Congratulations, Konami, on Finally Pissing All Over Silent Hill

Jim Sterling, "I’d like to personally congratulate Konami on completing a goal it seemingly set out to accomplish several years ago. It has finally shat on the last clean piece of the Silent Hill legacy with its Silent Hill HD Collection. Truly, this is a marvel to behold, and proof that when Konami sets out to f**k something up, it makes sure to do a good job!"

[Dramscus]

That's so sad. I hadn't actually played it and was looking forward to the collection :/.
Guess I'll have to dig up a ps2

[FriedGoat]

Jill, here's a lockpick. It might be handy if you, the master of unlocking, take it with you.

[Iroquois_Pliskin]

Jill! You were almost a Jillsandwich!!

[SlyGuy]

HAHAHAHAH...You hit the nail on the head. This reminded me sooo much of Resident Evil on PS.

[jke82]

Wait!!! Dont open that door!!

wesker was the liquid side of shit voice acting in the old RE way over the top trying way way too hard

[FriedGoat]

But he was super cool in the intro video!

[BlindGuardian]

doesn't sound that bad, in fact it's about the same quality as the original

I'm more concerned with the HD upgrade, both version look very similar unlike the huge jump in quality in the ICO collection

[Azfargh]

I agree... the PS2 ones was almost comical for me. People shouldn´t be so critic like that.

[blind-reaper]

I actually agree with you, the voices are not that bad, maybe because the acting in the original ones are not that good, and they did not change them that much.

[Solidus187-SCMilk]

yeah they dont seem that different to me, neither of them is really that good.

I did notice on the HD collection the fat guy sounded more fat and the voices matched the lips more.

[Reibooi]

yeah this guy is over reacting so much. If you look at it from a non fanboy point of view I would say the new acting is better. But fans for whatever reason liked the original acting(despite the fact that it was terrible)

The new acting isn't bad. It's just different. I personally like it because while I loved Silent Hill 2 I always thought the voice acting was quite bad and I haven't played the game so long I don't really have the attachment to the old voices so playing the HD collection will be fine for me as I don't have that much memory of the old stuff.

[seinfan]

That's not worse. People that were fans from the beginning just have a nostalgic preference and simply think it's worse. The first comparison with the camcorder scene does sound better on the original only because it actually sounds like it's on old footage.
It's like all the old Megadeth fans complaining that the remastered CDs sound like shit when in reality it is what Dave Mustaine intended it to sound like.

[RustInPeace]

Did you just make that comment to provoke me? Who the hell on this site aside from me knows "what the hell's a Megadeth?". I never heard what you just said spoken by anyone. Hell, I think the remasters were WAY better. Take SF,SG...SW! & listen to the original cut VS remaster cut of Into The Lungs of Hell. How could anyone say the remaster is bad? You can barely hear most of the guitar riffs aside from what was set so high in-studio......

Sorry, I could go on but it's a long enough rant. Just a good excuse to talk about my band. :)

[leahcim]

its not the same here, old team silent have nothing to do with this HD new versions

[Organization XII]

actually the remasters kinda suck since Marty Friedman's solos were played by Chris Broderick, oh and the new voice overs in silent hill werent really necessary to begin with.

[killcycle]

I don't see the point of changing it at all.
Why didn't they just leave the voices the same and save the trouble?

That time could of been used to fund something else.

[JerryMatters]

Either way, it sounds like really bad soap opera acting. The new ones especially.

[monkpunk1]

The fat guy sounds like Vito Corleone... Kind of see this guys point/rant here though.

[sarshelyam]

I wouldn't worry about it too much Dramscus. 90% of the people complaining are so mired in nostalgia that even the slightest of changes would have set them off.

As a fan of the series, I can appreciate it either way. I still have my originals so if these really aren't gripping me, I can fall back to the source material any time I please.

[starvinbull]

Whoever wrote this article doesn't seem to realise that the new voiceovers are 100% better.
The reason they sound "off" is because they are the unvarnished perfmances. The mastered performances will sound better and will have had tens on thousands of pounds of post production spent on them.

Every single modern film, song or even video game goes through this process.

Any actor or singer would sound totally wrong with unmastered audio.

[fluffydelusions]

I never played either games in the collection (was in the military at the time) so I'm not sure how they fair. Regardless I enjoyed the original on PS1 so I'll be picking it up.

