ifirit

I suppose nobody made a response because people really aren't paying attention to this thread anymore. It seems that every other post is made by myself. Well, anyway, most people already know about the "Revenge Ending" in SH3. (Any Silent Hill FAQ can tell you that. Besides, images from that ending were already posted in this topic.) However, the "Princess Heart" outfit is not required to obtain this ending, though it helps. You only need the Heather Beam in order to obtain the "Revenge Ending," which is obtained after killing 333 monsters, cummulatively. The Princess Heart outfit just changes the Heather Beam into the Sexy Beam, which is a much more useful from of the Heather Beam, and keeps your stamina from depleting as quickly. If you're looking for secrets in the games, you might want to try visiting Nursery Cryme. Or if you're just looking for complete walkthroughs and strategy guides, try Silent Hill Heaven. For other types of fun, interesting SH links, look through this topic (especially the last few pages.) As far as the other members on the forum, I'm not sure exactly why they chose the avatars and signatures that they have, but it is obvious that they like things like that. Besides, do you know how many times CPH has been asked about the name thing? It doesn't have anything to do with plush dolls. (And don't anybody start up that rumor again about the Silent Hill 2 plush dolls that were on sale on E-bay.) Also, there is something that has been bothering me for quite some time now about FAQs on the "Underwear Code." Most people will write that after entering the code, Heather will make a sigh to confirm it. It makes me so mad, because that is obviously not Heather's, but Maria's voice. It is the exact same sound clip that comes at the end of the "Dog Ending" in SH2. How could people get that so wrong?! It just plain pisses me off.

I was getting bored, so I decided to post my theories about Silent Hill 4: The Room. I've looked at almost all the material released so far (official and unofficial) and I have an idea about what is going on. The are possible spoilers, so be warned. Although, nothing here is conclusive. Silent Hill 4 Spoilers Henry's Predicament: From the beginning, we learn that Henry finds his apartment locked and barricaded in. A message on the door says, "Don't Go Out!" It appears that someone, even Henry himself, has locked himself in to prevent Henry from going outside. Or, it is possible that it was to prevent something from coming in. I began to suspect that Henry was involved in something terrible when I learned the name of the "ghost" creatures that were making their way into Henry's apartment. The creatures are called "Victims." The name itself didn't really clarify anything for me, until I found out that there were different types of "victims." Each type of monster had a different number associated with it. In addition to that, on the official website, sh2004.com, there are items placed in each of the different sections of the site. These items were personal belongings to each of the "victims" and have descriptions and information on the people murdered. These things all pointed to signs of a serial killer. But what did that have to do with Henry? Henry and the Serial Killer: I considered two possibilities: 1) Henry was a target for this serial killer, but had gotten away for him/her; 2) Henry himself was the killer and is trying to protect himself by forgetting everything. I thought about the first possibility when I saw the full trailer at E3, which showed a very brief struggle between Henry and something else (it was cut off by the edge of the screen) in his apartment from the street view. Just the general tone of the game makes you feel as if you're being hunted down by something dark. The part where we look through the peep-hole and see a monster coming towards us is enough to see that. But, if this were true and only so would make the story rather bland. So, I considered the possibility that Henry murdered those people and is either feeling regret and remorse for his actions, or is being persued by the actual ghosts of the people he murdered. Two pieces that clued me to this were the news report of the murders near Silent Hill and the ambulance-radio conversation about the transportation of the young woman to the hospital (presumably St. Jerome's). According to news report, six people were killed outside of Ashfield in the forest. In the radio conversation, we learn that the victims apparently had numbers carved into them. Also, for those who were perceptive, you'd remember that the man in the Superintendent's Office also has something carved into his forehead. From the Konami website, we see that the victims are numbered in order of death/appearance. If Konami wants to go through all the trouble of dropping these little hints, wouldn't you think they'd be tied together? I think Konami wants you to really look at the "victims" in order to say these are people you killed. It is a pattern in serial killers to not remember the names or identities of their victims, so that they can remain disjointed from their acts. Henry doesn't remember why his apartment is locked, the phones cut off and the windows shut-tight. As far as we can tell, Henry doesn't know what is going on, or doesn't really want to. Therefore, it is possible that Henry might be a serial killer, who has disjointed himself from his crimes, but the paranormal world of Silent Hill is drawing it out. Tunnels of the Sun: The idea of the tunnels that teleport you to different parts of Silent Hill is not a new idea to the series. We've seen it in each game under the premise of "Nowhere." Nowhere is a place where the truth is revealed and exists to draw out the remaining questions left unanswered. A tunnel appears in Henry's apartment to achieve the same goal. In previous games, the natural progression has been to wander Silent Hill to uncover some sort of truth, only to wind up in "Nowhere." Here the progression is backwards. Because of Henry's limitations, he cannot go to Silent Hill, so Silent Hill comes to him in the form of Nowhere. This happens after his nightmare of being in the Alternate universe within his apartment. I know it's just a technicality, but Nowhere, which normally appears in it's alternate form in the previous games, appears as Henry's normal home. But remember, most memories in Nowhere appear as a reflection of the person's mind. Seeming to have coped with his actions, Henry will see his home as normal, but with a few "alterations." The normal progression of Silent Hill has been that of ignorance to confusion to realization in the form of the different Silent Hills: Misty, Alternate and Nowhere. However, as I said before, this progress appears backwards in Silent Hill 4, starting out in Nowhere to wind up in normal world. [/spoilers] These ideas may seem to have little support and are somewhat unfounded, but again these are only theories; the real game maybe completely different from my ramblings. So, what are your thoughts on the subject? EDIT: Hot off the presses, a new "Making of Silent Hill 4" video (link no longer available) has been released by Konami. (Again, only available in Japanese.) This one talks a little bit about the two-disk soundtrack included in the special release version of SH4. From watching the video, I've been convinced to try and get my hands on the special bonus disk with the special stories told by Ichiryusai Teisui. Maybe it'll do the same for you, who knows?

