Boss Fight Books' Silent Hill 2 Review

In Our Restless Dreams, We Can’t Help But Think About Silent Hill 2

Review of Boss Fight Books’ Silent Hill 2 by Mike Drucker

Hello! Welcome to my first book review on my personal blog. I’ve had the pleasure of being able to receive an early copy of Silent Hill 2 by Mike Drucker. Published by Boss Fight Books, the book is an analysis of the weird and wonderful world of Silent Hill and the deep sorrow that we endure as James Sunderland in Silent Hill 2. There are chapters for each character we encounter in the game and also chapters about marketing for the game and the multiple endings that you can get. Mike Drucker speaks passionately and intelligently about this incredible game, a game that I absolutely adore and one that truly stands the test of time for being a game that’s story is just as important, if not more important, than its gameplay. As Mike Drucker says himself: “If anything, the game feels more at home today than it did in 2001”, inspiring games such as Layers of Fear where less is sometimes more.

As such a big fan of the game and as someone who has spent many hours trying to process what exactly is going on in this game, the chance to read someone’s else’s thoughts on such a complex and impactful experience was something I couldn’t miss. So, thanks to Boss Fight Books for letting me read this and thanks Mike Drucker for producing something brilliant that helped me get my thoughts together too. Everyone has their own experiences and takeaways from Silent Hill 2. It’s such a deeply complex and purposely ambiguous game that leaves so much open to interpretation. Thankfully, the game is fairly fresh in my mind as I’ve recently replayed it so I have a lot of my own ideas still swirling around waiting to be supported or opposed. This book’s arrival couldn’t have timed it any better.

Let’s go explore Drucker’s thoughts of this masterpiece, shall we?

What I love most about Drucker’s Silent Hill 2 is that I feel content after reading it. I’ve struggled to process all my theories and thoughts into something meaningful without writing it down and Drucker has done it all for me in a brilliantly funny and intelligent style. I have a tendency to analyse everything, looking for hidden meanings and diving into the psyche of characters. I think it’s just the Literature student nerd in me.

That being said, Silent Hill 2 wants you to think and analyse. As Drucker says himself, “its self-contained ambiguity gives us space to think, to imagine, to discuss” and that’s one of the reasons why I love the game and subsequently this book. I feel content because I’m glad I wasn’t alone in my thoughts. Drucker has put many of my similar thoughts into a coherent and funnily written piece. It feels like a stream of consciousness but written as a critical analysis. It shows a clear understanding of the source material and a deep appreciation for the incredible world that Konami created.

Drucker’s analysis is brilliant at capturing specific scenes and their deeper intentions. Of course, in a game like Silent Hill 2 most of it is open to interpretation. Its intentionally ambiguous but in specific cases such as the scene with Angela on the staircase Drucker does a fantastic job of breaking down the language and the heart-breaking trauma that Angela is enduring. He highlights the selfishness of James but also the selfishness of the player. We play as James therefore we are James and we disregard Angela’s abuse. She realises we aren’t there to help her just like everyone else she meets. Her ascent up the fiery staircase is a wonderful piece of symbolism in my eyes. Her story ends as she rises from the hellish pit of abuse she’s endured and she climbs the stairs towards her freedom. Her acceptance means she can finally rise in peace.

As much as I love the Angela chapter, the section about Maria is definitely my favourite part of Drucker’s Silent Hill 2. This is both due to content and personal experience of the game. The aspect of the game I’d never truly had a grip of was the sections with Maria. Is she Mary? Is she a twin? Is she a spirit? A punishment? A Figment of James’s sexual desires manifesting in the world? I’ve believed all of these at one point or another and Drucker’s chapter about this topic helped me focus on the scenes we share with her (as well as those in the DLC) and see them from a different perspective. Drucker’s eloquently written self-discussion helped me get my head around who or what Maria is or could be more than I could do on my own. The parts where she dies and then reappears especially used to throw me and I’m glad that this was touched upon so expertly in this book.

I would say that there are a few opinions shared by Drucker that I don’t agree with but that is of course not a criticism it’s just a different view on things. For example, I personally don’t think that the radio static makes the game spookier, I found it to have the adverse effect. If I know there’s an enemy I can’t see, I immediately play safer, meaning nothing can catch me off guard. If I don’t have that warning then perhaps I’m less cautious and that sneaky nurse or straightjacket gives me a fright. That’s just me though and I fully understand his perspective on the matter, especially with Silent Hill 2 being less of a jump-scare type horror game and more about dread.

I also disagree with a couple of his comparisons, for example saying that James is completely unlike Joel from The Last of Us. I think Joel is incredibly normal and not at all a “grizzled and distant” character. Instead, he’s just a survivor that’s a product of the world he’s living in. If anything, that’s more like James. James is reflecting the world around him (which Drucker says himself when he says “he’s so disconnected from the utter strangeness of the town that he ironically fits right in”. Silent Hill is a grey, barren and empty place and James Sunderland is “boring” and has a “flat demeanour”. Joel is rough because so is the world, he too reflects the world he’s in. I don’t think he’s tough for the sake of being tough.

Despite my disagreements though his arguments are made very well. I can see Drucker’s point of view perfectly and he’s always backing up his thoughts with structured and well-made points. He’s definitely going to changing some opinions and he’s certainly opened my eyes to some more details that I’d never considered myself. I immediately want to jump back into the game with some of these new ideas prominent in my head to see how much it impacts my experience.

One such example of Drucker’s excellent descriptions and analysis giving me new light on the game is with the multiple endings. I personally dislike games with multiple endings, especially when we are being told a story. Games like those made by Telltale Games are fine because you’re making explicit difficult choices all the way though. Whereas linear games that lead you down a specific set of goals just to have different endings infuriate me. If I’m being told a story, I want to be told all of it. I want no say in it at all.

In Silent Hill 2 I’ve always felt this way as well but Drucker has convinced me that the multiple endings are a good thing. The fact that the game could potentially be giving you a cheeky psychology examination based on your subconscious choices and giving you the ending to suit that is nothing short of genius. The only counter point I’d like to make though is that games have taught us to act in a certain way, so most people will get the same ending anyway without even knowing there’s multiple endings unless they check a guide. By that time though it’s all been ruined for you so it still has its issues.

Drucker calls upon some other pieces of analytical content about video games and Silent Hill 2 in particular and each time it’s used beautifully. I actually want to track down these other pieces and read those too. He chooses some wonderful comments from critical sources about the intricacies of games and all the bits that aren’t explicitly told to us but instead are left for us to infer. I may not have exactly learned a lot about Silent Hill 2 the game and its story but I’ve learned a lot about all the components used to make it and sell it. It’s a really informative read and those bits he calls upon from other sources are very well used.

Despite using lots of critiques and pulling things from other analyses, Drucker maintains an informal and approachable style which will be welcomed by a wider readership. It sounds less academic and patronising and sounds more like someone who wants to chat with you about his favourite game. I definitely want to sit down with him and have a chat after this. This isn’t a textbook, it’s entertaining and a friendly discussion, so don’t be put off by it being an analysis. There’s something for everyone here.

Drucker’s Silent Hill 2 is a book that I didn’t know I needed but I’m so glad it’s here. If you have any strong opinion on the game you should definitely read this book. It’s funny, interesting and enlightening, shedding light on a lot of things I, a big fan, wasn’t aware of. Thanks for helping me get my head on straight with the madness of this game. There was a hole here, where a book about Silent Hill 2 was needed. It’s gone now.