[kreate]

which branch of the military were u in?
if u dont mind me askin.

[Kurt Russell]

Yeah I know what you mean, I missed out on the original Tomb Raider because I was saving the Presidents daughter from LA.

The more things change, the more they stay the same...

[dredgewalker]

I had it worse...I was crucified and was still healing, it was hard to hold a controller with bleeding hands....

[bangoskank]

I was dead at the time but came back to life so I can play the HD collection.

[DarkFantasy]

same here i haven't played those game,at the time i was on vacation and funny story there was this guy who looked just like me and he was putting graffiti all over the place it was a HUGE mess and the moment i got there i was arrested and sent to jail and they made me go around and clean every place on the island until it was shining clean but that bastard who looked like me kept putting graffiti every were man he was pissing me off he kidnapped my girlfriend and i got even more pissed off i just had enough it was more then i could take i was loseing it i mean this was suppose to be my vacation!! so i hunted him down and defeated him and his old man i gave them a good beating! and shortly after i went back home..it was the worst vacation i EVER had omg i get pissed off just thinking about it.

[Ser]

Meh, it's not a DRASTICALLY ABSURD difference that Sterling makes it out to be.

Everyone but Mary sounded fine to me. Have you PLAYED the originals lately? The voice acting is almost identically wooden.

Sterling mentions that Maria's new voice is "overly slutty." When was Maria NOT "slutty?" That's her character in the game - the hot, unpredictable temptress that James conjures up in his mind.

I'll still be picking the collection up on day one.

[BubbleSniper]

i disagree with you into the next life. the old voice actors are not as WOODEN as these new ones. these new voice actors are trying way too hard to a point where they seem to be devoid of anything resembling emotion and come off as reading off a teleprompter while overdoing it.

i still cant wrap my head around any of the voice actors... if anything Marys voice is barely passable and I can see this voice maybe a doing a better job than the original with regards to the ending. (a certain ending in where she talks a lot) but that remains to be seen.

Ill stick to the PC versions of both. I dont need to see a bastardization of 2 games I have a place for in my heart. New soundtrack, voice actors and areas and probably more PH than the original had... this is clearly for the newer generation and not for the long time fans who brought this damned series as far as it has come.

[Ser]

I respectfully disagree.

I see absolutely no reason to cause such an enormous fuss over something so menial. I stick to my original views. The voices are wooden in both the original, and the remastering.

I LOVE the original games, but I just don't see the ginormous difference.

"this is clearly for the newer generation and not for the long time fans who brought this damned series as far as it has come."

I disagree. It's a cash-in from Konami. That's all it is. Konami is aiming it at anyone who has money. Downpour is coming out this year, they want more hype around the franchise. It's not just intended for the "newer generation." I've been around since the launch of Silent Hill 1 on PS1, and I'm still picking this up on launch.

[NarooN]

Where'd you get this "new soundtrack" bullshit from? The soundtracks are the fucking same, they're only gonna get "remastered" so they'll sound better on surround setups.

There's no new areas, dunno where you got "more PH" from, etc. You just basically pulled all that horeshit out of your ass just to try to come up with reasons not to get the collection. Hell, SH3's voice acting isn't even GETTING changed.

And what do you fucking mean "fans who brought this series as far as it has come"?? LMAO! You mean the same piece of shit fans who bash anything that their precious Teem Sirent-kun didn't make? THOSE fans? Get the hell outta here.

[Rocket Sauce]

I don't really care if the voices are better or worse, it's just ridiculous to go back after 10 years and "fix" something like this à la ET or Star Wars.

[Azfargh]

Right on dude.

Sympathized with the new voice act. Laugh a lot with the old one.

[2pacalypsenow]

If you dont like the new HD version just play the Original ones simple as that

[Quagmire]

People dont like logic too much, uses too much brain power.

[Azfargh]

Or, Konami should (and maybe, will) put the option of switching the old voice tracks for the new ones and vice-versa.

[haymoza]

At first, I was like, "great, another Sterlin attention grabbing rant." But after reading that and watching the comparison videos ... Holy sh** that voice acting is terrible!

[Skateboard]

I like the original voice acting a lot more too.

[Bonerboy]

A beautifully written article.

[Jack_DangerousIy]

I love how you articulated that, in contrast to the writing of the article. :)

[Pillage05]

Maybe they'll consider leaving the old voices in as an option once they see the backlash this makes... we can hope...

