Current Events > Just finished the first Silemt Hill for the first time

(+) Yeah! (+)

Don't spoil 2 whatever you do. Just experience it as it happens.

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Yeah, SH2 is a bit more reliant on its plot than the first one. Avoid any spoilers people dumbly post ITT.

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i only played a bit of the first one back in the day. my friend didn't have a memory card so the furthest i got was the school. chicken out as soon as the mini monsters with claws showed up.

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Well I'm at the point where you're escorting Maria along trying to look for Laura in the hospital I can definitely tell this is more plot driven and the NPCs have more to do with the happenings of the game
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What the hell is this zombie with the cover on its head that keeps showing up? I guess it isnt a zombie/monster but earlier in a scene it looked like it was trying to fuck some of the monsters or whatever Still dude is annoying.
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WaterLink posted...

What the hell is this zombie with the cover on its head that keeps showing up? I guess it isnt a zombie/monster but earlier in a scene it looked like it was trying to fuck some of the monsters or whatever Still dude is annoying.

That's Pyramid Head. He likes to get freaky!

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Ok, fuck that brat Laura. Also just like the first game when you start hearing the sirens then things are going down. just beat those monsters hanging from the ceiling after Laura locks you in the room and I guess I got transported to the otherworld and heard Mary's voice. Is she trapped in the otherworld and not really dead? Guess I'll find out
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Blitzkrieg182 posted...

Yeah well you should have played it as a child when it came out. I can still remember when the world turned the first time. I think the school creeped me out the most.

i cant even play the damn game because of that

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I ain't gonna lie, I hate the main character in this game so far. He ran into Eddie puking in the toilet and just left him there. Ran into Angela a couple of times at the beginning and in the apartments. The latter time she kind of flipped out and left so I can't blame him for that but at the beginning he didnt even ask her name and just left. Now he just let Maria get killed after running into the elevator first like a pussy. Fuck this dude
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Blitzkrieg182 posted...

Yeah well you should have played it as a child when it came out. I can still remember when the world turned the first time. I think the school creeped me out the most.

Yeah... I didnt even finish the game at the time. Still havent. Because of the school....

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So update and huge spoilers for SH2...

just did the boss fight with Eddie. And before I fought him I had to go through the graveyard and there were 3 graves that were dug but not filled yet...one was for Eddie, one was for Angela, and the last one was.....for James. And Eddie talked about how this town "called him too". I always did dislike this main character but now I'm getting the sense that he also killed his wife. One thing of note, Maria had memories that Mary had so I'm assuming they're the same person but kind of an apparition like Alessa was in the first game. Still dont know where Laura fits into all this but I did take note there werent any graves for Maria or Laura.
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Just got to the hotel. Its daytime now and I've been going at it all night and it seems like a good stopping point to save for later. I need to sleep a bit plus this game doesnt have the same atmosphere during the daytime so I'll continue it and possibly finish tonight. But I am digging it.
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Finished 2. It was pretty damn good. Immediately made me want to jump into 3 because it's a direct sequel to 1. And so far I'm kind of mad that they got rid of the sirens signaling the world changing. It's changed twice so far in 3 and they didn't happen. The sirens made it more ominous imo
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WaterLink posted...

Finished 2. It was pretty damn good. Immediately made me want to jump into 3 because it's a direct sequel to 1.

IDR if this was mentioned, but are you playing original SH2 and SH3 or the SH HD Collection (SH2, SH3)?

In either case, for which system?
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The originals.
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If you have whatever the expanded version of 2 was called in the US, the one with Maria's extra story in it, check that out. It's short but good. 3 is great though. Best combat (play on hard and learn to parry in melee, super fun) and probably the scariest. 2 is just such a great story though, and has the best endings. 3 has probably the worst endings in the series (the second ending is the bad ending and you have to beat the game once to get it, why?).

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ssjevot posted...

If you have whatever the expanded version of 2 was called in the US, the one with Maria's extra story in it, check that out.

"Born From a Wish", in Silent Hill 2: Restless Dreams (XBox) and the Hits versions of SH2 for both XBox and PS2 (also available in the PC and HD Collection versions).
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andri_g posted...

"Born From a Wish", in Silent Hill 2: Restless Dreams (XBox) and the Hits versions of SH2 for both XBox and PS2 (also available in the PC and HD Collection versions).

Yeah that's it. I knew it wasn't a translation of the Japanese title (Saigo no Uta, Last Song), but I forgot what it was called.

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WaterLink posted...

I definitely wanna experience 2 & 3 though after this. Is there any continuity or is it a GTA type deal where they're all their own independent things?

1 & 3 are connected, 2 & 4 are connected

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Am I the only one that thinks Silent Hill 1's graphics hold up? Maybe that's the wrong word, but I loved how it took advantage of the limited technology - the mist and low visibility due to limited rendering actually made me jump a few times when a fire hydrant turned out to actually me a zombie ape (or w/e)

Ruvan22 posted...

