Warning: Spoilers
The story line of Silent Hill begins believably, which to me was a welcome change from the being thrown into zombies and various monster plots that were prevalent in horror games at the time. Harry Mason is an everyman type of character, an ordinary citizen lead into Silent Hill by the mysterious disappearance of his daughter Cheryl. Dream sequences are relied on a bit too heavily, especially near the end where Harry keeps waking up from one nightmare after another. But in the beginning the story is a tightly woven tale about Harry exploring the eerie atmosphere of thick fog with falling snow, abandoned cars, and vacant buildings that make everything just seem a little too quiet.
The first character he meets, Cybil, is a police officer who is subtle and surprisingly calm about where she is. With the exception of a possession that turns her against Harry in the latter half of the game, she is his strongest ally. Dahlia is the town looney who he comes across in the Balkan church. She speaks in riddles which for the most part sound nuts until later on when the pieces of the story fit together. The game doesn't really get spooky until the sun eclipses and Harry faces the dark side of Silent Hill. Pint sized demon children with knives are the most common enemy, and like zombies, they can only do severe damage if they gang up on you. What's more unsettling is the ghastly appearance of the halls and rooms Harry goes through. Rust, blood colored fungus, and no light except for the one he's carrying.
Dr. Mason is antagonistic towards Harry, especially when he finds him holding a red bottle of strange fluid in a garage. The last main character he meets is Lisa Garland, a terrified nurse who is trapped in the dark side of Silent Hill in a hospital. Harry offers to take her along with him, but for some strange reason she refuses, thinking that she belongs in this hospital from hell alone. When they meet later, Lisa hemorrhages into a sorrowful death. It would have been better if Harry was able to save her because there were so many interesting dynamics to their relationship that could've been explored. How would she/they have worked together to survive in Silent Hill? What would have become of them after the demon was defeated? She was way to good a character to leave sitting in a hospital just waiting to die more or less. The final battle is good and playing to see all the different endings made the game a true winner. The best weapon Harry can obtain is a laser like gun that can hit targets at long distances. And I was so curious to find out what was behind that locked door on the right side of the hall in the house where the three keys worked that it was kind of disappointing when all that was inside there was a samurai sword. I think other Silent Hill versions after this one were scarier, but this first installment was a strong effort from Konami.