Silent Hill 4 Update: As you may know, Silent Hill 4: The Room ships in Japan next week (June 14, 2004). Anyone plan on importing it then? The special edition version (available in Japan only, for now) will include a special two-disk soundtrack featuring the music from the game and a special "ghost-story" as read by Ichiryusai Teisui (one of Japan's "living national treasures), which was written by Akira Yamaoka. Also, Konami has released an official music video for Silent Hill 4: The Room featuring the song "Tender Sugar." (Please note that you will need an LZH decompressor to extract the file.) The song is performed by Melissa Williamson who also sung "You're Not Here," "Letter From the Lost Days," and "I Want Love" (both versions) from SH3. I'm currently hosting a temporary link to the mp3 of the music itself. You can find it here. (Please note that this is an Angelfire site and bandwidth can easily be consumed. So, if the files are unavailable, please try again later.) **Major Silent Hill 4 Spoiler Warning**: Konami has also released another "Making of" video with an interview with Akira Yamaoka. There are also samples of new music and some in-game dialogue. This is the third video released by Konami so far. (Please note that the video is in Japanese, however, sections are in English.) For those of you who are looking for more in-game images and videos of SH4, I've found a video containing said information. It contains extended scenes from the introduction and dialogue with Cynthia Vasequez and Eileen Galvin. There is also some familiar stuff as well.[/spoilers] I also found a fun little (japanese) website with some fan-fic drawings of the SH characters in anime form. There are also apparently some comics as well. It's not really anything too impressive, but I really enjoyed the drawings with all three leads, especially this one. Well, that should be enough for right now. Have fun. EDIT: I forgot to include the lyrics to "Tender Sugar." So, here they are: How long? How far? Not ripped away, took my body now. Was it body or soul? The Darkness fades, fades to the light. Disappearing now, disappears from the night. And all these ages I've wandered as a child. The morning always came, it came too late. What made my mind forget, forget to hide? Could the nightmare be awake? I don't know. In or out, up or down, never know, it's an illusion. 'Round and 'round, on and on, everyday spins my confusion. Not again, not again, not again. This dream, I can't awake. What is real, what is real, what is real? It's getting hard for me to take. What I need, what I need, what I need, A little something I rely. And the way sugar gently hides me. (Oh, the way sugar saves me. It's the room that confines me, confines me. Sweet sugar.) Yesterday, back and forth. Broken door no longer opens. Breaking down, need it now. Love is short, he always owes me. Not again, not again, not again. This dream I can't awake. What is real, what is real, what is real? It's getting hard for me to take. What I need, what I need, what I need, a little something I delight. And the white sugar gentle hides me. Oh, the sweet sugar saves me. It's the room that confines me.

Testing 1,3,5. EDIT: Err... Maybe later.

Good news, everyone! Silent Hill Media is back on-line. So, for those junkies who are looking for any and all audio files from the Silent Hill Series, this is the place for you. It even has some rare and hard to find files as well. http://www.silenthillmedia.tk/ (Link no longer available) On another note, for those people who have SH3 on the PC, here's a fun little program you can use to change Heather's skin. It basically exploits the T-shirt programming put in by Team Silent. Right now my favorite skin is the Memory of Alessa (link no longer available) skin. According to solidsnake313, the designer/hacker, he should have the code soon to alter the physical structure of Heather herself, allowing you to play as other characters from the game, or make your own. Eccles can soon say that Cybil Bennet is in SH3. I also challenge anyone out there to make a ReMix of Room of Angel or any other SH4 track before the official release on June 17th. You can find mp3's of the track on the last two pages. Bet you can't beat me to it!

Sounds like we have another member of the Silent Hill 2 school. Too bad his jokes aren't funny.

In case anybody wants to get ready for Silent Hill 4: The Room, I found a fun, little flash puzzle of the same nature. It's called Crimson Room. It took me about an hour to get out the first time, but a minute or two once I figured everything out. Just something to tie you over. Have fun.

Rumor Control: One of the details surrounding the movie is that it is rumored to be released by the end of the year. I don't have any confirmation on this, nor anything new as of yet. Konami has kept such a tight lid on this project since it's conception that it will take a while to dig anything up, unless there is an official press release. Back to the theories. Part III. Silent Hill 1 & 3 Spoilers I was just looking around at some stuff from SH3 and for some reason I had this explanation for the why the world is as such outside of Silent Hill. Since Heather, Cheryl and Alessa are all the same person now, why is it that people have not looked at the characteristics of one and applied it to the others? Heather has the same fears, aspirations, hopes and dreams as both Cheryl and Alessa. So, when a situation that occurs similarly to the first game, why shouldn't she react the same way? Alessa created the Misty Silent Hill to escape from Dahlia who was trying to abuse her power. She used monsters to stop those who would persue her; she created puzzles and locks to prevent those people from moving forward. At the same time, she was trying to prevent Dahlia and her pawn from finding her, though she didn't have complete control of her powers. This is where Lisa and the Alternate Silent Hill came from. The Alternate universe created when Samael/Incubus was excited or threatened. It was a last-ditch effort to keep others at bay. Cheryl had a deep love of her adopted father and tried to share that love with Alessa once they were together. Out of this shared experience came Lisa, but after her creation, her actions were not as easily controlled. From Heather's experiences, we learn that she wanted nothing more than to be with her family (as small as it was). I explain this first as a way of showing the similarities between Heather and her predicessors. Though throughout the latter part of the game, we are continually told that Heather is Alessa and that she has some greater role to fill, but Heather does not identify with her as much because of her experiences. We learn of the person she identifies with from the Normal Ending. Anyway, back to the point. Heather reacted the same way to being approached by "strangers" as she did in the first game. But first, a little more back story. From the notebook we find in the amusement park, we learn that Harry killed a person who was trying to invade his home, when Heather was 12. Douglas comments that it is just an "occult freak." Regardless, of whether or not it was a member of the "Hope House" cult, it rattled the memories that Alessa had about the search for her. Though it didn't explain why Harry choose to move away from that place. It may have been a combination of trying to evade further followers and Heather's reaction to a past, similar experience. What is the reaction that she has? It is very possible that the reaction is recreating the Misty Silent Hill. I am basing my entire theory on this claim. The reasoning for this is from the reaction that Heather has to Douglas' initial questioning. Heather runs away, but at the same time, the power within her is helping her run away as well. The power is changing the world subconciously from Heather's mind. Similar creatures that appeared in Silent Hill are appearing in her town, her home. The only difference now is that Heather is caught in the middle. The monsters can affect her and kill her. So as a countermeasure, Vatiel may have been summoned to protect Heather or to watch over her as she tries to run away. (It also dongs on me now that her goal in the game was stated in the manual.) So, it appears that Heather is being rather self-destructive throughout the entire game. She has brought this world upon herself because she was scared to talk to a stranger. However, Heather does not open up the Alternate universe on herself. We know that this is done so by Claudia. Claudia saw that the Misty universe was opened up and hoped that the Holy Mother had been awakened. However, when she met Heather and realized that her "true self" was still dormant, she pulled open the gate to the Alternate dimension. However, this too could also explain why Vatiel is summoned, so I'll have to leave him open-ended for now. Anyway, Claudia did this so it would cause Heather to remember the pain and suffering brought upon herself and reveal the memories of Alessa. Well, it worked, but Claudia did not expect Alessa to have changed over the years. Alessa was absorbed into Heather's being. If Claudia had known that in the beginning, would she still have tried to open paradise? My thoughts are probably, since I stated before that Claudia's motivation stemmed from a deeply rooted psychosis: her father. There is so much more that I could get into now that I've found some of the deeper meaning in the game. Everything is intertwined and connected together in SH3, it could take a while to straighten it all out.

