The 11 best Silent Hill 2 remake mods

What are the best Silent Hill 2 remake mods? With almost every new PC game release, there is always a team of modders waiting in the wings to treat us to the coolest, funniest, and weirdest mods you can imagine. Naturally, the Silent Hill 2 remake was one such release.

Now over a year old, perhaps you're looking to revisit the classic town of Silent Hill again, maybe even after a runthrough of Silent Hill f. Whatever your reason for wanting a fresh take on Silent Hill 2, our list of the top SH2 remake mods vary from subtle changes and fixes to improve the horror game, to all-out overhauls, including Pyramid the Tank Engine and Leon Kennedy appearing in the wrong franchise.

The best Silent Hill 2 mods are:

Realistic Weapon Audio Overhaul

Weapon sounds are an oft-discussed element of video games, and their realism and power is essential to an immersive experience - especially in survival and horror games. Oakous, creator of the RWAO mod for Silent Hill 2, decided that the guns in the horror game remake weren't quite up to scratch, so has made some brand-new, more realistic weapon sound effects. While we think the overall sound design is one of the best elements of the remake, we have to agree that Oakous' gunshot are far superior to the vanilla game sounds.

Pyramid the Tank Engine

We promise there are some serious mods in this list. Thomas the Tank Engine doesn't fit the Silent Hill aesthetic, but since it was added to Skyrim, it seems you can't have a moddable game these days without seeing Thomas the Tank engine's smiling face making an appearance.

In Pyramid the Tank Engine, Thomas replaces Pyramid Head. Of course. We're not actually sure which is more terrifying. We just happen to have a guide on how to beat Pyramid Head in the Silent Hill 2 remake as well, which can, of course, be applied to Thomas, too.

Ultra Plus Fixes

Here's a more sensible Silent Hill 2 mod. Ultra Plus Fixes and Visual improvements makes some sweeping changes to improve the performance and visuals. We didn't have too many issues during our Silent Hill 2 review, but there are definitely issues with stuttering, while this mod also improves reflection, particles, and other minor graphical details.

Silent Hill 2 HD collection

If you've ever played the Silent Hill HD collection on console, featuring Silent Hill 2 and 3, you'll know there are some… issues with it. Problems with the original Silent Hill code made it difficult to port the game properly, so it has bugs and other performance problems. What it doesn't have, however, is fog. Well, it does, but not much of it. And that's exactly what FrancisLouis is going for with this Silent Hill 2 HD collection remake mod.

The Silent Hill 2 remake is a beautiful homage to the original, and it looks fantastic - for a modern game, and the intense fog is the most defining characteristic of the town of Silent Hill. However, if you'd rather be able to see the deteriorating landscape around you - and any mannequins creeping up on you - then you can see a lot clearer with this mod.

Sunny Hills

Or take things even further with the Sunny Hills mod! Not only is there now no fog, but the sun has finally decided to shine above to town, and you'd be mistaken for thinking you, James, and Maria were just on a cheerful summer getaway. Just look at those rays shining down on Rosewater park!

We're not afraid to say that, in some scenes, this delightful dose of vitamin D does take away from the spooky aesthetic of Silent Hill 2, but when you pair it with the fog, it somehow makes it even harder to see. We all know what it's like when the sun's glare hit you in just the wrong place, so just hope that doesn't happen when a mannequin or roach is crawling around your feet.

Classic Angela

You might remember that, in the run-up to the Silent Hill 2 remake release date, many fans took issue with the character models for the new game, Angela in particular. We are, especially since she actually looks more her intended age, but if you aren't a fan of the new Angela - played by Silent Hill 2 remake voice actor Gianna Kiehl - then have we got the mod for you.

Classic Angela by NorskPL, as you can imagine, replaces the new Angela model with the old one, so you'll feel like you're right back in 2001. Aside from, well, everything else about the new game.

Robbie the Rabbit Hat

If you purchased the Deluxe edition of Silent Hill 2, you can run around the town as James wearing a pizza box Pyramid Head mask. If you pre-ordered the Deluxe edition of Silent Hill 2 you can also smash Bubble Heads while wearing a Mira the dog head (from that Silent Hill 2 ending). But someone's missing.

Fortunately, FrancisLouis has come to the rescue with another mod, this time adding a Robbie the Rabbit Hat for our anti-protagonist. Robbie is better associated with Silent Hill 3 as the mascot for the Lakeside Amusement Park, but he's still a staple of the series. You can don his pink head, complete with a bloody maw, with this simple mod.

Improved Weapon Balance

While we understand why the developers felt the need to make James feel weak within the context of the game, there are moments where we wish our arsenal of weapons dealt a little bit more damage. Fortunately, it seems others have shared our pain, including Andrew Creekmore, the developer of the Improved Weapon Balance mod. This mod carefully tweaks each weapon category to give you additional firepower, and there are multiple versions of the mod to tweak the settings to your liking.

Play as RE4R Leon

Thomas the Tank Engine. Robbie the Rabbit. Classic Angela. There are already plenty of Silent Hill 2 mods that replace character models with new (or old) ones, but this one might just be our favorite.

Silent Hill 2 might be among our favorite games, but James Sunderland isn't one of our favorite characters, you know, from a personality perspective. Leon Kennedy, however? Now, that's a cute little rookie we can get behind. SpiritHun is out here doing god's work by adding the Resident Evil 4 Remake Leon to Silent Hill 2, so you can take that sexy, floppy-haired cop to a new town now that Raccoon City is no more.

Hair Sheen Removal

Speaking of gorgeous locks, some people apparently think James', well, aren't. If you're put off by the unnatural shine of James Sunderland's oily hair, then Eggo's Hair Sheen Removal mod mattifies his hair so that shine won't distract you from survival.

No Intro

A classic, but it's a classic for a reason, as no one wants to watch the same intro videos every time they boot up the game. The No Intro mod ensures you can get into Silent Hill 2 as soon as possible - while it doesn't skip absolutely everything, it will shave off some time from your initial boot up.

Stay tuned as we'll be keeping an eye on the best Silent Hill 2 remake mods as they come in. For now, we've got you covered, whether you simply want the puzzle game to look a little less scary, or whether you want to play as your favorite characters from some of the other best PC games out there.