The last few months have seen two releases of remakes of legendary horror giants, Resident Evil 4 and Silent Hill 2.
Genre fans excitedly discuss which is better, so let’s resolve this matter once and for all!
Resident Evil 4 and Silent Hill 2 Remake received a generous share of gameplay improvements, new story features, and graphical advancements. It’s impossible not to compare the two despite their completely different universes. Wondering which is better? Let’s dive into the details to resolve this matter!
1. Setting
The environments of both games feel similar and different. RE4 Remake follows Leon S. Kennedy as he travels to a mysterious town in rural Spain. The man is tasked with rescuing the president’s daughter from the hands of a dangerous cult and dealing with the omnipresent Las Plagas parasite.
James Sunderland (the SH2’s protagonist) receives a mysterious letter from his deceased wife and travels to the misty town of Silent Hill to sort out the situation. Depending on his choices, the man might discover the location represents his suppressed emotions and the horrors plaguing his tormented mind. While the two video games deliver scary adventures in bizarre towns, each feels unique and poses unique challenges.
2. Gameplay and Horror Experience
Unlike SH2, action-oriented RE4 features more life-like physics. Enemies come from all sides, drop loot, and the protagonist remains in constant combat readiness. There is an attache case inventory system available for better equipment management. And speaking of inventory, Leon S. Kennedy enjoys a much larger arsenal of weapons, from powerful guns to melee moves. Players can freely practice combat skills against omnipresent enemies, making this game less of a horror and more of an action-survival-horror.
SH2’s gameplay mechanics are more about exploring a claustrophobic reality, solving puzzles, making choices, and discovering dark secrets. Monsters don’t spawn at every turn, and James is by no means a fighter. He also uses a much more limited arsenal, and the weapons are challenging to obtain. All this forces him to carefully explore the town where danger may be lurking just around the corner.
3. Storytelling and characters
Since RE 4 offers only one ending, you can expect a rather linear narrative. There is choice-making, but it doesn’t affect the story outcome. Another difference, separating these two titles, is the protagonist’s personality. Leon S. Kennedy is a man of action who, no matter the circumstances, does everything it takes to complete the mission.
Silent Hill is noticeably more story-centered. The narrative focuses on mature themes like guilt, depression, loneliness, and fear. James must deal with his thoughts to survive this trial and encounter manifestations of his inner frustrations. The man suffers from some serious issues and is unsure what to do about this situation. Therefore, he tries to unravel deeply disturbing details regarding his past (if he wants to).
4. Graphics and audio
While these two games seem drastically different in other categories, the graphics make them uniquely similar. Even the character models (Leon/James, Ashley/Maria) resemble each other in the visual department. The same goes for the environmental design. Sure, it’s marginally better in SH2, but both towns bear a surprising resemblance.
Regarding audio, Silent Hill does a much better job of scaring the player. In RE4, the sounds are a bit muffled and don’t create as much of a chilling atmosphere. The noises of the monsters in SH2 add to the sense of menace, making this game genuinely scary.
5. Replayability and additional content
While many remakes chase after increasing their content, Resident Evil Remake surprised its fans with only 30 extra minutes of gameplay within the main story. Still, it somehow managed to provide incredibly high replayability. According to players on Reddit, the game feels different with each playthrough and sets the gold standard for replayability.
What about the Silent Hill Remake? Unlike Resident Evil, the title doubles the playtime by expanding it with two extra endings added to the six classic ones. Discovering all the story nuances and endings guarantees high replayability, especially since there are also different difficulty settings for the puzzles.
6. Best for
Go for RE4 Remake if you are an enthusiast of horror games like Alien: Isolation, Dead Space Remake, or The Evil Within. The improvements add better combat mechanics, detailed environments, surprisingly mature (likable even) characters, and depth to the original story. It’s campier than SH2 – but the game should satisfy your needs if you seek an action-oriented horror experience.
Play SH2 Remake if you don’t mind the claustrophobic atmosphere, narrative-oriented experience, and themes of guilt or punishment. It’s perfect for fans of similar titles like SOMA, Alan Wake, or The Medium. Know, however, that this is a truly spooky video game, much more so than RE4.
Conclusion
SH2R vs RE4R – which is ultimately better? Unfortunately, that’s an entirely subjective thing. Resident Evil is more action-oriented, gives you a gun-trained protagonist, is well-optimized, and offers high replay value. Silent Hill is more like RE2 than 4. The more story-oriented and scarier adventure involves themes of loneliness and despair. These two set epic standards in their categories, so no wonder each has a devoted fanbase. If there are some aspects of one that you don’t like, try the other. But if both sound like a good time, play both!