"The fear of blood tends to create fear for the flesh..."

Ah, yes, Silent Hill. When they say that this game has violent and disturbing images, they ain't kiddin'. There are moments in this game that make Resident Evil look like a day at the park. However, fear is not the only emotion permeating this game. It also has a sense of sorrow and loss. That, combined with an extremely complex plot as well as some rather dificult puzzles, make this game a truly unique experience.

The Story
In this particular outing, you take on the role of writer Harry Mason, who is on his way to Silent Hill with his daughter, Cheryl. He swerves to miss a girl who suddenly appears on the road, and ends up crashing his Jeep. When he comes too, Cheryl is missing, the town is oddly deserted, and it's unseasonably cold. Not to mention that the quiet resort town is now shrouded in a nearly impenetrable fog. Your mission: Find your daughter and somehow make it out alive.

The Characters
Harry Mason:The character you control throughout the game. He is a very dedicated father, and basically goes through Hell in an attempt to find his daughter. He is also a widower, having lost his wife to disease.
Cheryl Mason:Harry's 7-year-old daughter.
Cybil Bennet:A young police officer from the next town over that was sent to investigate Silent Hill after communications with the town were cut off. She gives you your first weapon, a handgun.
Dahlia Gillespie:Ah, what would a town be without its resident nutcase? Dahlia is a very unbalanced individual, it seems, that you meet around town. She's constantly babbling about how the town is being "devoured by darkness," and pops up occasionally to give you cryptic advice. However, there is much more to this strange woman than meets the eye...
Michal Kaufmann: The director of the Alchemilla Hospital, which is where you meet him for the first time. He is not a terribly nice guy. He also seems to know more about what's going on with the town than he lets on.
Lisa Garland:A young nurse that you meet in the nightmare version of the hospital. She has no idea how she got there, or what's happening with the town. She's rather clingy, but declines Harry's offer to come with him, as she feels something is making her stay in the hospital.
Alessa:A mysterious girl who pops up every now and then.

Weapons
Handgun:Cybil will give you this weapon at the beginning in the cafe. You can often find plenty of ammo for it. Not recommended for boss fights.
Kitchen knife:This is a pretty pathetic weapon. It's virtually useless. Don't use it unless you absolutely have to. You can find it on the counter in the cafe.
Steel pipe:You can find this in the alley you followed Cheryl into at the very beginning. It's actually pretty useful against some of the enemies in the beginning, like the demon children.
Shotgun:This...is my BOOMSTICK!!! This very handy weapon can be found in one of the bathrooms on the second floor of the alternate school. I would reccommend saving it for boss fights, as ammo for it is rather scarce.
Hammer:This really looks more like a pick axe. It can be found in the basement of the alternate hospital, next to the generator. It's an extremely handy weapon, as it can cause hefty ammounts of damage with no ammo.
Axe:This can be found hanging on the wall in the "other church" in the basement of the antique shop. It has a very short range, and is rather difficult to handle.
Hunting rifle:This gun has a very long range and causes the most damage out of all the weapons. However, since ammo is very scarce, I'd reccommend saving it for the last boss fight. Trust me, you'll need it.

The Monsters
Knowing what to expect is good. In the interests of keeping this as spoiler-free as possible, I won't be listing any of the bosses.
Demon Children:These look like freaky little kids, so it's not just a clever name. They attack by grabbing onto Harry's legs or by slashing at him with their knives. The steel pipe is the best way to deal with them. These are found in both the normal and alternate schools. Note: For some reason, these apparently don't appear in the European version of the game, I don't think. If I'm wrong, please e-mail me.
Invisible Demon Children:These only appear at the last level, which is a good thing. They're incredibly hard to see, but otherwise have the same strengths and weaknesses as the visible ones.
Ghost Children:These are completely harmless. They just set your radio off and make squeaking noises to scare the hell outta you. They're actually kinda cute. You can find these in the school (both versions) as well as the amusement park.
Cockroaches:These gian insects can be found in the school, sewers, and the basement of the hospital. They're more of a nuisance than a threat, but they often attack in groups. One shot'll usually take care of them, so just pick them off with your handgun.
Demon Dogs:These ain't man's best friend. They often take leaps at Harry, and attack in groups of 2 or 3. The best way to deal with them is with the handgun.
Winged Demon:These look a lot like deranged buzzards. They will often swoop down on Harry and try to take a chunk out of his scalp. The best weapon to use against them is the handgun, but it's usually better to just run from these.
Demon Nurses:These are found in the hospital. Surprised you, didn't I? They're basically nurses with weird bumps sticking out of their backs. They attack by shambling up to Harry and slash at him with knives. The best weapon for them is the shotgun, but the hammer also works quite well if you want to conserve ammo.
Demon Doctors:Pretty much the same as the nurses, but a little tougher. Take them out the same way.
Ape Demons:These hop around and try to pin Harry to the ground while biting him. They can be found on the streets of both versions of Silent Hill, as can the dogs and winged demons. It's best to use the shotgun on these.
Mutant Turtles:These are only found in the sewers. They will often hang from the ceiling and try to attack Harry from above, though they also often drop down. The best weapon for these is also the shotgun.
Sewer Bears:These are only found in the alternate sewer. They look a lot like the demon kids from earlier, only with no discernable head and some wicked looking claws. They're a little tougher than the demon kids, but not much. The shotgun works best.

