Hey everyone, Mazer here and today we’re going to be talking about what we’re playing. It’s been a while since our last blog post for which I apologize. We’re currently working on several projects – including a board game, our live streams, and even some cross-stitching. It can be difficult balancing everything on top of updating out blog. But we’re trying. I promise you.

So. What is today’s post about? Well let me tell you! As of the last week of September, we’ve been doing our annual Horror Game Marathon! We started off strong with our usual Silent Hill 2 and 3 – gaining the Dog Ending and the Heather Beam unlockable respectively. Afterwards, we tried something new with the voice-controlled Playstation 2 game LifeLine.

That was an experience…

It was a combination of things that made Lifeline such a pain but we persevered and added the game to our Beaten collection!

We washed the taste of LifeLine out of our mouths with a bit of Mortuary’s Assistant. This particular game proved to be more than meets the eye. I had originally thought it was nothing more than a “jump-scare simulator”; a game that strictly focuses on providing jump scares than an actual storyline. I was wrong. It has a detailed story that you uncover across multiple playthroughs. It was a great game and I loved every second of it.

Afterwards we touched upon the horror, stalker game Clock Tower 3. After playing the fourth game in the franchise, The Haunting Grounds, I wanted to explore the other ones in the franchise. Let me tell you, Clock Tower 3 was a wonderful surprise. Not too difficult – we beat it in 3 session – with a killer sound track, great enemy designs, and an enjoyable storyline. The final boss was, admittedly, a pain in the butt, but overall the game was fantastic.

Next on the list was a game voted upon by our Discord Chat; that being the Playstation 1 classic, Dino Crisis. Now, I won’t lie. I was a bit anxious when it was chosen. I have nothing against playing older games – hell, most my channel is me streaming them. It’s just that some games, especially old survival horror games, can be more frustrating than fun. This goes double when you’re trying to stream them.

Luckily, Dino Crisis proved to be an entertaining experience. The game was no where near as stiff as its Resident Evil counterpart and it balanced fighting and running away expertly. I enjoyed the game so much that I feel like adding it to our yearly rotation alongside Silent Hill 2 and 3 – at least until we unlock the other two endings.

What We’re Currently Playing

With Dino Crisis added to the Beaten List, we’ve moved on to another game in my backlog. Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.

Now, I will admit that while I profess my love for the Silent Hill franchise, I’ve only played 2 of the several games released. I’ve played the first half of Silent Hill 4: The Room but lost interest when I realized the second half of the game would consist of repeated levels and escort missions. I have yet to play the original game (Maybe we’ll fix that next year) or the games after 4.

Ergo, I’ve taken the advice of one of my followers and started Silent Hill: Shattered Memories for the Wii. A different style of Silent Hill game, this is an artistic retelling of the first game. We follow Harry Mason as he looks for his daughter Cheryl Mason within the cursed town of Silent Hill. Hit by a frigid blizzard, we must guide Harry through several key locations as he searches for Cherly.

We are three chapters deep and as of right now, I’m loving it. the icy environment is a stark contrast to Silent Hill 2’s wet environments or Silent Hill 3’s hot and rusty landscapes. But what really sets Shattered Memories apart is the combat and its psychological mechanics.

In Shattered Memories you are unable to fight against the various creatures you come across in the Dark World. Instead, you must run through glacial environments while avoiding skinless beasts. You can sneak by them – either by turning off your flashlight and moving quietly or ducking inside various hiding spots. Or you can do what I do – run like a bat out of hell as quickly as I can.

There are ways to defend yourself during these events. You could either knock items over to slow the demons down or use road flares to scare them away. Those are the methods that I usually use when escaping the entities.

The other mechanic – the psychological one – alters the game’s cutscenes, environments, and even Harry’s interactions with other characters based on how you answer questions or interact with your psychologist. You see, throughout the game you flash forward to an interview with your therapist. He asks you several different questions and even hands you paperwork to fill out. How you respond greatly effects the game. I am curious to see how subsequential playthroughs will turn out when we choose different answers.

Hopefully, we’ll find time to review this game properly. Until then, we’ll be continuing our adventure in the chilly wonderland that is Silent Hill Shattered Memories!

I hope to post again shortly! I am Mazer, please have a great day and a better tomorrow, and I’ll see you next time!