Remember, apparently Alex took Joshua out on a boat in the middle of the night to... bully him about how he's a little bitch. Like, he goes out on the lake, takes way his flashlight and calls him a baby. And there's no indication on what he was planning to do that night on the lake. For all we know, he actually just wanted to straight up drown Joshua.
One of the weirdest things about the story of this game, the main driving plot for Alex doing what he's doing, is the fact that other characters, specifically his mother and someone Good like Elle, don't tell Alex the truth about his brother when Alex first meets them. Joshua drowned years prior, and Alex went insane and was committed because of it. I can maybe understand why his mother might lie, but why would Elle? Did all police coverage of that incident get squashed as well? We eventually find out that the jacket Alex is wearing, as well as the 'dog tags', actually belonged to his father. How did Alex get ahold of those clothes and tags after he was released, but before he'd gone home again? Of the 3 prominent western SH games (I'm not including the hybrid Shattered Memories here), I thought Homecoming had the best potential for a decent story, but also the worst execution. I say this, even knowing that it was based upon the first Silent Hill movie universe. Still had the same basic premise of SH2 though, lol: Amnesiac protag goes to Silent Hill to do...something, and gets pulled into a world of nightmares, those nightmares somehow related to them.
alex's father was sheriff of the town and they had the power to hide anything investigated there (it implies that the shepherd family hid the breach of pact until things got out of hand). The secret is part of every kind of secret society (the official secret which is not a secret) invisible and omnipresent, so there is an interconnected hidden world beneath the city. as there is also a facade world where ordinary people lived, alex explores these two worlds. This game is timeless and in the prologue he can't get out of alchemilla so he's trapped in the nightmare then the nightmare within the nightmare begins: from then on time stops and everything happens in S.Glen in alex's childhood in the 80's. his personal stuff spread across the scenarios, in this case "Alex's cosplay" is a metaphor for someone who was created to die young like a real soldier. the shepherds took care of the security of the city (including the weapons).
@@GOLD-CS Wait, you're saying that the events of Homecoming only took place in Alex's head, and he never actually woke from the "nightmare"? I suppose I could see him dreaming about Shepherd's Glen, the people living there, but what about the members of The Order, whom he knew nothing about prior, and meeting Travis? The clothes Alex wears don't associate him with his intended way to die, to drown, so I think the correlation with the military garb is a stretch. I pretty sure he thought himself a soldier because he believed that's what would win him the admiration of his father. If Alex really just dreaming everything, why is he dreaming about each of the monsters? I know that the bosses are supposed to be manifestations the sacrifice victims, but what about the others? How would Alex know about them in a nightmare when he didn't even know about the specifics of the pact? What clue are we ever given about how these monsters tie in with the guilt and turmoil Alex feels about the accidental death of his brother? The nurses? Maybe he's envisioning his childhood crush Elle as a sexy psycho? I can't even imagine the reason for the others. It's like the monsters are appearing as a punishment to the people of Shepherd's Glen for breaking the pact with The Order, but is that to say they are the one's manifesting the monsters in Alex's head? It gets really confusing really quickly if one tries to go with "it's all just a dream" scenario.
@@Bob.Roberts I'm saying that it depends on the ending you get because there're endings that he actually escaped from alchemilla, and the gameplay serves these two contexts. It also seems that Alex's the one who's able to examine the characters' minds (and their memories\secrets) not the other way around. You can't forget that there's no future, present or past in this game (because time stopped in the accident, remember?) Even if you reverse the acts, it's Alex going from the time of the accident to hospitalization in Alchemilla in the prologue. crazy huh? everything's upside down, it's something that starts at the end and ends at the beginning. in this case travis was responsible for transporting alex to the hospital (having known the place and passing by a few times). This title's about the end of the order (in the following games it ceased to exist) in case one of those interested in the pact started to hide it from the other participants, this happens a lot in Freemasonry for example. Members of the order used that coal mine next to the curtis junkyard, that secret passage leads to the church's lair. The townspeople's belongings're hidden in the curtis' warehouse (including the special clothing he wore). the symbolism of the monsters's more literal and has more to do with the places where they appear, with the social circle of the protagonist and his past\destiny. there's the schism which is the mix of alex and Ellie (their impotence in never developing anything) there's the siam who're alex's parents, you have the lurker in which alex's mother gave birth to something that came to punish him from the depths of a lake (the first basement monster). Alex took strong medicine that cut his libido, so he fantasized about the local nurses that they were somehow sexy to "cheer up the wounded soldiers". in the case S.Glen's a bastard son of SH like the devil's still a son of God and the demons\monsters form the face of Lucifer. Alex's also a bastard son, a convict. So the story's maximized (like a biblical tale), but in general the creatures're MANIFESTATIONS of birth, death, family, militarism, sectarianism and sexual repression. it was tradition for the shepherd family to keep the weapons, so alex had previous training by his father (this's told in the diaries before the launch) after his brother was born, his parents decided not to have any more affinity with him (because he would be killed anyway) so there's an implied background of being a soldier mixed with alex's interrupted life (in which case his personality's split by someone who didn't grow up and the military burden his family carried). alex's infantilized with narcissistic traits (he reads everything in the first person) he clearly becomes psychotic and self-absorbed (he solves everything in a fight and weapons're just keys to open the way). typical of someone neglected, SCAPEGOAT. *But you know what? You're correct about the numerous plot holes as if they cut a lot stuff (just the fact that you find more content in the character diaries before release's frustrating).*
@@LosMSR That is one hell of a stretchy take, but I really don't believe all the correlations. It is well known that Jacob's Ladder was inspiration for nearly all the Silent Hill games, but no one game was based entirely upon it. On the surface, it was about a man seemingly coping with the effects of wartime ptsd, and this story overlaps with the meta story. This surface however is subverted, for the meta story of good versus evil. It was a rare occasion when the meta story is being shown more than the surface story. The true story is about a man on his deathbed, clinging to life, his mind warped by the experimental drugs that were forcefully administered to him and his military outfit. This is of course the truth bomb twist at the end of the movie. While there are a few similarities between the characters, Jacob was not insane, he really was/is a soldier. Alex went nuts Because he accidentally killed his brother. His father, Adam, had him committed because he possibly hoped Alex would never have to deal with the doom that he unknowingly instigated, and would instead go live a full life somewhere else. That is, unless you get the ending where Adam drowns Alex in the bathtub. The truth is, the Town wouldn't let this happen, the covenant had been broken, and all the family members were meant to pay with their lives, in one way or another. I do agree that Joshua in the game was Alex's demon, his overriding guilt anchor that pulled Alex back into the two towns that were the root of all the nightmares. Because this game was based on the Silent Hill movie universe, the Town seems to have a mind and agenda of its own, no matter how stupidly it was implemented. This is why its influence spread far and wide beyond the confines of the town itself. Alex found his own crypt because he Was the son who was meant to die; his fate had been planned and sealed from the moment he was born, although it didn't show that much until Joshua was born. Homecoming also briefly introduces another Silent Hill protagonist, Travis Grady; is Travis also just a figment of Alex's imagination? Maybe Travis is an angel too, well unless he's also the Butcher, in which case he'd be a demon. When it comes down to it, Homecoming is just using the same formula as Silent Hill 2; I mentioned this before, though this one is particularly close. After some consideration, I'm convinced that Adam fooled everyone in Shepherd's Glen into thinking that Alex just up and spontaneously joined the Army, and refused to go into any real detail about it. The town elders eventually found out, especially when things started going to shit, and Order members started appearing in town. Elle believed Alex's story about being a soldier because Adam had told her that, Alex deludedly thought he was one, and was wearing Adam's dogtags. Judge Holloway mistakingly thought the covenant could be made right if All the children were sacrificed, Elle and Alex included, which is why she didn't tell either the truth, and instead tried to lure them to their doom. The other elders didn't tell Alex anything because they held his father responsible for A, sending Alex away instead of trying to make amends to the covenant, and B because Alex was sole cause of the covenant being broken. Ah, this is making my brain hurt; maybe I'll remember more later.
I'm really surprised how many people find this game not only playable, but even had fun with a battle system like that. You could get lucky and click to death any enemy, but if you'll get stunlock or more than 1-2 enemies at the same time you could burn all you health on one encounter
In hindsight the battle system isn't something I prefer but I did like it better than SH4 or as recently Origins. It is a bit unfair in both offense and defense so it does force you to exploit it or get frustrated because the enemies exploited it.
