Silent Hill: Homecoming -- Kicking My Ass And Loving It

I'm a huge Silent Hill fan. A very methodical Silent Hill fan. And I play Silent Hill in a very specific way. I kill everything. And I mean every last thing that can be killed in the game. Every last random enemy. And I do it with melee attacks. I almost never use firearms unless it's for a boss. I tend to end the game with ten health drinks and ten med kits. Playing through Silent Hill: Homecoming with this method has made for a new experience as the game's new combat engine has proved brutal. The game had been kicking my ass. It had me midway through the game with one health drink and one med kit and fearing that I might actually be wiped out and unable to proceed through the game. Every single encounter proved to be a massive struggle of life and death for one mistake and you could be done for. The combat proved far more intense than any other Silent Hill before it. The creatures in Homecoming are vicious and very capable in dealing out death. Not only that, but they're some of the coolest creatures in the series as far as concept and design are concerned. And for the most part the creatures are extremely well animated. The famous nurses of Silent Hill look the best they ever have while shuffling along better than they ever have before. The game's combat has a few new factors that added to this new experience. Being able to roll when not in a combat stance is one. The new camera and the environmental interaction added more to it. You had to be aware of your surroundings more. What kind of creature and how many there are plus what are your surroundings all added in to it. Almost any single creature can be taken out with relative ease in a wide open area. It's not so when there are more than one. And a single relatively harmless creature like a nurse can be exceedingly deadly if you're trapped in a corner or a small hallway with it. And holy crap if there are more than one. If you can't roll away, you'll have to dodge the attacks. And you'll need to be precise. You'll need to get the timing exact. If you miss on the first one you'll be hit and go into the hit animation while the nurse is swiping away again with the knife. She can effectively combo juggle you to death. Homecoming doubles up on the feeling of not wanting to go down that dark hallway. Because you're worried about what you might find there, and now you're also worried that it'll take you out. It's compounded further by the save points being few and far between. The game may sound like a bit of a struggle. And it is. But guess what? It feels great. It is survival horror after all. And Homecoming really makes you feel it. Really makes you earn it. I loved the sensation brought on by the combat. I do realize that the less dedicated will not. And that a great number of people who play the game will not likely finish it because they won't like being slapped around by the title. I wonder what that says about me...