in the PS5 now... But this is one system that is considered one of the greats, and holds the award for being one of the best-selling video game consoles of all time.

Happy 21 years to the PlayStation 2!

A Decade Of PS2 Goodness...

October 26, 2000 marked the 10th anniversary of the North American release of the Sony Playstation 2 - arguably one of the best consoles of all time, and what I can say is that my unit is still standing tall and proud as a testament to what I have accomplished as a gamer. True, it was originally released in Japan 7 months prior, but the Playstation 2 experience didn't start for me well until the US got its launch and gave me a taste of all things gaming. There are plenty of titles I would like to mention, but I owe it to this system for giving me the pleasure of experiencing great games such as Devil May Cry 1-3, God Of War I & II, Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3, the Grand Theft Auto series, and so much more. Be it action games, fighting games, RPGs, or whatever genre comes to mind, the PS2 served up a good round of entertainment for well over a decade, and even with its successor making trends, it's still a good system to consider for anyone looking for simple and casual entertainment. Heck, they even made some strange commercials... like this one.

Sony Playstation 2 Commercial
In the end, all that mattered was the games. Happy 10th Birthday PS2, and thanks for the good times!