Silent Hill 3 & 4 Spoilers Thanks SZ for reviving the topic. Sorry, I haven't gotten around to posting anything. Anyway, for those just tuning in, I wanted to revive this discussion because I uncovered some new info from Team Silent regarding the relevence of the Tarot cards to the games in Silent Hill. So, as it goes, we were drawing references and meanings from the cards found in Silent Hill 3 as a means of looking deeper into the connections with SH2 and the paired story from 1 & 3. There were questions regarding the similarities between the Hanged Man card and the visual imagery of hanging used in SH2. The style really set the tone for the darker aspects while still drawing on it's relevence to the plot and subsequent theories. But from interviews and documentaries with members of Team Silent, the use of Tarot was also extended to the major ideas of the games, as well as the minor. (You can find the source information on this site. I recommend visiting the whole site, as it is the most organized, condensed and comprehensive site regarding the details of Silent Hill and it's sequels. Though, it is a little biased on certain details.) Anyway, the site used the Tarot representations of the Town of Silent Hill, otherwise known as "Misty/White Silent Hill," and the Alternate version, known as Alternate Silent Hill. The Town of Silent Hill is given the association with the Tarot card of "Strength." Though the card does not mean literal strength, it does refer to the power that holds influence over others, such as in a reading: the influence that is causing a problem or dilema in the person's life. Since most people think of the Town of Silent Hill as the actual town itself, the site suggests that the power innate to the town comes from the very land it sits on. This is quite logical considering the town's history and heritage. However, I would like to broaden this theory to the concept of the power itself, as location isn't particularly important considering that most of SH3 takes place outside of Silent Hill. This is also inferred by the quote from Lost Memories. The Tarot card used to represent the Alternate side of Silent Hill is "The World." This card most commonly represents the completion of a cycle or the summation of all things. It refers to the attainment of truth or wisdom. However, it has negative connotations as well; it can represent the fear or lack of vision that prevents one from proceeding further. It also can represent the concern for the environment or one's surroundings, an abuse of laws of nature. The Alternate Silent Hill can be a place that either hinders or progresses one's path to the truth, as many of you know. Though, it can also be a place that brings things around full-circle, which is the form that "Nowhere" commonly assumes. I wanted to show people the Tarot representations of the faces of Silent Hill as means of another representation that people can use in order to better understand the purposes and meanings of the games. Think of this as an annex to the discussion above. There is no real direct connections to the games themselves, but it was a nice departure from the black-and-white analysis I normally take. EDIT: I just want to give a few quick Silent Hill updates, now that E3 is over. Well with regards to Silent Hill 4: The Room, besides the new trailers, Konami set up a life-size replica of Henry's main living quarters as the booth. It was highly accurate, despite the production values. Akira Yamaoka was present answering questions about the game. I found a few pictures of the booth, but sadly, none of quality or interest. Still, if you'd like to see them, PM me. I found two videos of some interviews with members of Team Silent about SH4. (Japanese version only.) These videos also show some extra footage of the game, including a sample of Henry's voice. **Possible Spoiler Warning** Video 1 (Link no longer available) Video 2 (Link no longer available) Also, it appears that new information has been released about the Silent Hill movie. At this year's Canne Film Festival, posters advertising the Silent Hill movie as well as Onimusha 3 were seen at the convention. I don't have any details as of right now, but I will find out more soon. Movie Poster

Welcome to the discussion. Is there anything you'd like to add to the discussion? I know that there are numberous unanswered or unaddressed questions lying around. I mean there's 27 pages of discussion to elaborate on. Anyway, nice to have another person on board. And just so you know, videogame remixes/rearrangements go in the Works In Progress: OC ReMixes. I'll listen to it soon.

Silent Hill 4 UPDATE: Spoiler Warning And now the news. Yesterday, in Ashfield in the woods near Silent Hill, the bodies of five apparent murder victims and a sixth severly wounded female were discovered. The woman was immediately rushed to St. Jerome's Hospital, but died a short-time later of her injuries. She has been ident.... So the Silent Hill 4: The Room trailer has been released at the E3 convention. This is only the edited version so that too many spoilers would not be released. However, the full trailer (9"06" total) gives you a much better experience, the lyrics below and the news report mentioned above. You can find that trailer and the high quality "edited" trailer at www.sh2004.com in Room M. (Please note that a LZH decompressor is required to view the videos.) For those who can read Japanese, maybe you would like to fill us in on what the site is saying. There are cards scattered on the site with some strange connections and images on them. I'm interested in knowing what the connection between the bottle, the doll's hair and the camera are, among others. I already know what the connections to the previous SH games to SH4 are, but I figured I wouldn't say anything as to not ruin the surprise. So I won't. But, I will say that there are more than one. Though most sites claim to suggest that these references don't have any connection, I believe that they do. Once the game is released, I'll jump into the discussion. Anyway, we finally learn the name of the Henry's next door neighbor: Elieen Gavin. Since, this is what I'd heard before, I assume that the name of the other woman is Cynthia. You know, the one with all the fancy jewelry. She along with a few others are still not confirmed as to their English names. Lastly, for those who want the music from the trailers, you can find them here. (This is an Angelfire site, so bandwidth can very easily be consumed.) The song "Room of Angel" was taken from the "edited" trailer, so the extended lyrics (which are written below) are not included, but it still provides enough to listen to if repeated. You lie, silently before me. Your tears, they mean nothing to me. The wind, howling at the window. A love, you never gave, I give to you. ...really don't deserve it. But now, there's nothing you can do. So sleep, in your only memory. Help me, my dearest mother. Here's a lulaby to close your eyes. It was always you that I despised. I don't feel enough for you to cry. Here's a lulaby to close your eyes... [/spoilers] Hardcore fans listen to "Mothes" by Akira Yamaoka. But anyway, the atmosphere of SH1 was more convincing because the game included rural, residential areas such as homes, schools, local businesses and neighborhoods. It was this very familiar environment that made it seem so tangible. (At least for people familiar with that sort of environment, which I know Corinth is like.) The sequels used locations that appealed to people in more urban, commercial environments, such as southern California and Portland, Oregon; which are the locations that the town was modeled after. The only reason I made that "woo-hoo" comment is because I live in Lexington and I only know of one other person who visits OCR. So don't take it as a stab against people from Kentucky; I am just excited that there is someone else nearby that likes Silent Hill. I didn't use the word "groups," I said schools. This means the place that influenced you the most in the experience. Now by saying this, I realize that is redundant to say the above. I just thought that was apparent. Anyway, the game that influences you the most will tend to influence the way you view the series. I was just suggesting that when you approach the others, including the new one, that you consider multiple angles to get a better understanding. That's all I wanted to point out. Or that heather doesnt follow Harry's route at all. Heather approaches the merry-go-round from the direction that, to harry, was nothing (IE: The metal floor had been ripped up, nothing there). Similarly, Harry heads straight ahead to the merry-go-round, whereas heather has to make a left. For further proof; harry never went in the front gate at lakeside amusements, Harry never saw the shopping ring, he never went into the shops, he didn't see a roller coaster (let alone walk on one) and he didnt see HALF the stuff heather sees (Teacup ride, Stage, Fortune teller, haunted house etc) I really should have said that you cross Harry's path rather than following it. However, you do go to the same ice cream stand that the save pad was on in SH1. I found that save pad by accident when I got lost in the amusement park. Also, please note that I said "Heather follows Harry's path," not the other way around. You can follow someone's path and make your own at the same time. Still, Heather doesn't trace it step-by-step. I mean we don't even get to see the Sky Flower ride. With reference to the details about Laura and Maria, I understand that most of the info seems obvious, but I've learn (somewhat) to say the things that may seem obvious to some, but not to others. It helps keep the air clear, since some people believe that Maria awoke before James arrives in Silent Hill, while others believe Laura is just an illusion. It's good to list your assumptions when making an argument in any direction, especially with Silent Hill, but you already know that. So I won't push it further. Sorry about that.

