History YMMV / SilentHill1

** One that is usually overlooked but may be ''even worse'' than the music puzzle is the revolving turnstiles leading to the Otherworld school's boss. The pair of valve wheels on either side determine which direction the gates turn and the degree of rotation, but it's very hard to visually determine and then mentally keep track of which valve directions affect which rotational patterns. This is the kind of puzzle you either solve in 30 seconds through dumb luck or --more likely-- you waste 30 minutes screwing around with before you finally, randomly spin them into the correct place with no idea how you actually did it. Oh, and the puzzle also remembers your moves, so don't think you can just leave the room and reset it. [[note]]It's very much a GuideDangIt, but "two rights on the right, one left on the left" will solve it right away. If you've already started messing with the valves, you can just keep alternating those two steps and you'll eventually open the turnstiles.[[/note]]

** The [[CreepyCockroach Creepers]] are rather weak, but they're often numerous and will catch up to Harry's position as soon as he enters a room inhabited by them, likely dealing chip damage in the process that may add up if not killed fast.

* DemonicSpiders: In the hub during the first half of the game, the player only deals with slow and generally inaccurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are pretty easy to handle assuming Harry just stays out of their way. Then comes the second half with the Rompers, those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike Harry down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue Harry through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading him into another group of enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a noticable DifficultySpike in the Shopping District, their debut location, and then a massive one in the Resort Area, where even ''more'' of the bastards are skulking around.

** [[EvilMatriarch Dahlia Gillespie]] is the HighPriestess of the sinister Order's Sect of the Holy Woman. To make her followers more malleable to her apocalyptic goals, Dahlia has the hallucinogenic drug PTV distributed amongst them, uncaring for its dangerous side effects, and has any officials investigating her killed. Intent on summoning the God worshipped by the Order to empower herself in the new world even as it devastates the planet, Dahlia has a series of [[WouldHurtAChild girls]] kidnapped and impregnated by the supernatural being, with each attempt leading to the young children dying. Deciding to attempt the ritual with her own psychic daughter Alessa, [[AbusiveParents Dahlia]]'s violation leads to Alessa nearly burning to death, only kept alive by her powers. When Alessa splits her own soul to allow part of herself a happy life, Dahlia keeps Alessa's physical body in [[AndIMustScream immobile agony]] within Silent Hill's hospital for seven years. Upon Alessa's other half Cheryl Mason being drawn back to the town, Dahlia [[ManipulativeBitch manipulates]] Harrold "Harry" Mason, Cheryl's loving adoptive father, into helping her perform the ritual to usher the Order's God into reality. With no interest in the salvation some Order members desire and cruel beyond measure, Dahlia proves to be far more evil force than any of the monsters lurking within the cursed town.

** [[EvilMatriarch Dahlia Gillespie]] is [[BigBad the head]] of a cult known as the Sect of the Holy Woman. Starting a drug trade, Dahlia sells a hallucinogen made from a local plant named White Claudia to the tourists, killing the anti-drug mayor and the narcotics officer Gucci in the process. Desiring to gain personal power by summoning God, Dahlia kidnaps and attempts to impregnate several [[WouldHurtAChild young girls]] with the God, which leads to their deaths. After finding out that her [[AbusiveParents 7-year-old daughter]] Alessa had vast mental powers, Dahlia decided to perform the impregnation ritual on Alessa. As a result of this, Alessa's soul was split in 2 halves. Dahlia then cast a spell, keeping one half of Alessa [[AndIMustScream alive and in extreme pain]], not allowing her burns to heal. Dahlia's intention was for the other half to subconsciously feel Alessa's pain, and come back to Silent Hill, where the soul would be reunited. Seven years later, Dahlia tricks the first game's protagonist Harry Mason into helping her to complete the ritual.

* ShipTease: If you get the Good+ Ending, [[spoiler:Cybil replaces Harry's wife in the intro, implying they possibly got together.]]

** The CameraScrew means that if the camera is positioned properly, the entirety of the final boss fight has you seeing Harry all the time instead of the final boss. There's also the trick of emptying all your ammo before the final boss fight, so it's instantly skipped.

