It’s a mark of how much a game has impacted the industry when it’s still discussed decades after release. Resident Evil and Silent Hill hold this honor, with gamers usually debating which is the better survival horror title. As both originated on the PlayStation 1, the games are greatly associated with the system.
Although different breeds of survival horror, Resident Evil and Silent Hill codified the genre on the PS1– solidifying their legacies. Considering just how much longevity both franchises have had, it goes without saying that the first entries in their series hold up well enough to still be discussed today.
10 Silent Hill: Specialty In Horror
The release of Silent Hill prompted many similar games to follow suit. This comes down to it being one of the first games to purely invest itself in its genre. There were barely any games on the PS1 that qualified as horror-based, and Silent Hill arrived to provide this.
It’s seen as a trailblazer of sorts in this regard, as Silent Hill was unabashed in its delivery of pure horror, a dedication that most other genre games didn’t provide. While other games were a mixture of action and adventure, Silent Hill’s straight-up horror made it noteworthy.
9 Resident Evil: Mass Appeal
To its credit, Resident Evil also spawned many similar games that have tried to capture the same energy of this series. Even further, the series became something of a poster figure for the PS1 as its success brought millions of new fans to the system.
The game spread to arcades, TV media, among other extended promotions, to the point where the PS1 classic came across as the ultimate title to possess. The mass appeal Resident Evil brought has seen the legacy of the PlayStation reach the height it has now.
8 Silent Hill: Gameplay Mechanics
Resident Evil has been singled out on occasion for having bad gameplay mechanics here and there. Silent Hill gets praised because it embraced its thematic quality. The protagonist isn’t empowered with combat skills, which makes the gameplay all the more thrilling. This wasn’t the norm in the PS1 era either, as games almost always had mechanics that favored the player. Silent Hill turned it around by focusing on the narrative in its gameplay, standing out for being so innovative.
7 Resident Evil: Focus On Characters
Resident Evil has brought incredible characters over the years. It started out with the first game, where Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine took the world by storm. PS1 fans loved how they offered unique characterizations despite having the same mission.
At the time, it was common for action or survival titles to focus more on gameplay rather than carving out characters. Resident Evil arrived to present engaging protagonists and a superb antagonist as well. This also set the stage for future games in its series.
6 Silent Hill: Unique Atmosphere
Level design wasn’t really the priority of developers back in the day. For this reason, it’s incredible the lengths Silent Hill managed to achieve on the PS1. The game is lauded for bringing a chilling atmosphere forward, and it has aged remarkably well.
The design of the environment is the winning factor here, nothing like anything else available on the PS1. It made players scared of the surrounding themselves, augmenting the experience further as simply walking around counted as part of the fun in gameplay.
5 Resident Evil: Blending Of Genres
Resident Evil is credited for bringing forward some of the best tropes in survival-horror games. What gamers are used to these days was revolutionary during the PS1 era, as Resident Evil not only served as a horror game but also as a mixture of survival and action.
Its effective use of puzzles brought in an intellectual aspect, which made Resident Evil one of the most complete games ever to be made at the time. Retroactively, the first game is even more significant since the following entries haven’t managed to match the blending of styles the original has.
4 Silent Hill: Storyline
Horror games during the PS1 era followed a similar script, in that there would be some scares on-screen, along with a story where the main character basically had to go from one place to another. Silent Hill changed this up by bringing in an emotional tale.
The story of Harry Mason searching for his daughter was implemented within gameplay as well, with the character having to dig deep into his own memories to uncover the way forward. The game also made fans invested in its cutscenes, something that was mostly skipped by players of other horror games.
3 Resident Evil: Soundtrack
The horror landscape when Resident Evil had debuted featured extremely generic soundtracks. The PS1 wasn’t known to offer games that had any real variety here until Resident Evil arrived.
The soundtrack even has many dull, drawn-out moments, which makes the locations even creepier. During times of duress, the music picks up to signal how things are going into high gear.
2 Silent Hill: Monsters That Tie Into The Story
Gamers debate over whether Resident Evil or Silent Hill has the scarier monsters. As far as depth is concerned, it has to be the latter series. This isn’t because of the fear factor involved, but because it ties into the story as well.
The game had Harry confront his deepest fears, meaning the monsters were manifestations of the protagonist’s own psyche. This made players intrigued over which foe they were to battle next, as it provided more insight into the main character.
1 Resident Evil: Long-Lasting Impact
Resident Evil had enough material in it for future games to capitalize on several points. The game’s combat style is such that future games were able to divert into the action genre. The horror mechanics are such that Resident Evil also has several games purely circling around horror. The title’s legacy extends toward other franchises too, seeing as they’ve used the first Resident Evil as the template for a successful game.