[GoldPS3]

Not a big deal to me. It is a HD remake so why not remake the voices. They sound better, more clearer.

[kamakaz3md]

suck it up crybaby

[ReservoirDog316]

Well, I never played the old ones so I guess it'd really be no difference to me in the end. Don't have the nostalgia factor that a lot of people would have.

So yay for never playing it. It actually turned into a plus for once.

[FriedGoat]

I also have never played it, but do wonder if it would have been scarier when i was younger. I think so.

[Chug]

Talk about over exaggerating. Truth be told, if it wasn't for the comparison video I likely wouldn't have noticed seeing it's been so many years since playing the originals. Everybody's gotta cry these days about something it seems.

[Mr Tretton]

I like the VO changes.

[Silly gameAr]

Jim Sterling. The master of making something out of nothing.

[solidboss]

i have never played silent hill 2 or 3 but judging from the comparison videos i like James new voice, his original voice sounds a bit nerdy and doesn't fit the look for the character. as for mary i like the original better just because of the added audio in the background when she is talking.

[Whore_Mouth]

The author is just a butt-hurt fanboy.

[ApexHell]

just put an option to switch the voices deal done

[Mr Tretton]

People keep saying this, but are uninformed/missing the point.

They don't want to pay royalties to the original actors.

I think the new work sounds better. The voices are all more brooding and deep. Sets a darker tone.

[Fez]

Surely paying royalties to the original actors would be cheaper than hiring new voice actors and recording the whole game again?

[Rocket Sauce]

Voice actors for video games apparently don't get royalties.

http://www.ecommercetimes.c...

[darksied]

Remakes in general are pretty disappointing. You'll never capture that feeling that you had playing the original, no matter how hard you try. The new one will always be glossier, more polished, and won't feel the same.

Having said that, yeah, I can see how this is a pretty disappointing thing to the fans of the series. To be honest, I haven't played ANY silent hill game, but I was interested in this HD collection to get started. It's said though; if you're going to have voice-overs, then make them good.

But again, having said THAT, the game is really more important. If there's things in the game like bugs and such that were fixed, that's more important than voice acting. If it's THAT bad for some people, hopefully they put in a voice volume control and you can just put it down to 0 with subtitles.

[omi25p]

Why does destructoid hire this fool

[rataranian]

So the guys just ranting and hating because the voice acting is different? Wow. Get a life dude.

[Ramas]

New voice acting is really bad, but the sad thing is i will still be buying this game, even though it is ruined and will never be the same again.

[Megaton]

So it sounds like they used Mary Elizabeth McGlynn as Maria's new VA (she does the vocals in several of SH's soundtracks).

...I dunno. I don't see why they needed to change it.

[Rustyrockers]

For Christ sake, stop your bitching, if you wanna bitch about something bitch about Silent Hill Book of Memories, thats the game that is gonna ruin the series not one of the best games ever made being re-released in HD with new voice actors so be grateful that Silent Hill is getting the HD treatment and stop complaining.

[net123456]

I have every Silent Hill game. I am fan since the first day after SH1 release. I love SH2/3 I have seen the comparison and honestly its nothing to be upset about. To VA is not worse then in the original games. Only concernis Heather I dont know how they will voice her but I liked it in SH3 still remember the scene were she wouldnt put her hand in that dirty hole in the toilet.

After SH3 it went massively down hill. The Room was just weird and wasnt like SH at all. It got a little better in Homecoming but far far away from the first three not even in the same league. Now Downpour hmm I hope they are going to bring back the old feeling again. I doubt it though. Maybe Konami shouldnt outsource SH why the hell are they doing it anyway ? Bring back the old team or parts of it and make a proper SH again a true sequel to SH 3.

To all that never played SH 2-3 be glad you didnt dont let yourself be discouraged. The VA is fine not worse then the original. I would pay to erase my memories of SH so I could play it again with fresh eyes.

[blakstarz]

I don't see what the big deal is.....its not like it sounds robotic or anything.

[fossilfern]

It says a lot when your looking forward more to the HD remakes than the new game

[Maester07]

Is this really such a big deal?

[Sarevok]

I'll stick with SH on pc thank you very much.

[Simco876]

Voice acting is fine dude lol.

Stop bitching about them remaking your favorite game and enjoy it. By the way... Bring back Suikoden already

[bangoskank]

Agree on both counts.