@@jankmedia1985honestly different weapons work best for different monsters but the knife is an easy go to just not as effective against some monsters as others
I get the impressions that the fans of this game didn't play the original silent hill games so it was their first impression of what a SH game was supposed to be.
You don't need to waste time in that way, just roll, soldiers are tacticians, they aren't mercenaries, Alex dodge and roll is the best of this game, he managed to avoid the monsters a lot, I really like that he is different than any other silent hill character, because that's the esence of SH, a personal fear, Alex is younger than James, Henry, Harry, almost same age at Heather, therefore he is more agile or nimble, also he learned to do that escaped from Adam, to me was bad when SH Downpour confirmed that he passed in that hospital. So probably he is now another soul of SH, like Angela, Eddie, and James, he will continue to searching for his brother, over and over.
The only thing worse than Silent Hill: Homecoming was the relationship I was in when I played it. It is unironically everything Duke Nukem Forever should have been.
I know a lot of people for whatever reason didn't like SH: Homecoming but I for one liked it. I bought it back in 08 for the Xbox360 & 15th like. Ignore the hater down below all your SH videos are 💯
@@ymck7246 I’m playing Homecoming now and just beat the second Scarlet doll boss making me about halfway through. I’m having a blast and absolutely love this game. For me, Homecoming and Origins felt the closest to another Silent Hill 2 experience for me. I just don’t understand all the hate this game got at all. I love it. The boss designs and atmosphere are amazing and I love the story too regardless of it being inconsistent with earlier titles. I just consider it like a requel or reboot
Beig one of the few games of silent hill that I could actually play. I enjoyed what I've played I'll be honest haven't finished it but will finish one day. I could nitpick about serten things but overall I enjoy the game and think it's pretty good horror game. The one I really didn't understand all the hate was downpour because I absolutely loved it
Homecoming is freaking awesome. If you were there when it came out, you would appreciate it. Just got finished with the SH2 remake and homecoming was way better.
SH homecoming could be good with a remake. But rewrites need to be made. First. Make Alex an actual veteran, maybe a combat medic. Enemies could have blown off limbs, something common among wounded Iraq war vets. Second, lean into the child abuse as motivation for Alex leaving. Alex was abused and neglected, but Josh is loved. Have Alex run away at 17, leaving Josh behind. Alex goes back home to take Josh away. The big reveal is that Josh was sacrificed because Alex ran away. But the sacrifice wasn't accepted because the firstborn must die. That's why the monsters are there. And, of course, fix combat, face animations, and other gameplay mechanics.
@Callyxi I've always found that mediocre games are missing a few small things. SH homecoming- clean up the story. The order 1886- needs more gameplay. Resident evil 3- too much cut content
I didn't understand the plot of this game, till I got the last piece, and that was an interview with Double Helix, they said the main inspiration of this game is Donnie Darko, not Jacob's Ladder. I do remember I watched that movie as a teenager, but I didn't remember the plot, till a few days ago, when I watched this movie again. By that information I finally undestand Homecoming. In Donnie Darko, Donnie skipped his own fate, which was a turbine of plane will fall in his bedroom, but since he was sleepwalker, he avoided that destiny. But this action created a tangent universe, which could be called also a pocket universe, then Donnie keep living his life, but more events started that lead to a completely doom state. In the last days of the event, his mother, his sister, and his GF were eliminated, then he understand that all this was a vision, a warning, and he gets back to the beginning, to the night of the sacrifice, and this time he was going to sleep, and the turbine crushed him. That's the same plot of Homeocoming, the 1st gameplay is a vision, that's an exploration of what is gonna happen if Alex skipped his fate, which that happen with the accident of the lake. Therefore the real ending is Drowning, bc Alex will embrace his fate, as a way to fix the big problem, the accident of Josh, that created a tangent universe, therefore he allow that his father end his life in the bathtub. But like In Donnie Darko this create a loop of time, so in the second game play, this is like Alex get back from grave, now to revenge the kids for real, not in a vision, and this time he can collect the Polaroid photos to discover that Josh is in fact alive. That's the real plot of the game, also explained in the Alex's Theme. I always thought this game was like Jacob's ladder, but I was wrong.
@@booneshow1863 The devs said they were ran out of time with this game, that's probably why the story lacks of coherency, but this happen bc they did a very complex history, they should just be more clean and direct. A soldier gets back from war, to find out that his brother is missing. The real plot twist is that even as a man of honor, he was a bad soldier, since he left his brother, and his mother in the hands of the main antagonist of the game, his own father, a story more similar to Apt Pupil. Simple, more effective, and less similar to SH2. This project was overwhelming for Double Helix, they just focus in too much at the same time, they explained that in an interview, they had fear that the game won't be scary enough. So they were consume by the same doubt of Team Silent with SH4, Team Silent was fear that the game wasn't scary, bc they introduced a new concept, the ghosts, so they rebuilt an entire part, wasted all the time, and they even forgot the UFO ending for that.
I think the main issue for me was the fact that the main character was too capable against monsters and it should have had a darker focus on the order. Don't mix it with him not remembering what he did like James. The mental issues idea and the order story line are separate.
Perhaps the real irony is that allegedly, Alex was a soldier, which is why he can do all these combat moves; however, we find out that he actually wasn't, lol. I guess his fractured mind was just so powerful that since he thought he had all this military knowledge, he could just channel it in combat! Some might say, well maybe his dad taught him the stuff. That's not possible either, because Adam did not bond with Alex at all.
@@Bob.Roberts Either that or he convinced himself so much that he actually became like a soldier, you'd be surprised how much delirium can affect your physical and psychological power
@@orlandofurioso7329 well yeah, that's the story of the game, Alex thinks he's a soldier. He must have practiced fighting, rolling, and insta-standing quite a bit while in the looney bin.
@@Bob.Roberts There’s notes in the game saying Adam taught Alex to shoot and fight. It’s not theory, it’s literally stated that he taught Alex, right before Josh was born, which is where problems started.
@@Saintfallxo notes left by Alex that his father taught him all those fighting moves? I remember finding some of diary notes talking about it, but how much that can we really believe, since Alex is completely delusional? I also recall finding a pamphlet that was a hth combat guide. Isn't it more reasonable to think that Alex falsely believed his father taught him combat maneuvers, when in fact he's just self-taught some basics through that guide?
In defense of the intro to the game, it was a nightmare sequence so it can kinda get away with making little sense and having minimal dialogue. Just look at the intro nightmare sequence in silent hill 3 which also explains very little and contains next to no dialogue at all.
I just saw Margaret give the big reveal, until now i am really enjoying it, the twists are pretty interesting and the pacing feels good. Yeah some enemies have bullcrap attacks i agree, but you can learn the combat and get predictable results. Also, even if the feel of isolation is gone i am having a feel of fearing to lose my companions, who i have grown attached to.
The real enemy is Adam Shepherd, not Margaret, the sin of Alex is that he can't protect his brother, and mother from him. Kind of a twist of the story of Laura Palmer in Twin Peaks, Will they get a better chance against this kind of monster as boys? I don't know why they made that plot twist that he isn't a soldier, won't be relevant with this concept, only works as a distraction.
I think the worst thing about Homecoming is the AI glitch. If you don't know the enemy AI is poorly coded. If an enemy gets you close to a wall their AI can glitch and bump up to a value of 10. What does this mean? It means that you could be fighting a weaker enemy like a nurse and if you are standing in the wrong place they go into effin Beast Mode and chain combo you to death like suddenly they have a plus ten weapon proficiency for scalpels. Just swishswishswish you're hilariously obliterated. But this applies to nearly every enemy and not just the weaker ones. Hopefully there's nothing like a sewer level with lots of tight corridors! Oh wait...
@@Callyxi The AI goes all over the place so I'm not sure what else glitches it. I know that infamously you'll see an enemy making it's way over to you fast in the dark. Faster than others of its kind. The AI will normally allow you to hide when the lights are off but not when it's bugged out. That's normally your cue to start blastin' with your ranged weapons and not let the bastard get in melee range.