Wow. Another Kentucky resisdent on OCR. Woo-hoo! I agree. The game had a huge depth to it that it did almost feel alive. But, like I said, that was because the game as a whole had a consistency to it that made it memorable. I think though, that the sequels had a greater Japanese influence than the original, but still tried to be American. That hodge-podge of cultural differences could have broken the illusion of the town-next-door. Still, it should be noted that none of the sequels have actually crossed the path of SH1. SH2 is relatively close, with the Lakeside Hotel being a stone's throw away from the Lakeside Amusement Park. Though SH3 is supposed to follow Harry's trail in the Amusement Park, the vibe is just not the same. This may be due to the concept that Konami wanted to express; that the experience through Silent Hill is different for each person who visits. You could always fall back on the reputation of Team Silent's liking to cutting corners. Especially now, with them trying to create a new game in a shorter amount of time each sequel. I don't think it's easy to create the same kind of world if your deadlines get shorter and shorter. But, I've noticed something about the fans of Silent Hill from talking to them and listening to the forums. There seem to be two schools of fans: the SH1 school and the SH2 school. In other words, those who came into the series through the first game versus those who were exposed to the sequel. The SH1 fans are more hardcore about the plotline and fright-factor of the games, while the SH2 fans focus on the story and well-being of the characters themselves. Realizing this, I found myself in the SH1 catagory, but at the same time opening myself up to the SH2 side. Both are fun and neither is bad, but it does influence how you view the other games. Some say that SH2 wasn't a scary enough atmosphere, while others say that SH1 was too hard to relate to. I don't want to judge anyone this way, but it is important to think about how you view the games when trying to compare one another's views.

It's funny that you say this, because the original and its predecessors do this. Personally, I think the first game was the master at it, not only because it was the first, but because it kept a theme throughout the game. It was a constant frightfest. Yet, it provided so many twists and turns to the idea of "scare tactic." There are the things that make you jump, but at the same time, the game has things that make you jump that aren't supposed to be scary at all. I can't count the number of times I've fired blindly at the fog because I thought something was there. It's a great experience. I hope you enjoy it. Silent Hill 2 Spoilers Actually, it doesn't say the last time James saw Laura, but we do know the time-frame to which most of the story took place. Still, there is a big chunk of time missing between when Mary got sick and when Mary died. 1.) James and Mary visit Paleville and South Vale. 2.) Mary gets sick and is diagnosed to live between 6 months and 3 three years. 3.) Mary meets Laura who possibly meets James. 4.) Laura's 8th birthday 5.) Mary writes letters to James and Laura. Mary plans to come home for a short stay. Gives letters to Rachel. 6.) James kills Mary. Blocks the last three years from his memory. 7.) Laura steals letters, runs away to look for Mary and goes to Silent Hill. Possibly taken there by Eddie. 8.) James goes to Silent Hill via South Vale. 9.) Maria wakes up. 10.) The rest of the story. We know the time between Mary's letter to Laura and James' arrival in Silent Hill: about a week. Laura tells us so. It is quite possible that Laura's running away and Mary's death could have occurred on the same day or within two days. It is also possible that James' arrival at Lake Toluca and Maria's awakening occured simultaneously. We know that James didn't visit Mary as often as he should have. So he must have spent that time elsewhere. Even so, James may have devoted the time he did spend with Mary strictly toward her and didn't give much attention to anyone else. "Who's Rachel?" ring any bells? When he blocked his memory of Mary's death, he probably believed that his time was spent elsewhere after Mary "died." So any people attacted to his visits to the hospital were probably blocked too. There is still one more explanation as to why James doesn't remember Laura: his drinking. James admits to being a borderline alcoholic when you examine the liquor bottles in Heaven's Night. James probably spent most of his time drinking, instead of being by Mary's side. (Working at a bar has made me realize how much time you can waste on a $10 budget. A lot.) So, it is possible that James was either drunk or hungover during his visits to the hospital. This could excite his grumpy nature and also contribute to his lack of memory of anybody else associated with the hospital. The truth is the is no real way to know why James didn't remember Laura, he just doesn't. Even after James remembers the truth about Mary, I'm not convinced that James even remembers Laura from the hospital. For all we know, Laura could still just be a figment of his imagination. That just depends on your beliefs of the story. One last thing. Mary didn't really plan to adopt Laura, nor did James agree to such an arrangement. The letter states that IF things had been different, Mary (and Mary alone) was hoping to adopt Laura. Despite this, I think that having James adopt Laura does give him incentive to move on and helps carry on Mary's legacy. The intentions were correct; it's just the details that were messed up. I won't hold you to it.

