New Silent Hill: Shattered Memories details
IGN has posted a preview of Silent Hill: Shattered Memories so glowing, you'd swear it was radioactive. Aside from the effusive praise, there are a few details to be gleaned from the eyes-on preview. The psyche profile system revealed earlier this week is further fleshed out by the preview. Lead character Harry Mason will actually start the game in a psychiatrist's office, where players will have to fill out a form. The choices you make on the form, as well as other choices in the game, will affect other parts of the game.
Harry's phone acts as the hub of all the game's information, containing the map, voice mail, text messages and a camera. The camera can be used to take pictures of certain areas, revealing ghostly images in the finished photos. The article cites a moment when Harry takes a picture of a strange swingset, only to see his missing daughter, Cheryl, show up in the photo. Once the picture is taken, Harry receives a voicemail from Cheryl ... creepy.
In an interesting twist, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories features no combat whatsoever. When you're face to face with a freakish monster, the only choice is to run. Another change, the rusty, hellish Otherworld has been changed into a frozen, icy one instead. As in Silent Hill: Homecoming, the transition to the Otherworld takes place in real time as buildings freeze over and columns rise out of the ground. The preview assures us the transition is "breathtaking," but we'll reserve judgment until we can see some video.
It certainly sounds like Shattered Memories could be shaping up to be a decent entry in the series, even despite the somewhat radical changes to the staple conventions. At least one thing isn't changing though. In IGN's interview with Climax -- a good read for anyone interested in the title -- it is confirmed that Akira Yamaoka will once again provide the soundtrack.
Source - IGN: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Preview
Source - IGN: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Interview
