One of the features of the game is the ability to pick up countless objects and use them as weapons. As cool as it sounds in theory, it ends up being quite goofy in practice. Travis can use TV sets, large bottles, wrenches, toasters, tire irons, sledge hammers and the like as weapons but he can also carry them all at the same time. Seeing an enemy approach and then pulling a TV set out of your pocket to smash them is overly ludicrous and more than a bit out of place. It was funny in Leisure Suit Larry back in the 1980’s – remember pulling the giant drink out your pocket? But Silent Hill isn’t one for comedy.

The weapons also degrade after a few hits and you are then left scrambling through your inventory to pull another household item out of your pocket or use the tried and true method of a good old fashion fist beating. If an enemy happens to get too close, you have the option of grappling with them which starts an on-screen button sequence to stop their attack.

The visuals are nothing to write home about—even on the PlayStation 2. The previous games look just as good when compared to Origins. Of course being a port of the PSP version plays a large factor in that and some things have been given an upgrade from the smaller version but overall it is very sub par and not up to the standard of what gamers expect in this day and age. The blood soaked environments do help convey the creepiness that Silent Hill is known for and although it’s not all that much of a scary game per se, it does at times rank high on the chill meter and will send shivers up gamers’ spines.

All in all if you miss the quaint old town and feel like returning for old time’s sake then Origins mostly satisfies. The story, albeit a rather short one, will keep you guessing until the end as to what’s really going on and the action will keep you on the edge of your seat despite weird TV tosses; however newcomers to the series may want to introduce themselves to other titles in the series for their first visit and for a more appealing outing or better yet, just wait for Homecoming on the PS3 and Xbox 360 this fall.

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