1)The voice acting is actually better this time around 2)Konami needs to quit playing with themselves so they can make Suikoden VI. We need a sequel to III already. No BS.

[Rashonality]

the new ones aren't that bad, yes some of them are trying too hard to add emotions i prefer the new James over the old one, the old Mary was more psychotic than a slutty so yeah i prefer her over the new one, but over all i think the new ones did a decent job, i don't know why but i can't stand Jim Sterling, i think that he's pretentious fat f**k.

[BlueRevolvuR]

Maria sounds like a cougar now.

[lotusaurusrex]

I didn't think the new ones were so bad. The old women's voices just sounded like little girls and now they sound like women. Maybe that's the issue.

Let's be honest, none of them, old or new, are going to be getting any award nominations.

[Thecraft1989]

WTF has happen to Konami....................

[Mike_Tha_Hero]

I've heard worse. Typical though, people will find any excuse to rag on a game and render is as shit simply because of one aspect.

[Figboy]

I'm a diehard SH fan, and it seems like some of you guys are viewing the old Voice Overs with rose tinted glasses.

The voice acting in Silent Hill is notoriously bad. The new voice acting in the HD collections is slightly better than what we got in the original releases.

Some people like to bitch about everything, but all I care about is playing SH in HD. I can't judge the total voice acting performance on just a few lines of dialogue. I felt the same way about Cole in inFAMOUS 2. The trailers sounded a little off, but in the full game, Ladin's performance worked so well as Cole.

I'm reserving judgment until the final version releases.

But hey, this is Jim Sterling. Why even bother giving him an audience (I didn't even click on the link.)?

[Braid]

Maria sounds a little too old for her age.

Other than that, new voices are fine enough for me.

[Morgue]

Although the voice acting does sound a little forced I'll be buying it regardless.

[ger101]

The only good voice actor there is James' new VA.

As I said to a friend of mine a few days ago, James' original VA was ridiculous. He sounded bored out of his mind whereas this new VA seems a hell of a lot more natural.

I'm going to pass on this, though. I already have 2, 3 & 4 on PS2 and, imo, judging from the screenshots and trailer, this HD thing doesn't look that much different from the originals.

[Morgue]

Especially if you have fat PS3 to up-convert or using component cables for the PS2 then turning off the background noise. The graphics are pimp and still one of the best PS2 games ever made.

[christoph203]

TBH I think people need to let go of a franchise that is so out dated it goes back to the PS1.. you guys should have known silent hill was over by the time we enterd this generation.. I think the vita game looks alot of fun & it's childish too say it looks shit... cause it dosnt..

[christoph203]

looks fun in regards too co-op experience.. and konami havnt made anything original in years... they like to milk their established franchises

[Whitefox789]

I can't really voice an opinion on this one, truth be told I was a little werided out that they would redo the voice acting for SH 2 and SH 3. I would first have to see the rest of the casts voice acting and see how they approach the high points of their characters for each respective game. Cause just like it was before it was pretty much hit or miss with the original VA their would be times where you said they nailed it or times where you face palm.

[Beastradamus]

The acting sucked in the originals anyway. I'm still buying. acting is the least of my concerns for a SH game. For me SH has always been about atmosphere and the art style.

[Tikicobra]

Seems like a bit of an overreaction.

[isntchrisl]

The voice acting isn't great in either. If anything, I'd say the HD actors slightly edge out the old ones. Either way, it's not impressive though.

[Tokyo_reject]

I threw up a little in my mouth...

[Puty]

I agree with the idea that this "HD" version is pointless. But the new voice actors are ok imo. True, Eddie sounds shitty, but to me the rest is passable.
i actually think that the worse threat to the franchise is this PS Vita Game "SILENT HILL: BOOK OF LOST MEMORIES".
That diablo-clone may be the mark of transition toward action - just like resident evil 4 was to RE saga. Altough RE4 was pretty damn good game. This SH:BoLM looks terrible.

[andrewsqual]

Truly, this is a marvel to behold, and proof that when Konami sets out to f**k something up, it makes sure to do a good job!" No its still Silent Hill 2 and 3. I think you are talking about the abortion that is Downpour.

[KillerPwned]

It won`t bother me really bad if at all. I want this collection really bad.

[Der_Kommandant]

Konami hired Resident Evil 1 actors?