Tips
Conserve ammo. There are a few weapons in the game that can dole out significant damage that don't need ammo, such as the hammer.

Only fight if you have no other options. Not only does this save ammo, but it also cuts down significantly on the damage Harry receives.

Health drinks, first aid kits, and ampuoles are your FRIENDS. Use them sparingly (especially the ampuoles).

The Walkthrough

Interesting Things

-A poster in the cafe near the pinball machine reads "Study Dammit!" This is a reference to a two-page foldout that Stephen King designed while he was a student at the University of Maine for the school newspaper. It featured the author leveling a shotgun at the reader with a psychotic look on his face.
-One of the bonus weapons is a chainsaw. This may or may not be a reference to the Evil Dead films, in which the protagonist's main weapon is a chainsaw. Harry even bears a slight resembelence to Ash. (Hail to the King, baby!)
-Signs in the school say things like "Who are you?", "Why?", and "Warning: Hell is coming."
-The street names in Silent Hill are all the names of famous horror/sci-fi authors.
1) Bachman Rd.-Richard Bachman is the pseudonym of Stephen King. It's under this name that he wrote "The Regulators."
2) Levin St.-Named for Ira Levin, the author of "Rosemary's Baby."
3) Bloch St.-Named for Robert Bloch, who wrote "Psycho."
4) Bradbury St.-Named for Ray Bradbury, author of "Something Wicked This Way Comes."
5) Midwitch St.-Rather than being named for an author, this street is named for a book entitled "The Midwitch Cuckoos," upon which "The Village of the Damned" was based.
6) Ellroy St.-Named for Jack Ellroy, who wrote "The Black Dahlia." (Hmmm....)
7) Finney St.-Named for Jack Finney, author of "Time and Again."
8) Crichton St.-Named for Michael Crichton, author of "Sphere" and "Jurassic Park."
9) Koontz St.-Named for Dean Koontz, author of "Phantoms."
10) Sagan St.-Named for Carl Sagan, author of "Contact."
11) Simmons St.-Dan Simmons, who wrote "Song of Kali."
12) Stanford St.-John Stanford, who wrote the "Prey" series.
-The list of teachers in the reception area of the school feature the names of the band members of Sonic Youth.

Ending Requirements

1. Bad ending:
Fail to save Kauffman and kill Cybil during that boss fight. In this ending, the last boss is the Child Goddess, and ends with Harry dead in his Jeep. Depressing, huh?

2. Bad+ ending:
Save Cybil by using the red liquid from the hospital, but fail to save Kauffman. Same boss, but instead ends with Cybil slapping Harry in an attempt to get him to escape with her.

3. Good ending:
Save Kauffman but fail to save Cybil. In this ending, you get to fight Samael himself! After the battle, Harry is handed a baby and escapes the town. Kauffman, however, isn't so lucky and ends up being dragged somewhere unpleasant by the mutated Lisa.

4. Good+ ending:
Save both Kauffman and Cybil. Pretty much exactly the same as the Good ending, but this time Harry and Cybil escape together.

5. UFO ending:
This is the comic relief ending. To acheive this, you must get the Channeling Stone in a replay game and use it in the following locations:
1) Roof of the Nightmare school
2) Outside the Nightmare hospital
3) In the parking lot of Norman's Motel
4) In the boat on the way to the lighthouse
5) The roof of the lighthouse
In this ending, aliens land on the roof of the lighthouse, zap Harry, and take him away. It's very amusing. In a Next Fear game after this ending, you start with the Hyper Blaster in your inventory.