Silent Hill 4: The Room
From SilentHill
Silent Hill 4: The Room is the fourth installment in the survival horror series Silent Hill. The game was released in Japan on June 17, 2004, North America on September 7, 2004, and Europe on September 17, 2004. The Room was released onto multiple platforms consisting of the PlayStation 2, Xbox and PC. It is the second Silent Hill game to be released with a subtitle, following the expanded version of Silent Hill 2.
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Summary
Henry Townshend is living in South Ashfield; a town that is a half a day's drive away from Silent Hill. One day he finds himself mysteriously locked in his own apartment. He cannot escape through either the windows or his front door, which has been chained shut from the inside. No one, not even people standing directly outside the door, can hear him when he pounds on the door and cries for help. After five days of entrapment Henry finds a hole that has opened up in his bathroom wall. Armed only with a steel pipe that broke loose when the wall opened, a carton of chocolate milk, and a bottle of wine, he proceeds to venture into the hellish madness of "Silent Hill".
The hole leads Henry to a variety of strange areas, inhabited by dangerous and sometimes immortal creatures. In the first four worlds, he witnesses the murders of four people who are stuck in corresponding realms like him. The murders then happen in the real world, too. As Henry ventures further, he learns more and more about Walter Sullivan, a serial killer that terrorized Ashfield several years ago and left certain numbers carved on his victims. Walter was arrested and committed suicide. However, new victims bear similar numbers, and different events suggest that Sullivan is not really dead.
Walter Sullivan was born in the same Room 302 (where Henry lives now). His parents fled the scene soon afterwards, as the baby's birth was considered unnatural. Superintendent Frank Sunderland handed the newborn to the medics, and so Walter found his way to the "Wish House" orphanage in Silent Hill, where he was taught occult rituals. Later, Sullivan began to believe that the Room itself was his mother. Therefore he decided to "wake" it up through the "21 Sacraments" ritual, which required, in particular, 21 murders. Walter killed 10 people in different ways, but he ended each murder by taking their hearts out. He then went through the ritual of Assumption, which allowed him to make himself the eleventh victim through suicide and yet still remain in the world. His goal is to kill another 10 people to complete the 21 Sacraments. Henry meets two Walters: one adult (real) and one child, an image conjured by real Walter's reminisces.
The four victims that Henry encounters in his wanderings are numbers 16 through 19. The twentieth murder, however, is interrupted, and the victim (Henry's neighbour Eileen Galvin) is taken to the hospital. Henry rescues Eileen and together they try to stop Walter, while Henry's apartment becomes increasingly haunted and dangerous.
Endings
The game has a total of four possible endings. In this game, however, there is no UFO ending.
- Escape. After Walter falls to the floor he lifts his arm up, calling out "Mom" before he goes motionless. The room starts to shake. Eileen, still alive and no longer possessed, slumps to the ground. Henry calls her name and reaches out to her, then the screen fades to Young Walter knocking on Room 302's door in Walter's apartment world, calling out to his Mother to "let him in." He then falls to his knees and to the floor, fading away. After he disappears, the door leading to Henry’s apartment opens. Next Henry is walking away from the Ashfield apartment buildings. He looks back and then continues on, saying Eileen's name. One day after Henry is at the normal world hospital in Eileen's room, in both the Escape and Mother endings Henry gives Eileen a bouquet of flowers, as if they have become more than friends. Eileen says to him, "Guess we'll have to find a new place to live, huh?" This ending is considered the "best". To obtain it the player must keep Eileen from getting hurt and clear 80% of Henry's apartment of hauntings.
- Mother. This scene is the exact same as the Escape except when Henry visits Eileen in the hospital, she tells him "Well, I guess I can go back to South Ashfield Heights now." We then see Henry's apartment as it was at the beginning of the game, covered in blood and rust, implying that the spirits still haunt Room 302 and that Eileen may still be possessed. To obtain this ending the player must keep Eileen from getting hurt, but not clear 80% of Henry's apartment of hauntings.
- Eileen's Death. After Walter falls to the floor he lifts his arm up, calling out "Mom" before he goes motionless. The room starts to shake. The screen fades to Young Walter knocking on Room 302's door in Walter's apartment world, calling out to his Mother to "let him in." He then falls to his knees and to the floor, fading away. After he disappears, the door leading to Henry's apartment opens. We see Henry sitting up in his bed once more, then a shot of him in first person point of view in the living room hearing on his radio, to his despair, that Eileen has died of her wounds. To obtain this ending the player does not have to keep Eileen from harm, but they do have to clear 80% of Henry's apartment of hauntings.
- 21 Sacraments. After Walter falls to the floor he lifts his arm up, calling out "Mom" before he goes motionless. Henry stares down at him, and then suddenly falls to his knees, holding his head in pain. He then stands up, as if possessed by Walter due to his reactions. We see Young Walter in the apartment as it was at the beginning of the game with blood and rust. He cuddles up to the couch saying, "I’m home, I won't let anyone get in the way... I'm gonna stay with you forever..." The radio turns on with a news bulletin announcing the deaths of Eileen, Henry, and others while adult Walter's body is motionless against a wall. This ending is considered the "worst". To obtain it the player does not have to keep Eileen from harm, nor do they have to clear 80% of Henry's apartment of hauntings.