Silent Hill 4 Spoilers & Minor Silent Hill 3 Spoilers Rumor Control Here are a few rumors I've heard while visiting a few sites and forums for SH4: The Room. (I wonder when people will start calling it SH4TR.) Anyway, there are possible spoilers if any of these rumor turn out to be true. So, **Possible Spoiler Warning**! - There will be ten different "levels" or areas that Henry will explore. - A special concert will take place during the game while playing "Waiting for You (Live At Heaven's Night)" featuring 1 of the following: 1) Melissa Williamson, singing talent for SH3 and now SH4, live as a music video. 2) A character from the game performing the concert. 3) A character from a previous game performing the concert. - The is a connection between one of the characters from SH2 to the new game. - There will be variations of the same creatures in the game, similar to SH1. (ex: Air Screamer --> Night Flutter) - At on point you return to Toluca Lake and visit the Lakeside Hotel. - A hospital will be an explorable area in the game. - New weapons will include the following: 1) Wine Bottle 2) Bug Spray 3) Box Cutter 4) Baseball Bat 5) Golf Club - Only one save point in the game. There are lots more rumors and theories out there about SH4: The Room, but I chose to only list the most interesting of the bunch. I'm not quite sure which shield-like things you're refering to, but is this it? If it is, I'll approach your query. Though, I'm not aware of any specific references of these posters, there are a few ways to interpret the meaning. We can see that these are posters of parts of a person's head. A picture is just a representation of something else. Though, the most accurate way to do so nowdays, it is still a representation. Therefore, we could interpret it as a representation for a particular body part. Or more to the point, what those body parts represent. You might choose to see them as representations of the primary senses: hearing, sight, taste, smell, touch. It could also be a representation of the lack of those senses, since we are only given the picture and not the sensation. It could also be a representation of lacking senses; since we only see one feature at a time, we might only be getting partial information. Only one sense is presented. This can have a disjointed effect, that sight is present without sound, or vice-versa. There are still other directions we can take this. You may choose to see them as a representation of what people have as ideals. Since the smile is very happy and the teeth are in perfect shape. In other words, the representation of want we want ourselves or our environment to be. This topic was tossed around a little with both Heather and Claudia. Niether one held a great sense of self-esteem, so they might have kept a picture of their ideals in their heads. Though, I do admit that the pictures don't really match up with Heather's ideals, but more so with Claudia's. There are a couple more ways to interpret it, but I'll reply when I've gotten some sleep. Besides, there is enough right now to go from. However, on the topic of background object interpretation, discuss why there is no siren playing when Heather travels to the Alternate locations. It was present in SH1 & SH2 when the characters passed into the Alternate universe. Why not with Heather? EDIT: In case anyone hasn't already heard, there are some new SH4: The Room updates available. First, a new teaser trailer has been released by Konami before the official E3 trailer. Hopefully, we'll get the official scoop on the details on shipping to the US and Europe, bonus material included (or not included) with the game, and soundtrack info at E3. Speaking of the SH4 Soundtrack, you probably already know about the sound clips released by Konami. For those who want to listen to them non-stop until the official soundtrack is released. You can download the clips all together here. (Flash player is required.) Lastly, for all the screenshots released up-to-date and organized very neatly, please visit this site. It also has a few references (It's never too early!) as well as some promotional material, including a very omnious and curious promotional T-shirt. Hmmm...... EDIT 2: SH4 Update. I'm sure many of you may have missed it, but a very special (and very strange) picture was released by Konami on the SH4: The Room website, www.sh2004.com. The picture appeared on May 5, 2004 for only 24 hours. (I guess the developer wanted to wish us a happy Cinco de Mayo.) Anyway, if you want to see the picture, you'll have to have to save this thread. Hahahahaaaaaa..... Or just PM me. Also, I have some ultra, super, blow-your-mind-crazy, never seen before in-game videos of gameplay for SH4: The Room. Spoiler ALERT The contents of what you are about to view will spoil a few small gameplay elements for you, which in-turn may break the surprise of certain things in the game. So, be warned. I mean it. Alright. Let's get to it. You can find these clips here. (This is an Angelfire site so bandwidth can very easily be consumed.) Please read the rest once you've viewed the videos. If you'll notice in the first video, the sound effects made popular in SH2 and then 3 return in this game as well. Only a minor note. What's more important is that we finally see how the tunnel system works in the game and what it looks like. Please note that the creatures attacking Henry are not exactly mothes, but look very much so. Also, there is a very subtle detail that I will point out in the third video. Anyway, we get to see the first person perspective in Henry's apartment. I did notice the icons that pop-up whenever you are close to something you can interact with. Personally, I thought it would take away from the movie-style look of the game, but I hardly noticed it when I saw it in action; a good thing to know. The second video also shows us some of the action elements with the ghosts and the in game weapon switch. It's a little clunky, but not something you can't get used to. We also have a confirmation that certain monsters cannot die. If you watch the video carefully, you'll notice that Henry shoots a ghost such that he "dies" (he makes the dying sound and falls over), but then just before the video ends, the monster gets back up. Ghosts cannot be killed! The third video really gives us a taste of the gunplay in the game, as well as the weapon-switch system. It is now confirmed that the bar on the upper-left of the screen is your life meter. (A cheaters note: Even though there will be no radio, you can use the life meter to tell if monsters are nearby because it appears when you are close to combat.) The last thing I wanted to point out was the way Henry touches his forehead near the end of the video. As he touches his skull, the screen gets fuzzy and strange music plays. This is what I wanted to point out in the first video as well. This is a sign that monsters are closeby. I suspected it in the first video after it was pointed out in the third. The real confirmation of this is in the fourth video. It's brief and subtle, but there. As Henry is getting attacked by the ghosts, just before he switches weapons, he touches his forehead again. He clearly does this each time a monster attacks him. Either that means Henry has some sort of psychic power that allows him to sense monsters, or the monsters are causing him mental as well as physical damage. We won't know for sure until the game is released now will we?

New SH4 Info: Seems that the game play will be much harder in the next installment than in other games to date. There are also some new interesting stuff being added to the game. Gameplay Old Stuff: - Power Swing bar (Attack using a strength meter, much like golf games.) - Real-time weapon switch (Change weapons during gameplay, without going to the main menu.) Some new stuff: (**Possible Spoilers**) - No flashlight, no (portable) radio - Certain monsters float, can pass through walls - Puzzles and riddles will have an overall theme (This means puzzles may be connected.) Really New Stuff: (Major Spoilers) - Certain monsters can hurt you merely by their presence. - Monsters can attack your weapons (Possibly causing you to drop them.) - Certain monsters can disguise themselves as objects in the background - Certain monsters cannot die (Yes, that is correct.) - Using analogue control, Henry can attack in a realistic 3-D manner - An icon will appear on screen, whenever you are near an object you can interact with. - The weapon switch control will work the same as RE: Outbreak. (An on-screen menu will come up and you will search through your inventory.) When you think about all these gameplay fighting elements together, it provides a greater challenge. Such as in previous games, if you were going to be attacked by a group of enemies, you could turn off the light and avoid a multiple onslaught. However, with no radio and no flashlight, targeting your enemy will be more difficult. Also, because enemies can attack your weapons, defensive strategy will become much more important. In addition, now that monsters can pass through walls, the comfortable "safe spots" are gone. (You know, those places where you knew you could just rest a minute to calm your nerves before going to the next room. Not anymore.) You also have to deal with the sneak attack, since certain monsters can disguise themselves as objects. Other monsters cannot die leaving you with one option: running. But don't think that each monster has a certain single ability. Some have multiple. So, a PH that can walk through walls can be a likely possibility. [/spoilers] Story and Characters New Stuff: (**Possible Spoilers**) - Cast will be larger than any previous SH game. - Game will be longer than SH3. - Storyline will have true multiple endings. Really New Stuff: (Major Spoilers) - A character will follow you during gameplay (like Maria) - A certain connection to a previous SH cast member will be made. I don't want to say too much because I don't want to spoil it for you or myself. However, I will say that story is not like any of its predecessors, yet, it will have some similar elements. I did get ahold of an article describing the intro to the game as well as more particulars to the gameplay itself. The article was published by Eurogamer.net. [/spoilers] Have fun.