* DemonicSpiders: In the hub during the first half of the game, the player only deals with slow and generally inaccurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are pretty easy to handle assuming Harry just stays out of their way. Then comes the second half with the Rompers, those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike Harry down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue Harry through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading him into another group of enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their debut location.

** One that is usually overlooked but may be ''even worse'' than the music puzzle is the revolving turnstiles leading to the Otherworld school's boss. The pair of valve wheels on either side determine which direction the gates turn and the degree of rotation, but it's very hard to visually determine and then mentally keep track of which valve directions affect which rotational patterns. This is the kind of puzzle you either solve in 30 seconds through dumb luck or --more likely-- you waste 30 minutes screwing around with before you finally, randomly spin them into the correct place with no idea how you actually did it.[[note]]It's very much a GuideDangIt, but "two rights on the right, one left on the left" will solve it right away. If you've already started messing with the valves, you can just keep alternating those two steps and you'll eventually open the turnstiles.[[/note]]

** Entering the Otherworld and being assaulted by Grey Children/Claw Fingers. Welcome to Silent Hill.
** [[spoiler:Lisa]]'s transformation.
** The UFO ending. Starting a long string of hilarious joke endings that the series is partially known for.

* DemonicSpiders: In the hub during the first half of the game, the player only deals with slow and generally inaccurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are pretty easy to handle assuming Harry just stays out of their way. Then come the second half with the Rompers, those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike Harry down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue Harry through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading him into another group of enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their debut location.

* DemonicSpiders: Until the introduction of Rompers in the overworld, the player has probably only dealt with the comparatively slower and less accurate Groaners and Air Screamers so far, which are pretty easy to handle assuming Harry just stays out of their way. Then come those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike Harry down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue Harry through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading him into another group of enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their debut location.

** Air Screamers have all the annoyances expected of your typical AirborneMook. Their stronger counterpart, the Night Flutters, are even worse and could be considered outright DemonicSpiders because of their tendency to patrol narrow pathways.

* DemonicSpiders: Until the introduction of Rompers in the overworld, you probably have only dealt with the comparatively slower and less accurate Groaners and Air Screamers so far, which are pretty easy to handle assuming you just stay out of their way. Then come those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike you down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue the player through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading them into the path of other enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their debut location.

** One that is usually overlooked but may be ''even worse'' than the music puzzle is the revolving turnstiles leading to the Otherworld school's boss. The pair of valve wheels on either side determine which direction the gates turn and the degree of rotation, but it's very hard to visually determine and then mentally keep track of which valve directions affect which rotational patterns. This is the kind of puzzle you either solve in 30 seconds through dumb luck or --more likely-- you waste 30 minutes screwing around with before you finally, randomly spin them into the correct place with no idea how you actually did it.[[note]]It's very much a GuideDangIt, but "two rights on the right, one left on the left" is the key to solving it quickly. If you've already started messing with the valves, just keep alternating those two steps and you'll eventually open the turnstiles.[[/note]]

** One that is usually overlooked but may be ''even worse'' than the music puzzle is the revolving turnstiles leading to the Otherworld school's boss. The pair of valve wheels on either side determine which direction the gates turn and the degree of rotation, but it's very hard to visually determine and then mentally keep track of which valve directions affect which rotational patterns. This is the kind of puzzle you either solve in 30 seconds through dumb luck or --more likely-- you waste 30 minutes screwing around with before you finally, randomly spin them into the correct place with no idea how you actually did it.

* DemonicSpiders: The Rompers. Until their introduction in the overworld, you probably have only dealt with the comparatively slower and less accurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are pretty easy to handle assuming you just stay out of their way. Then come those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike you down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue the player through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading them into the path of other enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their debut location.