Gameplay
Silent Hill 4: The Room was originally envisioned as a spinoff of the Silent Hill series, rather than a continuation of the main story, and possesses a substantially different gameplay style than the other games. The player is based on Henry Townshend's apartment, from which the player navigates through a first-person perspective and can access their only save point and reach the other levels of the game through mysterious holes formed in the walls. For the first half of the game the room will also heal the player. The second half of the game has the room become possessed by various hauntings which drain Henry's health.
In the main levels of the game the player uses the usual third person perspective of the Silent Hill series. Unlike other games the player only has a limited item inventory which can be managed by dumping unneeded items in a chest in Henry's room. Breakable melee weapons are also introduced in this game through a variety of golf clubs. One of the most significant changes is the introduction of the "ghost" monsters, the unkillable ghosts of Walter Sullivan's victims. The ghosts have the ability to hurt Henry with a damaging "aura" which can be nullified by the holy candle and saint medallions items. The same items can also exorcise the hauntings in Henry's apartment. Ghosts can also be knocked down for a long time with one of the two silver bullets and pinned permanently with a Sword of Obedience item.
In the second half of the game Henry is accompanied by his neighbor Eileen Galvin. Eileen cannot die while she is with Henry, although as she takes damage she succumbs to possession by Walter Sullivan. The player can also equip Eileen with a weapon to have her join Henry in combat or to defend herself . The damage Eileen takes in the game determines whether or not she dies in the final boss fight, directly affecting the ending achieved.
Reaction
Upon its release in 2004 Silent Hill 4: The Room attracted the attention of mainstream news outlets CNN, the BBC and The Times as well as the main gaming reviewer community.
The Xbox and PS2 versions of the game received an "impressive" 8.0 rating from IGN reviewer Douglass C. Perry.
PS2:
- IGN: 8.0,
- Gamespot: 7.9,
- 1Up.com: 7.0,
- Gametab: 76%,
- Gamerankings: 76% (based on 62 reviews),
- Metacritic: 76 of 100 (based on 54 reviews)
Xbox:
- IGN: 8.0,
- Gamespot: 7.9,
- Gamestats: 8.0,
- Gametab: 77%,
- Gamerankings: 74% (based on 45 reviews)
PC:
- IGN: 7.0,
- Gamespot: 7.6,
- 1Up.com: 7.0,
- Gametab: 75%,
- Gamerankings: 71% (based on 21 reviews)
- Metacritic: 67 of 100 (based 20 reviews)
Connections to other games
Silent Hill 4: The Room uses two minor, unseen, characters from previous installments as major characters in its plot. The antagonist of the game, Walter Sullivan, was first referenced in a newspaper scrap in Silent Hill 2 as having killed himself shortly after killing twins Billy and Mirian Locane. These two victims also appear in the form of the "twin victim" creature Henry encounters. The second reused character is investigative journalist and previous tenant of Room 302 Joseph Schreiber, who was first referenced in Silent Hill 3 with a magazine article he has written condemning the "Hope House" orphanage run by The Order which the game's protagonist, Heather can discover. It is implied that Frank Sunderland is the father of Silent Hill 2 's player character James Sunderland. As with such, Walter Sullivan's grave site is Visible in Silent Hill 2 in the graveyard later on in the game.
In Silent Hill 2 it appears to contain several foreshadowing’s of Silent Hill 4. At one point, James enters a bar with a cryptic message scrawled on the wall: "there was a HOLE here. It’s gone now." This could be a reference to the kinds of spontaneously appearing and vanishing "holes" Henry uses to travel between realms in Silent Hill 4.
When you look into the hole in your aparment (302) to the apartment Eileen lives in (303) you see a pink bunny doll who you'll also see Silent Hill 3.
A remix of the song "Your Rain" from that game's soundtrack was used on Konami's Dance Dance Revolution EXTREME.
Cast
- Eric Nocebo — Henry Townshend
- Anne Kunnecke — Eileen Galvin
- Robert Belgrade — Joseph Schreiber
- Dennis Falt — Walter Sullivan
- Lisa Ortiz — Cynthia Velasquez
- Clifford Rippel — Jasper Gein
- — Frank Sunderland
- — Andrew Desalvo
- — Richard Braintree
Music
The original 2-disc soundtrack for Silent Hill 4: The Room, composed by Akira Yamaoka, was released in Japan on June 17, 2004 and its catalogue number is LC1292-3.