We got this game wrong all the time, even myself, I believe this game was like Jacob's ladder, till I saw an interview with the devs, the main inspiration of this game is Donnie Darko. When I first heard that name I was like, wait, I saw that movie, that's the one with a great soundtrack, but I didn't remember the plot, so I watched again a few days ago, and then, oh boy, i finally understand Homecoming. The game is split in two gameplays, that's something very different, that I wasn't aware, the 1st gameplay is a dream, a vision, Alex is ready to be sacrifice, but he was knocked by his father, in this vision he saw what happen if he skipped the sacrifice. Then after saw the whole madness, and the missing of the person that he care more, his brother, he like a soldier, embrace his fate in the bathtub. Was that all? nah, this is SH. In a 2nd gameplay, he is now back to life to revenge the lost kids, and by Polaroid photos he discovered that yeah his brother is alive, thanks to his sacrifice. So what happen next? who knows, maybe he finally rest, or maybe the town allowed him to get back to life, and stay with his brother now without his parents, so that explained the cover of both in the funeral of their folks. This story is almost like a ritual, To revenge the innocent, the soldier needs to embrace the sacrifice, as a way to be one with the fallen, and get back the one that he lost. Mistakes of the game? plenty, the outfit of Alex needs to be less militar, the accident needs to be more indirect, the monsters should be more military like, doesn't matter if he is a soldier or not, since he was into movies a lot, the lack of lore about the rebirth ritual, the lack of lore about Donnie Darko, like a book of time travels, PH shouldn't be here, Robbie the rabbit should get more relevance, the lack of a high school scenario, they even said that they forgot to add the tank controls as an option, like the classic games. Aside from all that, the idea of the game is really good, after saw Donnie Darko, I was like D@MN! this people really got a great idea in hands, but I guess they ran out of time to polish more. Man, I really wish a remake of this game, the whole idea is pure gold, and fit really well with SH. When you finished the movie, and the game, and finally understand the message, you felt like, D@MN!, this kid was indeed a soldier, doesn't matter if he was or not, bc to embrace a sacrifice like that, you need a big cojones, and this kid really had that. And for this he is probably the best character of the saga, second Heather.
I like homecoming overall, sure it had some issues like every game but there weren't enough for me to hate the game...until I got into the attic, f*** slide puzzles!
This was a great video I’m kinda hoping you get to downpour seeing many people say that’s the best western silent hill and want to see your opinion on that silent hill
Homecoming was my entry to the Silent Hill series. It's honestly a badly designed game at the base. The patch made the game much more playable (especially eliminating crashes, slow load times, QTEs), and the controls needed massive tweaking from an external edit file. Once, I had those addressed, the game can be quite fun even if the story leaves much to be desired. I've since gone on to play 4, 3, 2 respectively and they're no doubt among the best the horror game genre has to offer, despite not that fond of static camera perspective games.
Hey thanks for your comment and stopping by. The game definitely had potential in a few areas but as you said its base among other things did it no justice.
I think one of the main issues is how they took alot of inspiration from the silent hill movies. It's interesting but at the same time just seem like a cash grab and not care about some lore bits.
@LosMSR get the good name of Ari Aster out your mouth 😆 also this is untrue because no one was on friendly terms in that movie. Constant relationship tension. Everyone is detached and alone in their head
This was my first Silent hill borrowed from a friend I new of the series but had never experienced and yes home comeing is one of the black sheep of the series I think for a western dev it was better to play it safe personally the bosses and themes where very strong and the lenghts the people of Sheperards Glen would go to to protect there town
I was 11 years old when i bought silent hill homecoming,i liked it. In my opinion,is not such a bad game like most people say. Sorry for my english,i'm italian and i have to improve it🙂
3:55 Silent Hill 4: The Room IS a Silent Hill game. I don’t care what haters say. Team Silent was wanting to exercise their creative muscles and try something different. Some people misinterpreted that to mean it was supposed to be a whole other game. Silent Hill 4 is a Silent Hill game. 10x more than all the other games that came out from the European climax studio who only knew how to copy Silent Hill 1 and 2 over and over again.
I see the western made silent hill games as basically fan fiction and far too influenced by silent hill 2 with the repressed guilt stories. The original silent hill and its direct sequel silent hill 3 were not about repressed guilt but about the town cult and its attempt to birth their god. Fan boys of SH2 don't seem to understand that. SH2 was a good game but in many ways it clouded the franchise with all its derivatives.
That's a symbolism, that the real monster of the house is his own father, that's why the mother didn't care, bc she is trapped also with that beast, she married with him after all. This explained that his mother is also split, but not by the same concept that we think, she is split bc she still love him, but he is an abuser of her sons. Kind of a deep concept, if we understand why the devs said about the real plot isn't easy to find, we need to join the dots.
@@nnnneeeeuuuu Women that were in a domestic abuse tend to become schizophrenic, or with a dissociative mind. The mother of Alex is in that way, similar of the mother of Laura Palmer in Twin Peaks, she knew Laura is abused by his own father, but she is trapped in this loop, she can't move forward to the next level, which is eliminate the beast by herselft to protect her daughter. So she choose to be like nothing happen, like everything is fine. In some way the mother of Alex holding a pistol in her hands, that's the same meaning. She knew that Alex and Josh were abused by Adam, and she wanted to end this, but she can't.
I like how NONE of the people acts acordingly to when Alex asks them where his brother is. Wasn't his father like the sheriff or something? I'm pretty sure people know that Joshua drowned... God, this game has such a garbage story.
This is easy to explain, once you get the interview of the devs, the game is based on Donnie Darko, so Shepherd glen fell in a tangent universe, that means all is in a loop, nothing move forward, therefore people isn't aware of the reality, they think oh Nora is missing, oh other people is missing, and they think Josh was missing in the same way, but was Josh who created the endless loop, like the meme of the cat that spin in the air, that's what happened. The 1st game play is a vision, or a dream about what happen if Alex skipped hisfate at the bathtub. Then he embraced this fate, like a soldier with big cojones. Then in a 2nd gameplay he returned to life, this time for real, to revenge those kids, and understand that Josh is now alive. So this is almost like a ritual, the soldier marches on, embrace the sacrifice, to return what he lost, descending into the depths where the innocent are, and manage to revenge their lives.
One thing Homecoming never brings up what's causing the other world and creatures, there's no new God and the spiritual powers from 2 don't extend to other places that's how you no the clowns behind this game like nearly all the western games haven't a clue on what there doing.
I will say Homecoming has a lot of missed potential that could have made the game even passable as a Silent Hill title. Like make Alex an actual soldier, theme the enemies around that concept like you could have zombie marines or even blood hounds instead of the basic dogs, get rid of the stuff that doesn’t belong like Pyramid Head and the nurses, and then make a story that actually relates to our main characters traumas and inner struggles with his family.
I absolutely love this game. It’s my favorite Silent Hill game after Silent Hill 2. People are way too overly hard on it IMO. Origins and Downpour are my favorites after this one. Silent Hill 3 is my least favorite of all.
for me Homecoming almost got it, but that twist at the end, man, it didn't hit the mark. They should have sticked with the veteran with ptsd until the end and make another twist over it
I liked hc's story but one thing I think people get wrong is when they excuse the combat change is because Alex was suspected to be a soldier. To me it would've better if he wasn't good at combat. It would've been a great subtle hint that he wasn't who he said he was
You're not alone, bro. Many does. How could DH spoil such a good series? However, I'm sure C. Gans started it. They just screw the script up thinking 'there's genius' to ruin everything in it.
I really do recall disliking this game, way back in 2008, not even finishing it, lemme see if I'm remembered why. EDIT: Ah yes, I remember. The tryhard tone from the get-go, the flat characters, the endless callbacks, the clunky combat, the derivativeness of the entirely obtuse and tedious plot, the disgusting torture porn scenes near the end. Robbie, nurses, Pyramid Head thrown in for purposeless fanservice. Least the OST had a couple good tracks. You're absolutely right, this game felt like it was patched together by a committee. SH3 had better graphics despite being five years older. Homecoming was a stinker even at the time, I remember every SH fan feeling underwhelmed; truly a sign from the new blood devs of things to come. Surely the SH2 remake can't be as embarrassingly bad as this was? Enjoyed the video nonetheless, your commentary is always engaging!
Hey man thanks for stopping by. I think with proper execution this game especially with its bosses would have been much better than what it was. Sadly, this is what we got.
Homecoming & Downpour are 2 sides of what makes a good Silent Hill game. Where Downpour fails in creature design, Homecoming excels in every aspect. Where Homecoming struggles to create interesting exploration, Downpour implements creepy & subtle side stories that flesh out the town. If you took the best bits of Homecoming & Downpour - then spliced it into a game combining the two storylines (Alex returns from prison instead; is chased around by Anne for his actions in prison, etc) - you'd have a damned great game. As is - we have 2 mediocre games with missed potential all round. Shame.
