The highly anticipated Silent Hill 2 remake was released just two days ago and fans have already started dropping mods. Those of you familiar with the 2001 classic know that fog is a huge factor in the game's terrifying ambience but now thanks to a nifty mod you can explore Silent Hill in all its creepy detail without its signature foggy cloak.
While the fog's 'fear of the unknown' effect undoubtedly adds to the game's tension, seeing the town sans fog allows you to appreciate the remake's stunning detail. Made in Unreal Engine 5, the HD world-building is a far cry from the original game's clunky PS2 graphics, and quite honestly it deserves some appreciation.
Without The Fog from r/silenthill
The Silent Hill 2 HD Collection available from Nexus Mods aims to make the remake " more faithful to the HD collection of the original release by eradicating most of the fog from the game". While I'd argue that you don't get the full Silent Hill experience without the fog, the mod is a great way for fans to immerse themselves in the town and explore the remake's crisp detail.
Some fans weren't so excited by the mod, with many arguing that it defeated the essence of the original game. "This is a mod for PC that should not exist. This completely destroys the immersion of the game. This is blasphemy!" one impassioned X user tweeted. "They can't just play it and enjoy it as intended. Once again, they prove they don't deserve games. This is digital vandalism to art," another chimed in.
Silent Hill 2 without fog. Leave it to PCMR to fuck up this game too. They can't just play it and enjoy it as intended. Once again, they prove they don't deserve games. This is digital vandalism to art. pic.twitter.com/9SNqtCQip0October 9, 2024
This is how Silent Hill 2 looks without the fog. This is a mod for PC that should not exist. This completely destroys the immersion of the game. This is blasphemy! pic.twitter.com/yJ8IQibq3QOctober 9, 2024
i remember back when they remastered silent hill on the PS3 and everyone lost their shit becuase there was no fog, the fog was a tech cover up at the time and as they could render without it they thought it was fine, we fought to keep the fog and now were modding it out, the hell https://t.co/3LZ9qWL11YOctober 9, 2024
While I tend to agree with most criticism (although perhaps not so strongly), we have to remember it's just a mod – you don't need to install it if you're a fog purist such as myself. We were lucky enough to get early access to the remake, so check out our hands-on with the Silent Hill 2 Remake to see our initial thoughts (spoiler alert, we were very impressed). For more game design, check out the new Unreal Engine 5 software that allows for lightning-fast creation of digital characters.