Silent Hill 1 & 3 Spoilers I wondered about that too. I think K. Gordon's notes might shed some light on this. According to the notebook Heather finds, we learn that Alessa came to school with bruises and scars (not deep ones, but noticable). Since it was suggested that she might have been abused, it might have been reason enough to draw out her power. Sounds like the book Carrie, where the girl was abused so much that it draw out her psychic/telekinetic powers. That is possibly what happened to Alessa. Well, with Cheryl, that didn't happen. Cheryl was loved and cared for like any little girl should be. There really wouldn't have been a reason or source of pain to draw out her powers, so it is likely they remained dormant until she came to Silent Hill. This can also carry through to Heather. Heather may have had the memories of Alessa and Cheryl, as well as the same power, she didn't show any sign of her power. Most likely again, since she was under the care of Harry, she was not put through a lot of pain. Since there was no abuse in her household, it is possible her power remained dormant, too. Until Claudia came along and drew it out. Claudia talks about it too. "God's growing within you. You despise me, right?" (At the same time, Heather is holding her sides in pain.) Even after the first time, we can see Heathers eyes water and her voice tremble after meeting Claudia. Claudia is using pain, anger and sadness to "nuture" god within Heather. Though, Heather and Claudia later argue about the consequences of this method, it seems apparent that the godly powers or souls with a person must be drawn out by extreme emotions. Even in James' case, we see that strong human emotions of pain, anger or despair can cause really strange things to happen in Silent Hill.

Silent Hill 1 and 3 Spoilers That was my question. However, something changed during SH3. I'm not quite sure what changed that ended this sequence of reincarnation, but it has something to do with Claudia's involvement/interjection. Primary Assumptions: The Mother of God is not Alessa nor Cheryl, but the combined form of the two. See, in any of the endings, Dahlia combines the two half-girls* together to form Alessa/Cheryl in the white robe. This is the Mother of God; this is St. Alessa. Only this combined form seems to have the power of reincarnation. *This follows my theory that each girl only contains half the soul of the god (aka Samael). Each one becoming essentially a "half-girl." As long as Heather is carrying god inside her, she is the Holy Mother. But, when she "aborted" god, Claudia took on the task of birthing Her; Claudia would then become the next Holy Mother. Yet, does this make Claudia capable of the same power as Heather/Alessa/Cheryl? Does she gain the power of reincarnation? The most simple answer is: I don't know. Konami didn't reveal much about the events that followed the defeat of God?; it mostly left a lot of dangling questions. To answer these questions, we'll need the use of supplemental materials. Hint, hint. Honestly, the endings were the most disappointing aspects of the game. (Maybe the Greatest Hits Version will improve on this. *Keeps fingers crossed.*) As a sidenote, I believe that girl we see all over town is Cheryl herself, as Dahlia suggests, but only with Alessa's form. I think this mostly because there are still two girls in the end, not just one. Also, we can see that Alessa doesn't really look like that in the "real life." Alessa is still burned and bandaged which is seen in the opening movie to SH1. The reason I believe that it is Cheryl with Alessa's form is most likely because of two things: 1) Alessa is other one shown in the end (if it were the other way around, Cheryl would have been beside the girl), 2) Cheryl had free movement around the town, while it appears that Alessa does not. Dahlia mentions a spell being cast on Alessa that binds her, after she is captured by the Flauros. Because Dahlia uses the past tense, I think it was cast before Cheryl arrived to Silent Hill. Since Cheryl was not bound by this spell, I assume Alessa transferred her being to Cheryl, which gave the appearance of Alessa unscarred. This might also explain why the Alessa in the opening is moving, while the same Alessa in the endings looks like a corpse. Please note that I don't think this is the same thing as what Dahlia does to combine the two girls, but it is slightly similar. Similar enough to harness the combined power of the two in order to form the town. A good analogy, but maybe not well-known, is from the anime "Boogiepop Phantom: Evolution," specifically Episode 7 "Until Ure in My Arms." Anyway, this brother and sister gain strange powers. Though it seems the brother is the one who has the power, it is actually the cooperation of the two that achieves results. The sister allows the brother to use her power to "grant his wishes." One has the power but no control, while the other has control but no power. It is possible that Harry could have gained another piece of Agloaphotis after leaving Silent Hill. However, I find it highly unlikely. Even if Harry found the plant (which is referred in the book, from Alessa's hospital room), he did not have the knowledge to process it. Only Dr. Kaufman knew that, but he died in SH1. I know you want to think Cybil is alive in the sequel (I want to, too), but from the things SH3 has shown us, it doesn't look so good. Even if she did survive, she probably got sick and died three years later anyway. [/jk]