* ThatOneLevel: The Resort Area is likely the hardest area in the game. The whole area is completely infested with Groaners, Air Screamers, and Rompers who will absolutely not stop chasing you, making actually taking your time to explore a risky prospect unless you want to use up a ton of bullets and health drinks. The first area's not so bad exploration-wise, consisting mainly of wide streets and just a few buildings, but it's dense with packs of monsters and small enough that running from one will drive you into several more. Furthermore, it's home to an important sidequest that's fairly easy to miss while you're running for your life ''and'' essential to getting the Good ending of the game. Furthermore, there's a PointOfNoReturn on the bridge where it transitions into the Otherworld, making it impossible to go back and get anything you missed. It's pretty likely on your first run through the game that you'll end up running across the bridge in a blind panic and completely miss everything in the first area. The second half is a series of narrow docks that are infested with Wormheads and Night Flutters. The docks are so thin that you barely have space to maneuver around enemies, and the tank controls mean you'll likely end up running into invisible walls and left vulnerable to attack. Making it worse, it's very easy to miss the map at the beginning of the level, leaving you to run blind through one of the most labyrinthine parts of the game.

* DemonicSpiders: The Rompers. Until their introduction in the overworld, you probably have only faced the comparatively slower and less accurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are not really a big deal assuming you just stay out of their way. Then come those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike you down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue the player through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading them into the path of other enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their debut location.

* DemonicSpiders: The Rompers. Until their introduction in the overworld, you probably have only faced the comparatively slower and less accurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are not really a big deal assuming you just stay out of their way. Then come those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike you down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue the player through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading them into the path of other enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their preferred location.

* DemonicSpiders: The Rompers. Before their introduction in the overworld, you probably have only faced the comparatively slower and less accurate Groaners and Air Screamers, which are not a big danger if you simply avoid them. Then come those... things... that can ''outrun'' and pinpointly strike you down to the floor before the player even starts thinking about pulling up a weapon for self-defense, making it highly impractical to engage them head on. They're also incredibly persistent and can easily pursue the player through an ''entire area'' due to their superior speed, possibly even leading them into the path of other enemies (including ''more'' Rompers). It's no coincidence that the game undergoes a massive DifficultySpike in the Resort Area, their preferred location.

* SelfImposedChallenge: It's possible to invert the default camera view in the Extra settings. Combining this with the NewGamePlus "Self View" option let's you play pretty much the entire game in pseudo first-person perspective, which is pretty cool in itself but also adds a whole new layer of heightened difficulty and tension by creating far more blind spots in your field of vision, forcing Harry to keep his head on a swivel to look out for danger. It also has a habit of locking the camera onto the enemy nearest to you, which can be outright panic-inducing when you're surrounded by several of them.

* SelfImposedChallenge: It's possible to invert the default camera view in the Extra settings. Combining this with the NewGamePlus "Self View" option let's you play pretty much the entire game in pseudo first-person perspective, which is pretty cool in itself but also adds a new dimension of heightened difficulty by creating far more blind spots in your field of vision, forcing Harry to keep his head on a swivel to look out for danger. It also has a habit of locking the camera onto the enemy nearest to you, which can be outright panic-inducing when you're surrounded by several of them.

* SelfImposedChallenge: It's possible to invert the default camera view in the Extra settings. Combining this with the NewGamePlus "Self View" option let's you play pretty much the entire game in pseudo first-person perspective, which is pretty cool in itself but also adds a new dimension of heightened difficulty by creating far more blind spots in your field of vision. It also has a habit of forcing the camera to focus downward on the nearest enemy to you, which can be outright panic-inducing if you're surrounded by several of them.

* SelfImposedChallenge: It's possible to invert the default camera view in the Extra settings. Combining this with the NewGamePlus "Self View" option let's you play pretty much the entire game in pseudo first-person perspective, which is pretty cool in itself but also makes things a lot tougher by creating far more blind spots in your field of vision. It also has an unfortunate habit of forcing the camera to focus downward on the nearest enemy to you, even if you're surrounded by several of them.

** One that is usually overlooked but may be ''even worse'' than the music puzzle is the revolving gateway leading to the Otherworld school's boss. The pair of valve wheels on either side determine which direction the gates turn and the degree of rotation, but it's very hard to visually determine and then mentally keep track of which valve directions affect which rotational patterns. This is the kind of puzzle you either solve in 30 seconds through dumb luck or --more likely-- you waste 30 minutes screwing around with before you finally, randomly spin them into the correct place with no idea how you actually did it.