I just happened to wrap up a different game but Downpour is on my list next to see what happened! I have heard mixed thoughts on that game as well. But it is interesting to see how a good Silent Hill experience is about balance above anything else.
One of the biggest problems for me with Homecoming, as much as I did enjoy my time with it, is that it has no real identity of its own. Everything about it screams fan-game, if not designed by fans then meant to appeal to fans purely on fanservice alone.
More like Donnie Darko, Apocalypse now plot. Which kind of work, but they were run out of time to polish the plot, there is a lot of elements that were forgot, like the events could be almost like a ritual. Also doesn't matter if Alex is a soldier or not, since he was a big fan of movies, therefore all the monsters could be manifestations of that hobbie, just like Alessa on SH1. Again they got a good idea, but this idea was gigantic for them, and they said in an interview, they are an small studio.
Homecoming feels like it only exists because of the live action movies. I personally dislike this game, because of how they overuse a lot of the monsters from 2. The monsters in 2 are supposed to represent James’ insecurities and frustrations with Mary’s terminal illness. But, they’re just dropped in Homecoming for no reason, why are the Nurses here? Did Alex deal with repressed sexual feelings? Pyramid Head you can somewhat excuse, due to Alex having guilt over Joshua’s death but at least make a new design for the judge monster like what did with the doctor and Scarlet and the judge and Nora. Hell, even the cult members resemble the cult in the movies. It’s so obvious. Also, the mom’s voicelines bugging out and rendering her mute sometimes is absolutely iconic.
@@dmanentertament125 I am not sure brother. I have the game on the PS3 (and I just stored my PS3 a couple of days ago!, I can plug it back but I have my 4 and 5 on my TV at the moment) I'll have to check.
I thought it was the best one and better combat since anyone can be more capable in a fight than what the game let's on. Knife actually works In this one where the knife is just for looks in the other ones.
There's another thing I see not many spot of it. SHHC is full of cliche about previous SH: PH, holes, rabbits, childchasing, otherworlds, whatnot. And okay such things as a flashlight or a radio appear in every series, but hey this time the creators got all those too much high, and instead of trying to put some true feelings into it just like the Japanese did, they put it all in a mixer, and push a button. Now, we've got the results. It was not a game, it was just a joke. Not a good joke, a really bad joke that wanna make us puke.
I didn't mind the experience it was just way too saturated with the series staples that it lacked its own identity outside of the bosses which is a shame.
I love when you criticize a crappy game and than a bunch of basic ass fanboys ignore everything you said and say "I pursonally liek the game reminds of me childhood", and then other fanboys see that in complete denial at the points being raised against their game and take it as some sort of refutation.
I mean honestly Silent Hill origin had even less plot in the beginning then this game. and Silent Hill origin had a way worse combat system. at least you could actually fight these monsters and Dodge. the other game you just had to keep repeatedly hitting the same button. not only that but what were people expecting time events to fight the monsters you know how annoying that would have been
The story is pretty dumb in Homecoming but I love the gameplay and the combat. The knife is OP as shit, it's fun locking on, dodging, and slashing the hell out of everything, lol. I think it's a great game overall. Creepy as hell too, seriously, Akira did some of his best work in this game and it will 100% put you on edge playing in a dark room by yourself.
I gave a dislike for the video because you said that SH4 is not a "SH game". This is incorrect. The game was always meant to be a Silent Hill game. This was stated by Akira Yamaoka himself who was the producer of the game. " We wanted to make a sequel after Silent Hill 3 and you could say that was the initial concept, but upon that we needed to implement a lot of new flavour to the sequel, otherwise it would have been the same old Silent Hill." The game itself features Walter Sullivan who is completely tied to the town of Silent Hill. It's a shame that you've said this because the review itself of SH Homecoming is good.
@@unknown2966 The team was destroyed by the fans on SH4, the obssesion for SH2 finally overcome the team, this is like when Marvel fans all ended on Endgame. Too bad PT never happen with Hideo Kojima, that will took SH to a next level.
Silent hill homecoming was one of the great games. I played it two times all the way through. Not to mention the soundtrack and osts, just wow. I think you are being too harsh to it. Every word you sounded were just criticism. Very unfair
The game is good and your review is bad. Almost every thing you mentioned in many other games and never was a problem to anybody. 1) When SH3 has vague beginning and empty first half of the game it is just subtle and mysterious. When SHH does it only in the beginning it is weak and they just don't know what they are doing. Claudia's talk is not empty but Alex's mother's talk is. 2) When games like Dark Souls have tough difficulty you can't change it is great and you just spoiled if you don't like it. When SHH has difficulty you can change to easy and also turn off the light fighting nurses, it is a bad game. Etc. 3) When you commented on the conversation of Alex and his dad you didn't say anything coherent at all. Word salad with no finished points and objective argument. Josh's death reveal does nothing to the plot? You make no sense. And you can spin every single SH game plot twists as cliché. Overall your almost whole review you just made many statements but didn't prove any of them, didn't finish any point, didn't give any examples of how things should be done instead and why other SH gems did it right or better.
Remember, apparently Alex took Joshua out on a boat in the middle of the night to... bully him about how he's a little bitch. Like, he goes out on the lake, takes way his flashlight and calls him a baby. And there's no indication on what he was planning to do that night on the lake. For all we know, he actually just wanted to straight up drown Joshua.
One of the weirdest things about the story of this game, the main driving plot for Alex doing what he's doing, is the fact that other characters, specifically his mother and someone Good like Elle, don't tell Alex the truth about his brother when Alex first meets them. Joshua drowned years prior, and Alex went insane and was committed because of it. I can maybe understand why his mother might lie, but why would Elle? Did all police coverage of that incident get squashed as well?
We eventually find out that the jacket Alex is wearing, as well as the 'dog tags', actually belonged to his father. How did Alex get ahold of those clothes and tags after he was released, but before he'd gone home again?
Of the 3 prominent western SH games (I'm not including the hybrid Shattered Memories here), I thought Homecoming had the best potential for a decent story, but also the worst execution. I say this, even knowing that it was based upon the first Silent Hill movie universe. Still had the same basic premise of SH2 though, lol: Amnesiac protag goes to Silent Hill to do...something, and gets pulled into a world of nightmares, those nightmares somehow related to them.
I definitely agree. I can see what they were going for its just the way it turned out was less than ideal.
alex's father was sheriff of the town and they had the power to hide anything investigated there (it implies that the shepherd family hid the breach of pact until things got out of hand).
The secret is part of every kind of secret society (the official secret which is not a secret) invisible and omnipresent, so there is an interconnected hidden world beneath the city. as there is also a facade world where ordinary people lived, alex explores these two worlds.
This game is timeless and in the prologue he can't get out of alchemilla so he's trapped in the nightmare then the nightmare within the nightmare begins: from then on time stops and everything happens in S.Glen in alex's childhood in the 80's. his personal stuff spread across the scenarios, in this case "Alex's cosplay" is a metaphor for someone who was created to die young like a real soldier. the shepherds took care of the security of the city (including the weapons).
@@GOLD-CS Wait, you're saying that the events of Homecoming only took place in Alex's head, and he never actually woke from the "nightmare"? I suppose I could see him dreaming about Shepherd's Glen, the people living there, but what about the members of The Order, whom he knew nothing about prior, and meeting Travis? The clothes Alex wears don't associate him with his intended way to die, to drown, so I think the correlation with the military garb is a stretch. I pretty sure he thought himself a soldier because he believed that's what would win him the admiration of his father.
If Alex really just dreaming everything, why is he dreaming about each of the monsters? I know that the bosses are supposed to be manifestations the sacrifice victims, but what about the others? How would Alex know about them in a nightmare when he didn't even know about the specifics of the pact? What clue are we ever given about how these monsters tie in with the guilt and turmoil Alex feels about the accidental death of his brother? The nurses? Maybe he's envisioning his childhood crush Elle as a sexy psycho? I can't even imagine the reason for the others. It's like the monsters are appearing as a punishment to the people of Shepherd's Glen for breaking the pact with The Order, but is that to say they are the one's manifesting the monsters in Alex's head? It gets really confusing really quickly if one tries to go with "it's all just a dream" scenario.
@@Bob.Roberts I'm saying that it depends on the ending you get because there're endings that he actually escaped from alchemilla, and the gameplay serves these two contexts. It also seems that Alex's the one who's able to examine the characters' minds (and their memories\secrets) not the other way around.