Silent Hill 3 Spoilers It is possible that this is forshadowing. It might suggest that Vatiel has some foresight of the events of the game. Or it could be that Vatiel is morning the death of the Claudia who was probably killed when God? was "born." I suggest that Claudia is killed when she "gives birth" to God? because Heather gets a game over sequence if you don't prevent it's "birth." Suggesting that she dies. My biggest problem with this is then, why doesn't Heather get reborn like in the first game? Was doesn't God? also get reborn when Heather kills it? It's bothered me since the first time I played this game. Was there something special about the first game that sets it apart the second? Think about the two sequences. Primary Assumptions: First, we need to assume that Harry gets the Good Ending in SH1 (not the Good+ Ending). The reason is that if Cybil were saved, Harry would not have the Aglaophotis (sp?) to give to Heather. (Tragic. Save your friend or save your daughter?) Also, the reason it is the Good Ending is that Harry doesn't get a baby in the Bad Endings, obviously. Okay, in SH1, Dr. Kaufman uses the Aglaophotis on Alessa/Cheryl. This causes Incubus/Samael to be extracted from Alessa/Cheryl. When you defeat the Incubus/Samael, Alessa/Cheryl reappeared and created her incarnation, which is later known as Heather. In SH3, Heather uses the Aglaophotis on herself to extract God? (in fetus form). Claudia eats it and tries to give "birth" to it. When Heather defeats God?, nothing happens (well, in the Normal Ending). God? is dead and that's that. Why didn't the same thing happen again? Why wasn't God reborn in a reincarnation of Claudia? The only thing that might suggest something happens after you kill God? is in the Possessed Ending. After Heather kicks the crap out of the dead God?, we see her turn around just as the scene fades to black. We then see Heather reappear in the Amusement Park, with a knife, having just killed Douglas. A cold blank look is on her face. If Heather really is possessed, by whom or what is she possessed? God?, Vatiel, or something else? If I could explain that part, I might be able to explain why God? doesn't get reborn.

Silent Hill 3 Spoilers Ah. The mystery of Vatiel. Some people believe that he is the gatekeeper to the Alternate dimension (or worlds) of Silent Hill. Others believe that he is the true follower of the Holy Mother. Still, there are those who believe that he is the watcher and protector of God Herself. In order to understand this strange creature better, let's look at where we meet Vatiel and the things he is doing when we see him. 1) We first see Vatiel in the elevator in the Alternate Square Center Shopping Mall. There are multiple shots of Vatiel during the sequence in which we see Heather gasp. You must keep a sharp eye to see each shot. The first is of Vatiel standing in front of (under?) another strange creature identified as a Spider. We also see him shaking his head and walking(?) in a corridor. This is a suggestion that there are more than one Vatiel. 2) Later, we see Vatiel in the Alternate Hilltop Offices, after you have solved the painting puzzle. You must use the camera to adjust your view. He seems to just stand there and watch you. 3) The next time we meet Vatiel is in the Alternate Brookhaven hospital, after going through the "door at the end of the second floor." He is turning the value. A dead nurse hangs above him. 3a) From camera hacks, we've learned that Vatiel is also behind the smokey glass on the second (or was it third?) floor of the Alternate Brookhaven hospital. You have to look very carefully. Again, Vatiel is playing (if you want to call it that) with a nurse. (The painting behind them is "The Light Illuminating the Darkness." wink,wink.) 3b) The creature trapped in the locker, has a strong resemblence to Vatiel. Whether it is him or not is up to you to decide. (Personally, I think it is Vatiel.) 4) We meet Vatiel again in the Alternate Chapel/Nowhere. The most prominant spot is where Vatiel is turning the value with the two curtains (dresses?) and legs are beside him. Someone said that this was a metaphor from the first game of Alessa and Cheryl being brought together under Samael. Very interesting to think about. 4a) We see Vatiel crawling along the floor in some small tunnels in two hallways of the Alternate Chapel/Nowhere. This is also a possible metaphor for the subservience of Vatiel to the religion or Heather. 4b) The next instance where we see Vatiel is in the hallway to Alessa's room. Vatiel is dangling a (dead?) nurse in a metal-grating tunnel. It's hard to say why he is doing it or for what purpose, since we cannot determine his actions outright. However, from the way his actions are performed, either Vatiel is playing with the nurse for sick enjoyment, or he is trying to kill it out of protection (for himself or Heather, I don't know). Still, this brings up a good theory, which I'll explain below. 4c) The last place we see Vatiel is just before the battle with "God?" Vatiel is crawling towards God? to cover it's face with the blanket/curtain. This protects God? from getting hit by Heather's bullets. This action suggests that Vatiel is in fact protecting the being within Heather and not Heather herself. This too is important. 5) Haha! You didn't think there were anymore instances where we see Vatiel, but there is one more. Whenever Heather is killed by a monster in the Alternate world, Vatiel will appear to drag Heather away. Heather will also be covered in the strange red blobs we see in the Alternate worlds. However, the one important fact that gets overlooked is that when you die in the Alternate world, the world changes back to the normal world (at least, everytime I've gotten this secret cutscene). Vatiel seems to be a link to Heather and the Alternate world. Though, you may have already discerned that from knowing about Heather's "true self," Vatiel also plays a role in changing to the Alternate dimension. If all that was needed to change the world to the alternate was Heather, she would have probably stumbled upon it herself. Claudia seems to be able to control this ability in Heather, or at least it isn't directly caused by Heather herself. I believe that Vatiel is needed to make the change occur, alluding to the theory that Vatiel is a gatekeeper. However, Vatiel seems to play a greater role than that in the story. Since Vatiel seems to be stalking Heather throughout the Alternate dimension, it seems that Vatiel also acts as a watcher to Heather. My instincts tell me that this is how the cult was able to see and know everything from the first game. I think Vatiel was there too. I don't know if Vatiel is really a person or just a monster, but he seems to have a connection to the cult. I'm more inclined to think Vatiel is just a monster under the control of the cult (think about the trapped monster in Alternate Brookhaven), because his purposes don't really seem to have a direct affect on Heather. And as we all know, the monsters in Silent Hill try to have as direct an effect on you as possible. However, we also know that Vatiel's purpose is to protect the being inside Heather and not Heather herself, so Vatiel won't make any direct contact with Heather. The only reason why Vatiel would protect god that I can think of is by order. The only people introduced who might have the power to order monsters is the Hope House Cult (the cult of Silent Hill). The evidence is from the Daisy Apartment complex, where Claudia orders a monster to kill Harry. I don't think Vatiel is under the control of Claudia alone, because Vatiel doesn't appear at the beginning of the Alternate Hilltop Offices, just as Claudia doesn't appear there. Only Vincent appears there. Hmmm.

Since the problems link sent me here, I guess I'll report my problem with the BitTorrent software. While running the BitTorrent file OCR00001_to_OCR00500 in Shadow's program, I get a message saying that there is a problem in PYTHON23.dll and the program closes, occasionally giving me the "blue screen of death." I've uninstalled the program, run the Memtest86 program as recommended by the FAQ, and reinstalled the program. I keep all non-essential programs and processes closed, yet the problem persists, even after reinstallation and rebooting. I'm operating on Windows ME, using a standard broadband connection, without a firewall. I've tried scanning my computer, the program, and everything that is running, but I can't find the source of the problem. I can still run the BitTorrent for a few minutes (between 1 and 5 minutes, to be more precise), but afterwards it crashes. Any help?

In conjunction with the SayMail thread, I've been making little animations using Silent Hill characters. They're okay, not really impressive, but still fun to check out. I'm thinking about learning to use flash, so that I can do full body animations. Anyway, here they are: Cheryl Mary Douglas Henry Have fun.