Monsters
- Sniffer Dog
- Victims
- Hummer
- Wall Men
- Twin Victim 7/8
- Mushroom Stool
- Tremers
- Gum Head
- Wheelchairs
- Patient
- Bottoms
Bosses
Secrets
Nurse Eileen:
-You can get this secret costume the second time you play the game, but Eileen won't actually wear it until the third time through. To get it, beat the game and earn either the "Escape" or "Mother" ending, then start a new game from that file. At the end of the game, in the Outside Room 302 level, go to Eileen's apartment (Room 303) and pick up the Nurse Uniform from her living room chair. Keep that in your personal inventory as you battle the last boss, and once again, earn either the "Escape" or "Mother" ending. Save your game, and now when you load that file to start a new game, a new menu will appear after you choose your difficulty. Choose "Nurse," and Eileen will be wearing her new duds when you meet her in Hospital World
Sexy Cynthia:
-To get this secret you'll need to beat the game at least four times. It doesn't actually appear as an item, but Cynthia will be wearing her new costume when you meet her in the subway if you're fulfilled all the conditions. To see it, you need to start a new game using a file which you've earned all four endings. Additionally, you have to get Eileen's Nurse Uniform and select it when you start the new game.
Chainsaw:
-After completing the game, start a new game with the same file. Next to Jasper's car, in the well, you will find the chainsaw.
Submachine Gun
-If you can score a ranking of at least 90, you'll be able to find the unlimited ammo Submachine Gun the next time you start a game from that file. It's right where you'd expect it to be; in the gun-nut's room in South Ashfield Heights.
The surprise is, Henry can't use it... Only Eileen can! It's an amazing weapon as you'd imagine, but there is a catch; the recoil batters poor Eileen, making her a little more cursed each time she uses it.
One Weapon Mode
-If you can score a perfect game, a new challenge will await you. Start a new game off that save file, and press to the right when choosing your difficulty. The text will become purple. Make your selection, and you will be in One Weapon Mode. In this mode, you will be given the choice of all the game's weapons when you enter the Subway World, and can use only the once chosen weapon for the duration of the game (plus the Pistol, which you find as normal).
Full Weapon Mode
-Beat One Weapon Mode with a perfect score, and you will unlock Full Weapon Mode. Press to the left when you choose your difficulty, and the text will become green. Full weapon mode is like One Weapon Mode, except you can take as many of the weapons as you want! Additionally, you'll find a nearly limitless supply of Pistol Bullets in your laundry room and Nutrition Drinks in your refrigerator.
Rank Breakdown
After the ending credits, the game will assess your performance in a number of areas and award you a total ranking in stars. Each big star is worth 10 points, and each small one is worth 1, so if you have 7 big stars and 5 small ones, you've earned a score of 75. If a category is written in green text, it means you've earned the maximum possible points for that category.
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Difficulty: 20 Points
-You get a flat 10 points for playing on Normal Mode and a flat 20 for playing in Hard Mode. Easy Mode players get nothing.
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Play Time: 20 Points
-You'll earn the max score of 20 if you can beat the game in under two hours. You lose 1 point at 2:00:00 and another for each additional half hour you play.
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Number of Saves: 12 Points
-No freebies here! You lose 1 point per save, so to get the full twelve you can never use your notebook
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Number of Continues: 10 Points
-Once again, you'll need to play a perfect game to get the full 10. You lose one point each time you continue.
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Enemies Killed: 20 Points
-This is one of the easier ones to max out. You get 1 point for every 6 enemies killed, so you only need to kill 120 monsters to get the full 20 points.
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Scrapbook Notes: 20 Points
-There are 52 notes in the game, and you ear a point for roughly every 2.6 notes you find. The game won't round up, so you need to get all 52 notes to score a perfect 20.
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Which equals...102?
Yep, that is correct. 100 points (10 big stars) is the highest ranking you can actually earn, so you have two whole points worth of slack. That means you can still get the best score and unlock all the secrets if it takes you 2:27to beat the game and you have to continue once, or miss a memo.
Hauntings of Room 302
Bedroom Closet
--A boy's shadow appears in the bedroom closet. This particular haunting makes it hard to get out of bed safely when you wake up.
Telephone
--Walter just won't stop calling, making it difficult to return to your apartment.
Walter's Portrait
--The pictures on Henry's walls changed to portraits of Walter.
Living Room Wall Clock
--The hands won't stop spinning, and a whirring noise fills your apartment.
Television Set
--Your living room TV Blasts static, and won't turn off until the haunting is cleared.
Items Chest
--Screaming babies burst out of the wall above the Item Chest. This one only happens when the Shabby Doll is in the chest and will repeat as long as it's in there.
Wall Cracks
--Spreading cracks, like the kind ghosts make before they emerge, consume walls in your bedroom or living room.
Ghosts Emerging
--A ghost slowly emerges from the wall of your living room, bedroom, or even bathroom!
Front Door
--Blood drips from your peephole as someone pounds on the door. Take a look through the peephole before you clear this one.
Rattling Windows
--The living room windows shake noisily.
Living Room Chair
--You won't see anything when this one manifests, you'll just take damage when you approach it. As the candle burns, you'll see the haunting in all its grisly glory.
Kitchen Faucet
--Blood pours from your kitchen faucet.
Refrigerator
--The "meowing" is a giveaway...What is it with dead cats in refrigerators in this game!?
Slippers
--The slippers by your front door walk into your kitchen, leaving bloody footsteps in their wake.
