Patience_Is_A_Virtue

Oh my lord. I am possibly the biggest Silent Hill fan I know, I've managed to introduce several friends to the wonders of this series and many of them enjoy it too. I recently received an Xbox 360 for Christmas, and the main reason I wanted it was for this game. I waited months for this game to come out, and having adored all the previous titles (even 4!) I was eagerly anticipating this one's release. I always say that no matter how bad a Silent Hill game is I will always finish it. But I've decided not to finish this one. Honestly, this game is beyond terrible. The graphics were decent and the voice overs were pretty good but that's about all. Besides having a totally boring plot that hardly ties in with any of the previous games at all, the game is crawling with glitches. Just as I decided to give it another chance this morning I walked right into a glitch many others have been having problems with. Therefore I had to start over. Now I just can't be bothered to finish the game, having spent many frustrating hours screaming at the television screen because this game is so damn.. ugh, it basically takes the word frustration to a whole new goddamn level. What really sucks about this game is that they had the atmosphere just right; the town of Silent Hill, the fog, the whole atmosphere was pretty much perfect. Then they threw in the dumb ass combat and it all went to hell. What makes a Silent Hill game for me is not the constant fighting, but the wandering around in the fog, and that helpless feeling you get when you hear a strange noise in the distant. In this game they pretty much took out all of these things and threw in a bunch of extremely annoying enemies that take about fifty hits from the axe to actually kill, that is before they've already knocked you on your ass half a dozen times. Also, weapons and ammo are extremely limited. I'm not saying there was a bunch of ammo everywhere you looked in the previous games, but hell, this is like playing Resident Evil - only even goddamn harder, and you can imagine what that's like. I'm so disappointed at this game, it could have been amazing if the Japanese hadn't handed it to the Americans. That being said, Origins which was also made by the Americans was a lot better than this game, so maybe they just went wrong somewhere. It's a pity really, this could've been a really good game if they'd just fixed a few things. I'm sad that I wasted thirty eight pounds buying this game, but I don't really regret it. I would've bought it anyway at some point, so it's just bad luck really. I've never been so annoyed with a game in all my life, and this one is easily the most difficult SH game I've ever played. Anyone who enjoys action and combat should try this game, but if you're a true Silent Hill fan who still considers the second game the best of the bunch, I'd say rent it. It's certainly not worth wasting any of your hard earned money on. 1/5

Okay, I'm a Pokemon fan. I'm not going to sit here and deny it. Yes, it is quite a "kiddy" show. But I WAS just a kid when I first got into it, which was around nine years ago. I played all of the games that were out at that time, and watched this show religiously. I was a devoted fan to both the show and the games for around three years. Then I sort of grew tired of it and lost interest. Just recently I came across the Sapphire game I'd gotten a few years back and played it a while and realised how much I loved the games. It really took me back to those happy times. Anyway, I've been watching the first season of the show lately, and I love it. Even now that I'm older I can still enjoy this show for what it is, a cute and fun anime. The first few seasons are absolutely timeless; the first season itself is an epic in every single way possible. I recently caught a few of the newer episodes and was horrified at how bad this show has become. It just doesn't FEEL like Pokemon anymore. Not to mention I've lost track at how many new Pokemon there are. What happened to the good old days with Ash, Brock and Misty? Well, I still personally love this show, and I'll continue to watch since it's been so long since I watched it. I might even look for the games if I get the time; it'd be great to play Red or Yellow again. Basically, I love Pokemon, and for someone like me it will never get old and I'll always treasure the memories.

I haven't been playing survival horror games for too long, about a year, give or take. Silent Hill was the first series to get me hooked, then came Resident Evil, then Fatal Frame, and finally, Haunting Ground. Well, this game really does take the survival horror genre to a whole new level. I'd already watched a friend play it beforehand, and initially I thought it was going to be an average game about some girl trapped in a castle. Oh, how wrong I was. I bought the game a mere few days ago and from the moment I began playing I was hooked. The characters, the storyline, and the creepy setting all made this game what it is: a true work of art. Yeah, it's cheesy to say it like that but it's the honest truth.

What makes Haunting Ground superior to most survival horror games (yes, even to my beloved Silent Hill) is the fact that it's so realistic. Well, not completely realistic, I mean you don't see large disfigured giants in your average day to day life, but besides that, the game is pretty realistic. Also, the weapons system. There are no weapons. When you see an enemy, what can you do? Stand there and fight? No, sir. You have to run. There's no other choice in the matter. You can't just whip out your handgun like on Resident Evil or Silent Hill and KO the enemy, you just have to run and hide and hope to God that they don't find you. Yeah, all these things make this game worth playing. But now onto the storyline.

You play as Fiona Belli, a young girl recently involved in a tragic car accident that supposedly killed her parents. Sometime after, Fiona wakes up, naked with only a white sheet to cover herself, alone in a strange and unfamiliar place. She soon realises that nobody there is going to help her and that she alone must find a way out. Well, not completely alone. A dog named Hewie soon comes to your aid and proves to be a great help throughout the game. It is up to Fiona and Hewie to not only find a way out, but to also discover the truth about why Fiona herself is there in the first place.

All in all, Haunting Ground is one amazing game. It seems to be incredibly underrated, which is so unfair as in my opinion it is just as good as Resident Evil or Silent Hill. There should be more games like Haunting Ground out, and I hope there will be. I also hope that people read this review and decide to buy this game, therefore realising how truly amazing it is just like I did. Oh yeah, and if you're still not convinced that this is a great game, I should tell you that one of the best things about this game is that when Fiona is attacked by an enemy, she flies into a panic-like state which causes the screen to go white and makes things even more difficult. It really makes things even more terrifying and, even better, makes the player feel like you're there and in Fiona's shoes. Just buy this game and I promise you that you won't regret it. Not for a second.