You can't forget that there's no future, present or past in this game (because time stopped in the accident, remember?) Even if you reverse the acts, it's Alex going from the time of the accident to hospitalization in Alchemilla in the prologue. crazy huh? everything's upside down, it's something that starts at the end and ends at the beginning. in this case travis was responsible for transporting alex to the hospital (having known the place and passing by a few times).
This title's about the end of the order (in the following games it ceased to exist) in case one of those interested in the pact started to hide it from the other participants, this happens a lot in Freemasonry for example. Members of the order used that coal mine next to the curtis junkyard, that secret passage leads to the church's lair. The townspeople's belongings're hidden in the curtis' warehouse (including the special clothing he wore).
the symbolism of the monsters's more literal and has more to do with the places where they appear, with the social circle of the protagonist and his past\destiny. there's the schism which is the mix of alex and Ellie (their impotence in never developing anything) there's the siam who're alex's parents, you have the lurker in which alex's mother gave birth to something that came to punish him from the depths of a lake (the first basement monster). Alex took strong medicine that cut his libido, so he fantasized about the local nurses that they were somehow sexy to "cheer up the wounded soldiers". in the case S.Glen's a bastard son of SH like the devil's still a son of God and the demons\monsters form the face of Lucifer. Alex's also a bastard son, a convict. So the story's maximized (like a biblical tale), but in general the creatures're MANIFESTATIONS of birth, death, family, militarism, sectarianism and sexual repression.
it was tradition for the shepherd family to keep the weapons, so alex had previous training by his father (this's told in the diaries before the launch) after his brother was born, his parents decided not to have any more affinity with him (because he would be killed anyway) so there's an implied background of being a soldier mixed with alex's interrupted life (in which case his personality's split by someone who didn't grow up and the military burden his family carried). alex's infantilized with narcissistic traits (he reads everything in the first person) he clearly becomes psychotic and self-absorbed (he solves everything in a fight and weapons're just keys to open the way). typical of someone neglected, SCAPEGOAT.
*But you know what? You're correct about the numerous plot holes as if they cut a lot stuff (just the fact that you find more content in the character diaries before release's frustrating).*
@@LosMSR That is one hell of a stretchy take, but I really don't believe all the correlations. It is well known that Jacob's Ladder was inspiration for nearly all the Silent Hill games, but no one game was based entirely upon it. On the surface, it was about a man seemingly coping with the effects of wartime ptsd, and this story overlaps with the meta story. This surface however is subverted, for the meta story of good versus evil. It was a rare occasion when the meta story is being shown more than the surface story. The true story is about a man on his deathbed, clinging to life, his mind warped by the experimental drugs that were forcefully administered to him and his military outfit. This is of course the truth bomb twist at the end of the movie. While there are a few similarities between the characters, Jacob was not insane, he really was/is a soldier. Alex went nuts Because he accidentally killed his brother. His father, Adam, had him committed because he possibly hoped Alex would never have to deal with the doom that he unknowingly instigated, and would instead go live a full life somewhere else. That is, unless you get the ending where Adam drowns Alex in the bathtub. The truth is, the Town wouldn't let this happen, the covenant had been broken, and all the family members were meant to pay with their lives, in one way or another. I do agree that Joshua in the game was Alex's demon, his overriding guilt anchor that pulled Alex back into the two towns that were the root of all the nightmares.
Because this game was based on the Silent Hill movie universe, the Town seems to have a mind and agenda of its own, no matter how stupidly it was implemented. This is why its influence spread far and wide beyond the confines of the town itself. Alex found his own crypt because he Was the son who was meant to die; his fate had been planned and sealed from the moment he was born, although it didn't show that much until Joshua was born.
Homecoming also briefly introduces another Silent Hill protagonist, Travis Grady; is Travis also just a figment of Alex's imagination? Maybe Travis is an angel too, well unless he's also the Butcher, in which case he'd be a demon. When it comes down to it, Homecoming is just using the same formula as Silent Hill 2; I mentioned this before, though this one is particularly close. After some consideration, I'm convinced that Adam fooled everyone in Shepherd's Glen into thinking that Alex just up and spontaneously joined the Army, and refused to go into any real detail about it. The town elders eventually found out, especially when things started going to shit, and Order members started appearing in town. Elle believed Alex's story about being a soldier because Adam had told her that, Alex deludedly thought he was one, and was wearing Adam's dogtags. Judge Holloway mistakingly thought the covenant could be made right if All the children were sacrificed, Elle and Alex included, which is why she didn't tell either the truth, and instead tried to lure them to their doom. The other elders didn't tell Alex anything because they held his father responsible for A, sending Alex away instead of trying to make amends to the covenant, and B because Alex was sole cause of the covenant being broken. Ah, this is making my brain hurt; maybe I'll remember more later.
I'm really surprised how many people find this game not only playable, but even had fun with a battle system like that. You could get lucky and click to death any enemy, but if you'll get stunlock or more than 1-2 enemies at the same time you could burn all you health on one encounter
In hindsight the battle system isn't something I prefer but I did like it better than SH4 or as recently Origins. It is a bit unfair in both offense and defense so it does force you to exploit it or get frustrated because the enemies exploited it.
Just lock on to enemies use the knife, you stun lock the vast majority of enemies cause it's too quick. Knife is OP as shit in this game.
@@jankmedia1985honestly different weapons work best for different monsters but the knife is an easy go to just not as effective against some monsters as others
I get the impressions that the fans of this game didn't play the original silent hill games so it was their first impression of what a SH game was supposed to be.
You don't need to waste time in that way, just roll, soldiers are tacticians, they aren't mercenaries, Alex dodge and roll is the best of this game, he managed to avoid the monsters a lot, I really like that he is different than any other silent hill character, because that's the esence of SH, a personal fear, Alex is younger than James, Henry, Harry, almost same age at Heather, therefore he is more agile or nimble, also he learned to do that escaped from Adam, to me was bad when SH Downpour confirmed that he passed in that hospital. So probably he is now another soul of SH, like Angela, Eddie, and James, he will continue to searching for his brother, over and over.
The only thing worse than Silent Hill: Homecoming was the relationship I was in when I played it. It is unironically everything Duke Nukem Forever should have been.
That's rough, buddy
oof
What happened in that relationship?
I know a lot of people for whatever reason didn't like SH: Homecoming but I for one liked it. I bought it back in 08 for the Xbox360 & 15th like. Ignore the hater down below all your SH videos are 💯
Agreed the game for me wasn't at all that bad as everybody made it out to be... well for me at least
It had good ideas but poor execution
@@booneshow1863 ye I agree with you on that
@@ymck7246 I’m playing Homecoming now and just beat the second Scarlet doll boss making me about halfway through. I’m having a blast and absolutely love this game. For me, Homecoming and Origins felt the closest to another Silent Hill 2 experience for me. I just don’t understand all the hate this game got at all. I love it. The boss designs and atmosphere are amazing and I love the story too regardless of it being inconsistent with earlier titles. I just consider it like a requel or reboot
Beig one of the few games of silent hill that I could actually play. I enjoyed what I've played I'll be honest haven't finished it but will finish one day. I could nitpick about serten things but overall I enjoy the game and think it's pretty good horror game. The one I really didn't understand all the hate was downpour because I absolutely loved it
Homecoming is freaking awesome. If you were there when it came out, you would appreciate it. Just got finished with the SH2 remake and homecoming was way better.
I forget how bad the cutscenes look in this game until I watch a SH2 video and then one on Homecoming, like...wow the quality deterioration.
The player models are some of the worst in the series. The only game to come close to Team Silent was the Wii game Shattered Memories funny enough.
SH homecoming could be good with a remake. But rewrites need to be made. First. Make Alex an actual veteran, maybe a combat medic. Enemies could have blown off limbs, something common among wounded Iraq war vets.
Second, lean into the child abuse as motivation for Alex leaving. Alex was abused and neglected, but Josh is loved. Have Alex run away at 17, leaving Josh behind. Alex goes back home to take Josh away. The big reveal is that Josh was sacrificed because Alex ran away. But the sacrifice wasn't accepted because the firstborn must die. That's why the monsters are there.
And, of course, fix combat, face animations, and other gameplay mechanics.
Dang just that alone would have made a much better story experience.
