Forbidden Siren is the latest in a long line of Japanese horror titles such as Resident Evil, Silent Hill and Project Zero, all of which are far more likely to have you sleeping with the light on then any modern Hollywood slasher flick. Developed by the guy behind the original Silent Hill, Forbidden Siren shares that title's fetish for pea-souper-style fog, ineffectual torches and highly disturbing sound effects. The gameplay though has more in common with the recent Manhunt, as you try to sneak around a haunted Japanese village, avoiding combat wherever you can. This is further aided by the game's main gameplay gimmick: your ability to "sightjack" other characters so that you can see the world through their eyes--in the case of monsters so you can make a run for it while they're looking the other way.

The game is broken up into a large number of small levels and distributed among a wide range of characters, with a diverse range of abilities and items. All of this generally works very well, although it's quite slow paced and in truth not nearly as scary as the games it'd like to count as its peers. The biggest problem with the game by far though is the absolutely appalling voiceovers, whose thick London accents and generally poor delivery have you wincing every time you hear them. Thankfully the gameplay is just enough to make you forget such aural horrors and keeps your mind fixed on the game's more intentional ones. --David Jenkins

I tried at least 5 times to even get started in this game and i just couldn't.I only just managed to do the first level, which wasn't easy. It is impossibly difficult because you don't have enough means to defend yourself, it's very confusing when using the enemy view (yes you know you're being watched but you still don't know where the hell they are!).It is also incredibly slow and the command of the characters is slightly unnatural in their dialogue and overall movement. Somewhat robotic in fact.
I just gave up in the end as i completely lost the will to live trying to begin the game over and over again. If you like reading the phrase "game over" time and time again then this is for you. Don't get me wrong, i like a bit of a challenge but not a game which won't even allow you to get past the first 2 levels before being brutally slaughtered. Apart from the gloriously creepy feel and fairly clever graphics, this game totally sucks. Stay away from it.

I bought Forbidden Siren under the false impression that it would be a game along the lines of Silent Hill. After all, the original creator of Silent Hill was also the creator of this game.

Alas, it was not to be. Aside from the environment being similar and the wail of a siren to let the player know something is seriously wrong, they are worlds apart.

This is a stealth game, full-stop, with a horror theme. It is not really a survival horror in the sense of the word that most people understand e.g. Silent Hill & Resident Evil because it is ridiculously hard.
Enemies don't die, there is no map and the only 'advantage' (if you can call it that) for the player is their ability to 'sightjack' (view the action from another character's point of view) The problem with this is that it still doesn't give the player any reference as to where the enemy is. Oh, you see some trees and a shed but where is it in relation to you? There are millions of trees and sheds around.

As for enemies who carry guns, watch out! They have pinpoint accuracy when it comes to shooting. They practically never miss. People have said that it makes the game 'more realistic' because in reality you would die almost instantly. Yes, that's quite true. But this is not reality, it is fantasy and when I play a game, I want to enjoy it, not be watching an enemies' patrol route for 10 minutes before actually moving.

It is not that I don't appreciate games which use stealth: I love Tenchu and I like MGS but when it takes it to this extreme, it no longer becomes enjoyable.

This is all my own personal opinion and I have no doubt that there are plenty of people out there who would have the patience for a game like this and enjoy doing trial & error over and over again. Unfortunately, I am just not one of them.

I'm a hard core gamer and I have had Forbidden Siren for almost 2 years and I only completed it 4 days ago. It is unbelievable hard,it only takes 2 bullets and your character is dead, in the stages there are little or no clues on what to do, and the Shibito's are fantastic aimers, so once one sees you, you've had it. If you want a game that is scary and that you wont complete in 5 minutes, buy Forbidden Siren.

From the creator of the first Silent Hill comes a true masterpiece in its genre. It's not a game for everyone, because it's a little hard and requires a little bit of patience, but it has a great plot, wonderful characters and will scare the hell out of you. It's also really long for a survival horror and has wonderful graphics.

I finally bought this game last month and I`m enjoying very much. A great game. But it has to be said, this is NOT for casual gamers, its for hard core survival horror fans because its sooooo fiendishly difficult. While I enjoy the challenge this bring I do think, in some places its unfairly difficult. No in-game saves and if ya die and start again from a checkpoint everything you did before that is reset....come on, now thats just being cruel.
Yes the learing curve is almost vertical but your persistance is reward with one of the darkest most intresting stories around. (along with SH2)
The atmosphere is also top knotch. The enviroment is beautiful to look at and detailed, along with the characters giving it a ture horror movie feel.
As for the charcters, they all have their own stories and reasons for being there which gradually become clear through reading archive items and watching cutscenes. And its this jigsaw puzzle style story that will keep you intrested.

But if there is one thing that trips it up it got to be that terrible voice acting. Whoever thought that was exceptable needs to be fired and never allowed to work with games again. But once you stop cringing at it you can put up with it.

Overall, this is a great game and worth buying.