Silent Hill 3 Spoilers I was revisiting SH3 yesterday and I was trying to figure out exactly how Harry (the man who defeated "god") could have been killed so easily. I don't exactly know, but from the scene, it didn't look like Harry put up a struggle. First, let's consider how he was killed. From the blood splatter, it looks like he was stabbed through the chest, either in the heart or lung. The blood stains on the back of the chair show that the bleeding came from the upper torso. Also, because the stains are on the back of the chair, it looks like the wound went all the way through Harry's chest. Had it not, the stains would not have appeared on the back since he was facing forward. In addition to this, from the large amount to blood directly in front of the chair, it seems that Harry was not sitting down when he was killed. It appears that Harry was standing up when the monster killed him. It also appears that he was attacked from the front, and not the back, because if he had been attacked from behind, the blood trail would have lead from the back of the chair to the patio, rather than from the front of the chair to the patio. (I also believe that he was not killed while sitting down, because there is no damage to the chair.) After he was attacked, Harry probably then sank into his chair which is probably why he looks like he had just sat down when Heather finds him. Due to the small amount of space in the living room, at least where Harry was killed, the monster might have come out of Heather's room. Had Harry been sitting down, he would have most likely stood up at seeing the monster. Likely, this was a quick death for Harry. However, nothing is certain, since we don't know the events that occured before Harry's death. But if Harry did have a chance to react, why isn't there more signs of struggle? How did a monster get inside Heather's room? Was Claudia present at the murder scene? Would she have wanted to? [/spoilers] Strange, but it seems like there is an evolution in the subjects of the games. SH1 felt like an interpretation of philosophy/existance; SH2 felt like an interpretation of psychology/the psyche; while SH3 felt like an interpretation of poetry (not just because of the puzzles either). The main subject seemed to be the effects of love & hate, how easily we can betray each other in search of love. Very poetic. It seems like the progression is to go from very broad, abstract concepts to more finite, definative ones. I wonder if SH4 will follow this tend. Only time will tell.

Though you may see no reason to consider that things are real. The developers have introduced it into the series. It remains a likely possibility. SH1 teeterred on the edge of whether it was real or not. Likely, that theory might have been kept in mind while creating this game. Besides, with the release of SH3, we have to keep it open since is seems very unlikely that Silent Hill (the one from the games) is an illusion, at least not entirely. Also, because of certain inconsistencies in adhering to only one of the two theories, it's best to keep the opposite in consideration. Silent Hill 2 Spoilers This is one of the most subtle aspects of the game. You have to assume that this is the first ending most people will view, but it should also be held in context with the other endings. Besides, you should also take in what James says afterwards: Maria: "You killed Mary again?" James: "That wasn't Mary. Mary's gone. That was just something I... Maria?!" Also, think about every ending in context. What does Maria wants James to do? Maria wants James to choose her. Maria wants James to accept her completely. How do you suppose James prove this to Maria? Could he, oh say, kill Mary again? That might show that he doesn't want Mary. (A little greek tragedy for you.) However, Mary's gone. How can James kill Mary if she isn't here? Who, oh who, will ever play the part of Mary? If only there was someone around who looked exactly like Mary. Anyway, think about what he also says in the Maria ending. Maria: "What about Mary?" James: "It's okay. I have you." Mary and Maria are two different people. Like I said, Maria is a copy. Think of it as astral cloning. In cloning, you used a single source (the nucleus) and implant it into another form (a blank egg). The original person stays intact and you create the copy using completely different materials, i.e. "monster parts." In James' case, the nucleus was his wish. His wish to be with Mary again. However, this again is still playing into the "it might be real" theory. In respect to the "it might be a projection" theory, Maria's core is most likely made up of James' memories/desires/guilt. Her physical is not real, but due to the strong effects of his psyche, James believes what he feels is real. However, again, this can also be applied to every aspect of the game, if you choose to believe this aspect. Everything James sees, hears, feels could be an illusion created by his mind. This is a consequence of choosing this theory. This also means that the endings are all illusions too. So, be careful to which theory you adhere, because you may not be happy in the end. Anyway, back to what you were saying about Maria and Mary beings "adversaries." Actually, this isn't entirely accurate. A better way to say it might be that Maria was competing for James' attention. (Mary really isn't putting any effort into competing with Maria.) To say this implies that the two are in a struggle over James. Maria is a person all her own (to an extent). She is fighting James' memory of Mary, so she is trying to exploit the bad memories that James has of Mary. She wants to say she is better than Mary so James will choose her. However, she still isn't perfect. She does yell at James; she does make him feel bad, though maybe not all because she wants to. And in a way, she is deluting herself. (Funny, huh? A delusion deluting itself.) Still, I could be biased. There are so many interpretations of this love-triangle possible. I really haven't taken in all the information from the game yet and I really hate to get into Maria/Mary discussions at this point, because I haven't considered every angle. However, it is at the heart of the game, which makes it unavoidable.

Major Silent Hill 2 Spoilers Again, this is the major split in theories. There is nothing wrong with that, but it is just a matter of personal philosophy. There are those who think everything is just a projection of James' mind and those who believe that everything is real, but influenced by the town. I tend to believe the projection theory, but I also wanted to explore the other in order to gain a better perspective. If Maria dies by James' hand, then she doesn't fullfill her purpose: to make James suffer by witnessing her taken away from him by another's hands. Also, the game is causal. If you don't do certain actions, other actions won't occur. Such as the roof of the hospital. Only when Maria is in room S3, does the door unlock. So consequently, if Maria doesn't make it to the elevator, it won't work. With no where to go, we presume James dies as well. Silly rabbit, you should realize that you fight Maria in every ending (excluding the Dog and UFO endings). Maria just pretends to be Mary. That is because James chooses Maria over Mary. Whomever James chooses by the end, Maria will act like the other. (It only happens that in only one ending James chooses Maria.) Maria is just playing the role of "Final Temptation." Just so you know, Lisa was also a monster. It didn't really make her any less human. ("I'm not the only one who's still walking around. I'm the same as them. I just hadn't noticed it before.") Maria was just a copy of Mary. I believe both flesh and soul, but she isn't Mary. ("The you that isn't you.") Though, her flesh happens to be made of monster parts, her soul is still genuinely human. Doesn't take any of the fun out of figuring her out, it just means that there is more to consider.

I was assuming you knew what happened if you tried to avoid getting the radio and cross the police tape. It only breaks after you defeat the monster under the bridge. My reasoning is that it's not to let you through, but to release the monsters waiting behind the police tape. True, but I guess I was accounting for those who didn't believe that theory. I'll be back later.