@Callyxi I've always found that mediocre games are missing a few small things. SH homecoming- clean up the story. The order 1886- needs more gameplay. Resident evil 3- too much cut content
I didn't understand the plot of this game, till I got the last piece, and that was an interview with Double Helix, they said the main inspiration of this game is Donnie Darko, not Jacob's Ladder. I do remember I watched that movie as a teenager, but I didn't remember the plot, till a few days ago, when I watched this movie again. By that information I finally undestand Homecoming. In Donnie Darko, Donnie skipped his own fate, which was a turbine of plane will fall in his bedroom, but since he was sleepwalker, he avoided that destiny.
But this action created a tangent universe, which could be called also a pocket universe, then Donnie keep living his life, but more events started that lead to a completely doom state. In the last days of the event, his mother, his sister, and his GF were eliminated, then he understand that all this was a vision, a warning, and he gets back to the beginning, to the night of the sacrifice, and this time he was going to sleep, and the turbine crushed him.
That's the same plot of Homeocoming, the 1st gameplay is a vision, that's an exploration of what is gonna happen if Alex skipped his fate, which that happen with the accident of the lake. Therefore the real ending is Drowning, bc Alex will embrace his fate, as a way to fix the big problem, the accident of Josh, that created a tangent universe, therefore he allow that his father end his life in the bathtub. But like In Donnie Darko this create a loop of time, so in the second game play, this is like Alex get back from grave, now to revenge the kids for real, not in a vision, and this time he can collect the Polaroid photos to discover that Josh is in fact alive. That's the real plot of the game, also explained in the Alex's Theme. I always thought this game was like Jacob's ladder, but I was wrong.
@LosMSR I actually made a 2 part video essay of changes that SH homecoming could have done to improve the story.
@@booneshow1863 The devs said they were ran out of time with this game, that's probably why the story lacks of coherency, but this happen bc they did a very complex history, they should just be more clean and direct. A soldier gets back from war, to find out that his brother is missing. The real plot twist is that even as a man of honor, he was a bad soldier, since he left his brother, and his mother in the hands of the main antagonist of the game, his own father, a story more similar to Apt Pupil. Simple, more effective, and less similar to SH2.
This project was overwhelming for Double Helix, they just focus in too much at the same time, they explained that in an interview, they had fear that the game won't be scary enough. So they were consume by the same doubt of Team Silent with SH4, Team Silent was fear that the game wasn't scary, bc they introduced a new concept, the ghosts, so they rebuilt an entire part, wasted all the time, and they even forgot the UFO ending for that.
I think the main issue for me was the fact that the main character was too capable against monsters and it should have had a darker focus on the order. Don't mix it with him not remembering what he did like James. The mental issues idea and the order story line are separate.
Perhaps the real irony is that allegedly, Alex was a soldier, which is why he can do all these combat moves; however, we find out that he actually wasn't, lol. I guess his fractured mind was just so powerful that since he thought he had all this military knowledge, he could just channel it in combat! Some might say, well maybe his dad taught him the stuff. That's not possible either, because Adam did not bond with Alex at all.
@@Bob.Roberts Either that or he convinced himself so much that he actually became like a soldier, you'd be surprised how much delirium can affect your physical and psychological power
@@orlandofurioso7329 well yeah, that's the story of the game, Alex thinks he's a soldier. He must have practiced fighting, rolling, and insta-standing quite a bit while in the looney bin.
@@Bob.Roberts There’s notes in the game saying Adam taught Alex to shoot and fight. It’s not theory, it’s literally stated that he taught Alex, right before Josh was born, which is where problems started.
@@Saintfallxo notes left by Alex that his father taught him all those fighting moves? I remember finding some of diary notes talking about it, but how much that can we really believe, since Alex is completely delusional? I also recall finding a pamphlet that was a hth combat guide. Isn't it more reasonable to think that Alex falsely believed his father taught him combat maneuvers, when in fact he's just self-taught some basics through that guide?
In defense of the intro to the game, it was a nightmare sequence so it can kinda get away with making little sense and having minimal dialogue. Just look at the intro nightmare sequence in silent hill 3 which also explains very little and contains next to no dialogue at all.
Fair enough. The introduction however was the least of my problems! :)
I just saw Margaret give the big reveal, until now i am really enjoying it, the twists are pretty interesting and the pacing feels good.
Yeah some enemies have bullcrap attacks i agree, but you can learn the combat and get predictable results.
Also, even if the feel of isolation is gone i am having a feel of fearing to lose my companions, who i have grown attached to.
The real enemy is Adam Shepherd, not Margaret, the sin of Alex is that he can't protect his brother, and mother from him. Kind of a twist of the story of Laura Palmer in Twin Peaks, Will they get a better chance against this kind of monster as boys? I don't know why they made that plot twist that he isn't a soldier, won't be relevant with this concept, only works as a distraction.
I actually enjoyed Homecoming at the time 😂 didn’t take itself too seriously
Homecoming was my entry to the Silent Hill series, before going on to played 4, 3, 2 respectively.
I think the worst thing about Homecoming is the AI glitch.
If you don't know the enemy AI is poorly coded. If an enemy gets you close to a wall their AI can glitch and bump up to a value of 10.
What does this mean? It means that you could be fighting a weaker enemy like a nurse and if you are standing in the wrong place they go into effin Beast Mode and chain combo you to death like suddenly they have a plus ten weapon proficiency for scalpels. Just swishswishswish you're hilariously obliterated. But this applies to nearly every enemy and not just the weaker ones. Hopefully there's nothing like a sewer level with lots of tight corridors!
Oh wait...
xD That's an interesting fact I did not know.
@@Callyxi The AI goes all over the place so I'm not sure what else glitches it. I know that infamously you'll see an enemy making it's way over to you fast in the dark. Faster than others of its kind. The AI will normally allow you to hide when the lights are off but not when it's bugged out. That's normally your cue to start blastin' with your ranged weapons and not let the bastard get in melee range.
We got this game wrong all the time, even myself, I believe this game was like Jacob's ladder, till I saw an interview with the devs, the main inspiration of this game is Donnie Darko. When I first heard that name I was like, wait, I saw that movie, that's the one with a great soundtrack, but I didn't remember the plot, so I watched again a few days ago, and then, oh boy, i finally understand Homecoming.
The game is split in two gameplays, that's something very different, that I wasn't aware, the 1st gameplay is a dream, a vision, Alex is ready to be sacrifice, but he was knocked by his father, in this vision he saw what happen if he skipped the sacrifice. Then after saw the whole madness, and the missing of the person that he care more, his brother, he like a soldier, embrace his fate in the bathtub. Was that all? nah, this is SH.
In a 2nd gameplay, he is now back to life to revenge the lost kids, and by Polaroid photos he discovered that yeah his brother is alive, thanks to his sacrifice. So what happen next? who knows, maybe he finally rest, or maybe the town allowed him to get back to life, and stay with his brother now without his parents, so that explained the cover of both in the funeral of their folks.
This story is almost like a ritual, To revenge the innocent, the soldier needs to embrace the sacrifice, as a way to be one with the fallen, and get back the one that he lost.
Mistakes of the game? plenty, the outfit of Alex needs to be less militar, the accident needs to be more indirect, the monsters should be more military like, doesn't matter if he is a soldier or not, since he was into movies a lot, the lack of lore about the rebirth ritual, the lack of lore about Donnie Darko, like a book of time travels, PH shouldn't be here, Robbie the rabbit should get more relevance, the lack of a high school scenario, they even said that they forgot to add the tank controls as an option, like the classic games.
Aside from all that, the idea of the game is really good, after saw Donnie Darko, I was like D@MN! this people really got a great idea in hands, but I guess they ran out of time to polish more. Man, I really wish a remake of this game, the whole idea is pure gold, and fit really well with SH. When you finished the movie, and the game, and finally understand the message, you felt like, D@MN!, this kid was indeed a soldier, doesn't matter if he was or not, bc to embrace a sacrifice like that, you need a big cojones, and this kid really had that. And for this he is probably the best character of the saga, second Heather.
I like homecoming overall, sure it had some issues like every game but there weren't enough for me to hate the game...until I got into the attic, f*** slide puzzles!
This game should have been titled: Where's Josh: the game.
Was Silent Hill Where's Cheryl the game? Or perhaps Silent Hill 2 was Where's Mary the game? 😲
@@MasterDirox 🤣🤣🤣 I never thought about this but you are definitely correct 🤣
@@pandamonium9255 💜
Now I’m just imagining that old Wiggles song with Josh’s name.
