Morning Walk

 This damp, foggy morning had me hoping that hellmode had descended upon our town during my walk to work! I keep waiting for monsters to emerge from that mist....

The Real Silent Hill: Centralia PA

Centralia, Pennsylvania, a ghost town that may be a little more comparable to hell on Earth.

Could it be true? Silent Hill is inspired by a real place! Centralia is a borough located in Columbia County, Pennsylvania. Since 1981, its population has dwindled from over 1,000 to its current number of seven. (The fact that even seven people still live there is baffling.) If you take a minute to look on any recently published maps, Centralia isn’t there – it has been wiped away from geographic recordings of history. Even with the few people that live there, Centralia is a ghost town.

Why anyone would remain here, I have no clue.

Here’s the story of Centralia:

In 1962, some volunteer firemen were brought in to burn the town’s landfill, which happened to be located on an abandoned strip mine. The strip mine was connected to a massive coal vein running near the surface. When the firemen lit the landfill on fire, they also happened to light the coal vein, causing a massive fire to burn beneath Centralia.

Seriously, stay away from Centralia.

Let me point something out though: the fire went unnoticed for seventeen years, from 1962 to 1979. Remember, coal burns very slowly, and a massive vein burns even slower. For seventeen years, the whole town was living normal lives above a gigantic coal-burning fire, unaware of the extreme danger they were in.

In 1979, a gas-station owner, and then mayor, John Coddington, tested the fuel level in his gas tanks. He noticed the fuel was hot, much too hot for normal storing conditions. He tested the temperature and found it to be at 172 degrees Fahrenheit. But, the problem did not receive massive attention until 1981, when a sinkhole that was four feet wide by 150 feet deep suddenly opened underneath the feet of a 12-year-old resident.

One of the many sinkholes in Centralia.

Now, you may be thinking, “Phew, glad Centralia is dealt with and that fire is out.” Wrong, the fire is still burning today. There has been a massive, toxin-spewing fire burning underneath the town of Centralia for the last 49 years. And seven people still live there…

Centralia, as it can be seen today.

If you don't hear from me...you'll know why!

A Tribute to Pyramid Head

Just got back from watching Silent Hill Revelation, and I would like to take a moment to pay tribute to my favourite monster of all time...Pyramid Head. Could he be any hotter??

Props to the talented Roberto Campanella, a professional ballet dancer and choreographer, who portrays Pyramid Head in both of the Silent Hill movies and does an incredible job of bringing the sexy terrifying creature to life.
Here is a rilly rilly interesting video of the choreography for all the silent hill 
monsters. 

Here's to you Pyramid Head, Man/Monster of my dreams!!

Sexytime

Silent Hill, Downpour: The stuff of Nightmares or Fantasy?

As you may know, the latest Silent Hill game Downpour was released just last night, and it certainly did not disappoint! Straight from the twisted, macabre mind of Konami, every scene is really dripping in atmosphere, shrouded in mist and fraught with tension! The game-makers really paid close attention to detail and sound. 

Just in the first couple hours of gameplay there were some surprises that had us screaming with fear. There is a lot of mystery and weird, disturbing side stories; The combat is pretty gory and satisfying. True to Silent Hill style, the game is very dark and often you only have the meager light from a zippo for help.
By the end of five straight hours of gameplay we were rocking ourselves in the  fetal position, weeping softly and bashing  in the skulls of anything that twitched within our field of vision.

There are ever-present creepy old radios and tvs chiming in with unsettling, ironic music right when things are getting really tense. There are also clues all over so keep an eye open.

The main character is an escaped convict on the run; the female characters leave something to be desired as with most video-games, but overall I highly recommend checking this out...the graphics and attention to creepy are better than ever and the monsters are....shiver...well we won't talk about them. 

Lets just say this is the type of game that stays with you in the daylight hours, making you constantly scan the area for weapons and look over your shoulder for creepy crawlies...be sure and check it out, and keep your wits about you!!

Pick-axe, the weapon of choice

Just turn around right now...