Summary
The monsters of theSilent Hillfranchise have long been revered for the subtleties of their design and the storytelling interwoven into them. What’s more, they’reabsolutely terrifyingand uniquely inventive. There is never a standardized design among them. Even the few that do reappear across the franchise are always altered to suit the story and characters that they represent.
Silent Hill 2was particularly praised for the disturbing and twisted appearances of the creatures that populated the town to represent the psyche of James Sunderland and company. They offer a mix of insinuations and obscured details, but each monster has its own distinct attributes and a silhouette that can be recognized through the fog. This is one of the areas where the remake has excelled. It keeps all the designs and even the placement of monsters faithful to the original, whilst also using advancements in technology to expand on elements of their appearance and movement style.
5Creeper
Something Is Bugging James
The Creeper is a small insectoid enemy found throughout the town and all locations of Silent Hill. When close, they make a noise like a squeaky wheel and will chase after James. They are theleast scaryand least interesting monsters in the game. However, this is no fault of the remake, as it was much the same in the original.
In a sense, this enemy has been largely replaced by the aesthetic effect of the harmless (but disturbing) swarms of cockroach-like bugs found in various locations. These cause no damage to James, but emphasize thedisgusting elementsfound in the game and cause the player to recoil and approach with apprehension. All in all, this replacement is a good move. It adapts the enemy least connected to the characters and story into something more visually interesting and thematically appropriate to the degradation of the environment and psyches of the characters.
4Lying Figure
A Being Wrapped In Agony
The first enemy the player encounters on their tour of Silent Hill, the Lying Figure, is a manifestation of feelings of confinement and sickness. These are conflated with repressed sexual desires, as seen in the uninhibited design within BDSM fashion. A lot was at stake in getting this monster right and recreating that initialfeeling of revulsionand intrigue, paramount for a first impression of what lies in store.
The appearance of the Lying Figure in the remake stays true to the original, but with extra details due to the much improved graphical capabilities of 2024. The elements of corsetry within its fastenings are more clear, as are its heeled feet. It still creates the impression of a living being trapped inside a tight rubber body bag. Whatever is inside is straining to escape — or, in lieu of that, inflicting the pain it is clearly trapped in back upon the world.
She’s Not Here To Help
The monster known as the Nursehas, alongside Pyramid Head, become the faceless face of theSilent Hillfranchise and one that makes an appearance in almost every game. The nurses of Silent Hill have gone through many iterations, from the original hunchbacked Puppet Nurses to the redesign that verges on more sexy than scary inSilent Hill: Homecoming.
The Bubblehead Nurse ofSilent Hill 2is the design that became a classic. It represents the horrifying effect of Mary’s illness and the pain of the decline in her and James’ relationship, visualized through the swollen, ever-twitching, head and gray pallor. It’s a terrifying convulsing creature, with croaking and whimpering signaling its proximity. Their cries of pain are eerily reminiscent of Maria. Their bursts of speed and sudden pauses compliment the new freedom of movement that James now has, making every instance of combat a tense bout of dodging, striking and hurried aiming before they can close the distance.
2Mannequin
A Stealthy Scarer
In the remake, this monster is true to the original in both appearance and traits. The Mannequins lie in wait in various posed postures, often hidden in plain sight until the flashlight moving across them brings them to life with a jolt. The stealth and jittery movement of this creature is well recreated, creating many spontaneous jump scares. It gets even more intense when they start scuttling along the walls like huge spiders, retreating up and into the dark when spotted.
These monsters are overtly non-human in design, representing the deeply buried secrets and distancedtruths within James. They retain both medical and sexual elements to their appearance, and let out feminine wails when struck. The Mannequin remains as uncomfortable an encounter as they ever were. While many of the creatures of the game symbolize subconscious sexism and violence against women, the Mannequin does a particularly good job at representing this through their traits and appearance.
1Mandarin
The Hanging Horror
Little more than a memorable cameo in the original game, the Mandarin has received a step-up in the importance given to its appearance within the remake. Named after the restrictive fleshy dress they are bound in, which is reminiscent of traditional Chinese clothing, the Mandarin dwarfs the other monsters in size and is extremely aggressive. It appears firstas a hallucination(if there is such a thing in Silent Hill) and then again in corporeal form past the “door that wakes in nightmares.”
While they are visually similar to their older counterparts, the way they act and are encountered in the remake has received the most significant redesign of all the enemies. The significance given to their appearance is used to great effect. Once again, despite a very short screen time compared to the other monsters James encounters, the Mandarin is one of the most intimidating enemies in the game. It keeps one of the most frightening sections of the original freshly terrifying for returning players.