Am I the only one that thinks Silent Hill 1's graphics hold up? Maybe that's the wrong word, but I loved how it took advantage of the limited technology - the mist and low visibility due to limited rendering actually made me jump a few times when a fire hydrant turned out to actually me a zombie ape (or w/e)

Well this game came out when I was 10. If I had played it back then, back when it first came out, yeah it'd have freaked me out. And replaying it would still invoke those memories, just like playing FF7 these days I can overlook how shitty it looks because at the time I thought it was great.

But being a 30 year old who never got to experience the game when it came out, and having played various other games with creepy settings with modern graphics , Bioshock and Amnesia come to mind, I'm a little desensitized to witnessing Silent Hill for the first time I guess and don't have the nostalgia to draw back on.

I still really loved the game. And I definitely see its influence immediately on other things I already love. Like Stranger Things I immdiately made a connection to and I was like "Oh there's no way they didn't draw from this when making that show". So I'm glad to traverse through an important point in VG history for the first time even if the experience isnt the same if I had played it when it first came out, if that makes any sense.

That said, SH3 has so far scared me more and hit me in the feels more than either SH1 or 2. Really digging this one
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Silent Hill 2 is my personal favorite; has some pretty freaky moments too, but most of the silent hill's are moare about general atmosphere and story telling than straight up scares like something like Outlast is.

3 is also really good, but 2 has a better story IMO. 2 does it's own thing, 3 is a direct sequel to 1.

Homecoming and Downpour aren't nearly as bad as some people claim, they're worth playing, but def play them after 2 and 3; they're a lot more flawed than the first 3 games, better to go into them after you've played the really good ones, and then jsut appreciate what you can from Homecoming and Downpour.

I haven't played 4 or Origins, but I have heard 4 get more praise than any of the other non-OG-3 games.

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Didnt expect a new orleans reference in this game lmao.

So far I'm gonna have say 3 is definitely my favorite so far. Unless it some tanks towards the end but I've had the best time playing this one. Didn't help I never liked James as a character
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3 is the best one IMO


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WafflehouseJK posted...

I haven't played 4 or Origins, but I have heard 4 get more praise than any of the other non-OG-3 games.

Common reactions to events in...
- Non-SH 4 SH games: "WTF is that?"
- SH 4: "WTWTF is that?" (meta-hangry!)
- SH 0rigins: "NFW!" (boss, and *weapon breaks*)
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SH4 is weird, but still good.

1. The "Room" isn't actually in Silent Hill, you go through some weird tunnel to get there
2. Instead of doing Light-Dark as you progress through the world, you do all the light stages first, then all the dark stages.
3. There's enemies that can chase you across entire acts and you can't kill them.
4. The story implies some really weird shit. Like, far more bizarre than any previous game.

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I'm a good ways into 4...and I think I'm about to cash out. This game is frustrating as fuck. I love the direction the story is going, and there were some really scary moments. But the mechanics of this game...at the beginning they were cool because you were making progress each time you did...a certain thing. But now it's just tedious. And I kept getting hurt the last couple times I did it, and I didnt know why or what to do so I consulted a guide and apparently I need to use certain items and I didnt know about them before. I'm probably destined for a bad ending now.

Also, big spoilers and I'm about to go on a complaint rant. Am I seriously going to be burdened with Eileen the rest of the damn game? Seriously? The rest of this game is a big escort mission? And I have to manage my inventory by going back to the apartment and risk being haunted as well as the only way to save my game? And having your ammo take slots in your inventory the way it does is bullshit. Like 10 pistol rounds takes a slot, 6 revolver rounds takes a slot, etc. And you have limited amounts to begin with and if you want to give Eileen a weapon then it still takes up a precious slot in your inventory. Also it's a big guessing game when you'll need certain items so you may dump some items only to find out you need them and then you have to go back yet again to retrieve them and yet again risk being haunted. Why the hell would they design the game this way?

I'll try to finish it later but honestly it's starting to be too frustrating to bear. Some of the things they tried to do probably sounded a lot better in theory than the way they actually turned out. If this was a movie or something it would work out a lot better but game design wise, it just isn't fun. I'm all for trying to make a game challenging going but bad and tedious game design isn't the way to go about it.

I was legitimately scared though at many point of this game and the monster designs are probably the best they've had so far. And I'm really curious to see how this story unfolds. The only thing that's keeping me playing right now but honestly I think I'm at a point where I've kinda fucked myself from a progression standpoint.
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You can just completely ignore Eileen and still get the good ending by using a candle on her near the end of the game. I had no idea about this and got the good ending playing on hard and it was indeed frustrating as fuck keeping her safe (I usually abandoned her in safe areas then went back for her).