If you ever watch Supernatural, you can see that Dean will scream, Where is Sam?, almost each 5 seconds.
This was a great video I’m kinda hoping you get to downpour seeing many people say that’s the best western silent hill and want to see your opinion on that silent hill
Downpour is actually on my list so you should expect that :)
Homecoming was my entry to the Silent Hill series. It's honestly a badly designed game at the base. The patch made the game much more playable (especially eliminating crashes, slow load times, QTEs), and the controls needed massive tweaking from an external edit file. Once, I had those addressed, the game can be quite fun even if the story leaves much to be desired. I've since gone on to play 4, 3, 2 respectively and they're no doubt among the best the horror game genre has to offer, despite not that fond of static camera perspective games.
Hey thanks for your comment and stopping by. The game definitely had potential in a few areas but as you said its base among other things did it no justice.
I think one of the main issues is how they took alot of inspiration from the silent hill movies. It's interesting but at the same time just seem like a cash grab and not care about some lore bits.
Homecoming has too many friendly Npcs. It totally nukes the feeling of isolation
Isolation isn't the main topic, the main topic is a broken family, just like Hereditary.
@LosMSR get the good name of Ari Aster out your mouth 😆 also this is untrue because no one was on friendly terms in that movie. Constant relationship tension. Everyone is detached and alone in their head
@@QuantumTelephone Did you know who created the idea of Midsommar? knowledge before comment FR.
@@LosMSR what does midsommar have to do with this conversation? What are we doin here?
@@QuantumTelephone You mentioned Ari Aster, lol.
This was my first Silent hill borrowed from a friend I new of the series but had never experienced and yes home comeing is one of the black sheep of the series I think for a western dev it was better to play it safe personally the bosses and themes where very strong and the lenghts the people of Sheperards Glen would go to to protect there town
That is reasonable.
homecoming is a decent game. not everbody hates it. but i'll still watch this to see what you have to say.
Thank you sir!
I was 11 years old when i bought silent hill homecoming,i liked it.
In my opinion,is not such a bad game like most people say.
Sorry for my english,i'm italian and i have to improve it🙂
You are fine. Glad you enjoyed it!
I liked homecoming I remember playing it over and over but I was a kid so idk if I play it now if my opinion would change?
Have you given it a shot?
3:55 Silent Hill 4: The Room IS a Silent Hill game. I don’t care what haters say. Team Silent was wanting to exercise their creative muscles and try something different. Some people misinterpreted that to mean it was supposed to be a whole other game. Silent Hill 4 is a Silent Hill game. 10x more than all the other games that came out from the European climax studio who only knew how to copy Silent Hill 1 and 2 over and over again.
It's a good Silent Hill game I don't care what people say.
for such low subs you have a very well made video
Thank you for the comment! :)
I could not get the hang of the combat so i just never finished the game but i dont think im missing out lmao
How come? Which combat?
@@jbeachboy100 the combos and shit mainly against those enemies in the apartments that would use the legs to block
@@swagwolfgang needlers?
Bruh all you have to do is dodge their hits and counter
I see the western made silent hill games as basically fan fiction and far too influenced by silent hill 2 with the repressed guilt stories. The original silent hill and its direct sequel silent hill 3 were not about repressed guilt but about the town cult and its attempt to birth their god. Fan boys of SH2 don't seem to understand that. SH2 was a good game but in many ways it clouded the franchise with all its derivatives.
Fair enough.
This is the one where he kills the monster in the basement and just go to talk to his mother like nothing happened right? That’s just dumb
Yes. :)
That's a symbolism, that the real monster of the house is his own father, that's why the mother didn't care, bc she is trapped also with that beast, she married with him after all. This explained that his mother is also split, but not by the same concept that we think, she is split bc she still love him, but he is an abuser of her sons. Kind of a deep concept, if we understand why the devs said about the real plot isn't easy to find, we need to join the dots.
@@LosMSR this sounds better than how it was portrayed in the game imo. That’s a shame because I just laughed at it when that happened
@@nnnneeeeuuuu Women that were in a domestic abuse tend to become schizophrenic, or with a dissociative mind. The mother of Alex is in that way, similar of the mother of Laura Palmer in Twin Peaks, she knew Laura is abused by his own father, but she is trapped in this loop, she can't move forward to the next level, which is eliminate the beast by herselft to protect her daughter. So she choose to be like nothing happen, like everything is fine. In some way the mother of Alex holding a pistol in her hands, that's the same meaning. She knew that Alex and Josh were abused by Adam, and she wanted to end this, but she can't.
I like how NONE of the people acts acordingly to when Alex asks them where his brother is. Wasn't his father like the sheriff or something? I'm pretty sure people know that Joshua drowned...
God, this game has such a garbage story.
xD
This is easy to explain, once you get the interview of the devs, the game is based on Donnie Darko, so Shepherd glen fell in a tangent universe, that means all is in a loop, nothing move forward, therefore people isn't aware of the reality, they think oh Nora is missing, oh other people is missing, and they think Josh was missing in the same way, but was Josh who created the endless loop, like the meme of the cat that spin in the air, that's what happened.
The 1st game play is a vision, or a dream about what happen if Alex skipped hisfate at the bathtub. Then he embraced this fate, like a soldier with big cojones. Then in a 2nd gameplay he returned to life, this time for real, to revenge those kids, and understand that Josh is now alive.
So this is almost like a ritual, the soldier marches on, embrace the sacrifice, to return what he lost, descending into the depths where the innocent are, and manage to revenge their lives.
Worst thing is home coming its not a terrible nor bad game by far, just an awful silent hill game
I can agree on that. It's problem (story wise) stems from expectations of fans who have experienced the other titles first.
One thing Homecoming never brings up what's causing the other world and creatures, there's no new God and the spiritual powers from 2 don't extend to other places that's how you no the clowns behind this game like nearly all the western games haven't a clue on what there doing.
xD
Margaret says what is causing it: Sheperd refusing to kill Joshua, that broke the cycle of the sacrifices
I will say Homecoming has a lot of missed potential that could have made the game even passable as a Silent Hill title. Like make Alex an actual soldier, theme the enemies around that concept like you could have zombie marines or even blood hounds instead of the basic dogs, get rid of the stuff that doesn’t belong like Pyramid Head and the nurses, and then make a story that actually relates to our main characters traumas and inner struggles with his family.
I absolutely love this game. It’s my favorite Silent Hill game after Silent Hill 2. People are way too overly hard on it IMO. Origins and Downpour are my favorites after this one. Silent Hill 3 is my least favorite of all.
There is nothing wrong with that! I did not mind Downpour but Origins was my least favorite.
Not a great game overall, but I loved the bosses. Really strong concepts there.
I can agree with that statement!
Best thing about the game has to be the OST by far
for me Homecoming almost got it, but that twist at the end, man, it didn't hit the mark. They should have sticked with the veteran with ptsd until the end and make another twist over it
I liked hc's story but one thing I think people get wrong is when they excuse the combat change is because Alex was suspected to be a soldier.
To me it would've better if he wasn't good at combat. It would've been a great subtle hint that he wasn't who he said he was
I can definitely agree with that statement!
You're not alone, bro. Many does. How could DH spoil such a good series? However, I'm sure C. Gans started it. They just screw the script up thinking 'there's genius' to ruin everything in it.
What a truly bold take. I commend you, sir
I liked homecoming...but it was way more action heavy and manky, but I loved all the weapons you could find
The boss fights definitely look Resident Evil influenced.
Weird. I remember this game having good graphics when it came out, but it looks like a PS2 game now, lmao.
Almost every early PS3 game was like that, they were learning new tech
I think Homecoming was amazing.
I loved it personally
I can't believe poeple dislike this one
My least favorite was sh3
shit taste but u do you
Fair enough! Have you played Downpour or any other post Team Silent games?
I really do recall disliking this game, way back in 2008, not even finishing it, lemme see if I'm remembered why.
EDIT: Ah yes, I remember. The tryhard tone from the get-go, the flat characters, the endless callbacks, the clunky combat, the derivativeness of the entirely obtuse and tedious plot, the disgusting torture porn scenes near the end. Robbie, nurses, Pyramid Head thrown in for purposeless fanservice. Least the OST had a couple good tracks. You're absolutely right, this game felt like it was patched together by a committee. SH3 had better graphics despite being five years older. Homecoming was a stinker even at the time, I remember every SH fan feeling underwhelmed; truly a sign from the new blood devs of things to come. Surely the SH2 remake can't be as embarrassingly bad as this was? Enjoyed the video nonetheless, your commentary is always engaging!
