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Silent Hill 2 is often regarded as the pinnacle of the horror genre, going head-to-head with some of the best Resident Evil games for the crown. However, no Resident Evil game can compare to Silent Hill 2 when it comes to endings–or at least one secret ending that has stood the test of time over the last 20 years. In fact, today is its 20-year anniversary.
We are, of course, talking about the “Dog” ending, which can only be seen after finishing multiple other endings for Silent Hill 2 and finding a key that is, appropriately enough, in a doghouse. Finishing the game this way seems to imply that the entirety of the events have been orchestrated by a Shiba Inu dog. After revealing this shocking secret, the credits roll, with the music backed by the percussive beat of a dog’s bark.
More than that, though, the ending also includes a slideshow of sorts that seems to imply the developers knew how cheesy some aspects of the “actual” game were–and we don’t just mean because there is a spinning pizza. It then gets weirdly sensual for about two seconds before the credits end.
This sort of self-referential and campy humor was a signature element of early horror games (Jill sandwich, anyone?) but it has, thankfully, not been completely omitted from more horror titles. Terrifying as it often is, Resident Evil Village also features some truly goofy characters, and protagonist Ethan Winters in particular seems to have been written as an airheaded dork on purpose.
As for the Silent Hill series, despite rumors of reboots and sequels, we have yet to see anything concrete from publisher Konami. The company famously canceled a planned new entry, Silent Hills, taking its teaser PT off the PlayStation Store and eventually causing Norman Reedus, Hideo Kojima, and Guillermo del Toro to collaborate on Death Stranding, instead. That game’s Director’s Cut just so happens to be out today, also.