Hey man thanks for stopping by. I think with proper execution this game especially with its bosses would have been much better than what it was. Sadly, this is what we got.
Homecoming & Downpour are 2 sides of what makes a good Silent Hill game.
Where Downpour fails in creature design, Homecoming excels in every aspect. Where Homecoming struggles to create interesting exploration, Downpour implements creepy & subtle side stories that flesh out the town.
If you took the best bits of Homecoming & Downpour - then spliced it into a game combining the two storylines (Alex returns from prison instead; is chased around by Anne for his actions in prison, etc) - you'd have a damned great game.
As is - we have 2 mediocre games with missed potential all round. Shame.
I just happened to wrap up a different game but Downpour is on my list next to see what happened! I have heard mixed thoughts on that game as well. But it is interesting to see how a good Silent Hill experience is about balance above anything else.
@@Callyxi
Thoughts?
@@kiratherenegade1561 In regards to Downpour? I haven't gotten to it yet but it's next on my list.
One of the biggest problems for me with Homecoming, as much as I did enjoy my time with it, is that it has no real identity of its own. Everything about it screams fan-game, if not designed by fans then meant to appeal to fans purely on fanservice alone.
100%
Pyramid Head wants to party.
Never played Homecoming but from watching this video it looks like they tried making a silent hill/resident evil hybrid game
They actually made a successful Resi and Silent Hill combo with the Evil Within games.
More like Donnie Darko, Apocalypse now plot. Which kind of work, but they were run out of time to polish the plot, there is a lot of elements that were forgot, like the events could be almost like a ritual. Also doesn't matter if Alex is a soldier or not, since he was a big fan of movies, therefore all the monsters could be manifestations of that hobbie, just like Alessa on SH1. Again they got a good idea, but this idea was gigantic for them, and they said in an interview, they are an small studio.
The problem with silent hill is that it’s a cheap knock off of silent hill 2
Homecoming that is?
@@Callyxi yes
Half of the silent hill games are cheap knock offs of silent hill 2.
there is sort of a reason why homecoming ended up the way it was
Fair enough. It's definitely not the worst SH in my opinion.
@@Callyxibtw can I show the video that explains it ?
I'm not sure if you can link the comments but if its on youtube you can give me the title of it.@@cappedminer369
@@Callyxi ok, it's called silent hill Inheritance and it's a documentary explaining the development timeline of SH homecoming
Ah the Silent Hill game that gave me a UFO ending on my first playthrough.🙄
Also I hated the plot twist so much
What’s better silent hill home coming or downpour ?
All personal preference. Both games are so and so.
Homecoming feels like it only exists because of the live action movies.
I personally dislike this game, because of how they overuse a lot of the monsters from 2. The monsters in 2 are supposed to represent James’ insecurities and frustrations with Mary’s terminal illness. But, they’re just dropped in Homecoming for no reason, why are the Nurses here? Did Alex deal with repressed sexual feelings? Pyramid Head you can somewhat excuse, due to Alex having guilt over Joshua’s death but at least make a new design for the judge monster like what did with the doctor and Scarlet and the judge and Nora. Hell, even the cult members resemble the cult in the movies. It’s so obvious.
Also, the mom’s voicelines bugging out and rendering her mute sometimes is absolutely iconic.
The only flaws of this game in my opinion are the klunky controls and fighting. Other than that it wasn't all that bad. The creep factor was intact.
Fair enough.
Can you go to options to change it to tank controls or no?
I ask because controlling the camera is annoying is there any to change it plz answer? Lol
@@dmanentertament125 I am not sure brother. I have the game on the PS3 (and I just stored my PS3 a couple of days ago!, I can plug it back but I have my 4 and 5 on my TV at the moment) I'll have to check.
@@davidfigueroa6351 no prob man.
Game is fire sure not lore accurate but still a good horror game plus og soundtrack artist
I thought it was the best one and better combat since anyone can be more capable in a fight than what the game let's on. Knife actually works In this one where the knife is just for looks in the other ones.
There's another thing I see not many spot of it. SHHC is full of cliche about previous SH: PH, holes, rabbits, childchasing, otherworlds, whatnot. And okay such things as a flashlight or a radio appear in every series, but hey this time the creators got all those too much high, and instead of trying to put some true feelings into it just like the Japanese did, they put it all in a mixer, and push a button. Now, we've got the results. It was not a game, it was just a joke. Not a good joke, a really bad joke that wanna make us puke.
The only thing I like about this game is the main theme, piano track. The bosses had potential, but everything else is awful.
I didn't mind the experience it was just way too saturated with the series staples that it lacked its own identity outside of the bosses which is a shame.
I love this game
Have you played Downpour? I'm thinking of giving that one a shot as well.
Ranking silent hill games.
Homecoming
Origins
Downpour
3
The room
1
2
Now if you excuse me, I'm gonna go buy and play my first silent hill.
Peace
Is Homecoming the best or worst?
@@Callyxi lol no
But why is Homecoming up top?
@@91Definite you read it backwards
I love when you criticize a crappy game and than a bunch of basic ass fanboys ignore everything you said and say "I pursonally liek the game reminds of me childhood", and then other fanboys see that in complete denial at the points being raised against their game and take it as some sort of refutation.
Your literally just nitpicking the shit out of this game for content😭
I mean honestly Silent Hill origin had even less plot in the beginning then this game. and Silent Hill origin had a way worse combat system. at least you could actually fight these monsters and Dodge. the other game you just had to keep repeatedly hitting the same button. not only that but what were people expecting time events to fight the monsters you know how annoying that would have been
Fair enough. I didn't play origins until after this one and I can agree with that statement.
This game is everything wrong with the ps3/xbox 360 generation.
Is it bad that I like this game?
Not at all. As long as you aren't disturbing anyone while playing it who am I to judge?
The story is pretty dumb in Homecoming but I love the gameplay and the combat. The knife is OP as shit, it's fun locking on, dodging, and slashing the hell out of everything, lol. I think it's a great game overall. Creepy as hell too, seriously, Akira did some of his best work in this game and it will 100% put you on edge playing in a dark room by yourself.
The combat is not good when you try to use the other weapons they give you but if you keep the knife man...enemies can't get a hit in.
well the combat sistem is actually ok
I gave a dislike for the video because you said that SH4 is not a "SH game".
This is incorrect.
The game was always meant to be a Silent Hill game. This was stated by Akira Yamaoka himself who was the producer of the game.
" We wanted to make a sequel after Silent Hill 3 and you could say that was the initial concept, but upon that we needed to implement a lot of new flavour to the sequel, otherwise it would have been the same old Silent Hill."
The game itself features Walter Sullivan who is completely tied to the town of Silent Hill.
It's a shame that you've said this because the review itself of SH Homecoming is good.
I regret playing it, worst game i've ever played
How do you feel about Downpour?
@@Callyxi
Well, it might be better but i miss Team Silent :/
@@unknown2966 The team was destroyed by the fans on SH4, the obssesion for SH2 finally overcome the team, this is like when Marvel fans all ended on Endgame. Too bad PT never happen with Hideo Kojima, that will took SH to a next level.
Silent hill homecoming was one of the great games. I played it two times all the way through. Not to mention the soundtrack and osts, just wow. I think you are being too harsh to it. Every word you sounded were just criticism. Very unfair
😥
People don't like it cause it's not by team silent.
this man cant fight the nurse lmfao, learn to dodge git gud
No I think, you are the really joke here...
The game is good and your review is bad. Almost every thing you mentioned in many other games and never was a problem to anybody.
1) When SH3 has vague beginning and empty first half of the game it is just subtle and mysterious. When SHH does it only in the beginning it is weak and they just don't know what they are doing. Claudia's talk is not empty but Alex's mother's talk is.
2) When games like Dark Souls have tough difficulty you can't change it is great and you just spoiled if you don't like it. When SHH has difficulty you can change to easy and also turn off the light fighting nurses, it is a bad game. Etc.
3) When you commented on the conversation of Alex and his dad you didn't say anything coherent at all. Word salad with no finished points and objective argument. Josh's death reveal does nothing to the plot? You make no sense. And you can spin every single SH game plot twists as cliché.
Overall your almost whole review you just made many statements but didn't prove any of them, didn't finish any point, didn't give any examples of how things should be done instead and why other SH gems did it right or better.
Imho this was the last good SH game.