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WaterLink posted...

I'm probably destined for a bad ending now.

*A* good ending is a challenge to get because of your escortee. I got it, but I had a walkthrough, plus a few other resources, for obscure spots in the game.

From MillersC's guide [something developers might not have intended, but the game does allow...]:
"What you must do is when inside the Superintendants room, 105, is light a HOLY CANDLE [one is available in apartment world, second time, Room 206] at Eileen's feet just before you pick up the UMBILICAL CORD and triggering the cutscene. Wait until the candle has burnt out completely to maximise its effects."
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how do you go thru these games so fast

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TC, going back to Silent Hill 2, I want to ask you a few questions if you don't mind, just want to know your thoughts.

1. Why do you think the Pyramid Head existed and followed James?
2. Why do you think a 2nd Pyramid Head appeared near the end?
3. Why do you think the 2 Pyramid Heads killed themselves?
4. Did you realize why you did not like James Sunderland as a character/person?
5. Who was your actual favorite character after completing the game?
6. Did you feel sorry for any of the characters? If so, why?

I apologize if these come off as a classroom quiz or some shit, I just really love Silent Hill and always enjoy hearing new players thoughts on their first experience of SH2.

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Ruvan22 posted...

Am I the only one that thinks Silent Hill 1's graphics hold up? Maybe that's the wrong word, but I loved how it took advantage of the limited technology - the mist and low visibility due to limited rendering actually made me jump a few times when a fire hydrant turned out to actually me a zombie ape (or w/e)

They definitely did a lot with the extremely limited PS1 system considering you can explore so much of the town without forced loading zones, so I feel you.

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Ruvan22 posted...

Am I the only one that thinks Silent Hill 1's graphics hold up? Maybe that's the wrong word, but I loved how it took advantage of the limited technology - the mist and low visibility due to limited rendering actually made me jump a few times when a fire hydrant turned out to actually me a zombie ape (or w/e)

No, I do too. it's probably the most well realized depiction of a city in a game from that time period that there is

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ultimate reaver posted...

No, I do too. it's probably the most well realized depiction of a city in a game from that time period that there is

Check out Vagrant Story. It pushed the PS1 to the limit and the setting is fantastic. The Japan only Hokuto no Ken game for PS1 also had some amazing 3D city scenes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYv__iaW0g0

Game looks so good it's hard to believe it was PS1.

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ssjevot posted...

The Japan only Hokuto no Ken game for PS1 also had some amazing 3D city scenes

The gameplay reminds me of GEN/MD's Last Battle (a Fist of the North Star game with a different name). The visuals remind me of PS2's Summoner, but HnK looks better.
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Check out Vagrant Story. It pushed the PS1 to the limit and the setting is fantastic.

It's funny you should mention VS. I bought it, tried the Front Mission 3 demo (wow! 8O) and I immediately bought and started playing FM3. I haven't played VS, yet.
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FM3 is so good I can't complain. I love that game. I believe the 1st one was released in the US on DS (it has a good story, but the battle system is pretty boring), but I don't think the 2nd one ever got released outside Japan which is too bad, because it's really good. FM3 is probably my favorite though.

But anyway back to Silent Hill. After finishing 4 instead of playing the outsourced crap check out Siren, made by members of Team Silent (also the same people who went on to make the amazing, but definitely not horror, Gravity Daze series).

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Ruvan22 posted...

Am I the only one that thinks Silent Hill 1's graphics hold up? Maybe that's the wrong word, but I loved how it took advantage of the limited technology - the mist and low visibility due to limited rendering actually made me jump a few times when a fire hydrant turned out to actually me a zombie ape (or w/e)

Speaking as someone who didn't play original SH1 until a couple years ago, they super hold up. The dithering combined with the lighting makes for a really cool and oppressive style that can't be replicated. It's the only realistic looking PS1 game that could never benefit from a remake.

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SoundNetwork posted...

how do you go thru these games so fast

I mean, the quarantine gives me a lot of free time to play them and they haven't been particularly long games

The-19th-Sparta posted...

TC, going back to Silent Hill 2, I want to ask you a few questions if you don't mind, just want to know your thoughts.

Why do you think the Pyramid Head existed and followed James?
Why do you think a 2nd Pyramid Head appeared near the end?
Why do you think the 2 Pyramid Heads killed themselves?
Did you realize why you did not like James Sunderland as a character/person?
Who was your actual favorite character after completing the game?
Did you feel sorry for any of the characters? If so, why?
I apologize if these come off as a classroom quiz or some shit, I just really love Silent Hill and always enjoy hearing new players thoughts on their first experience of SH2.

1. Well seeing as they killed Maria multiple times in front of him I guess to try to remind him of what he did?
2. Hmm I never gave that much thought. There were actually 3 though right? Two of them were on each side of Maria and the third actually drove the spear in. Maybe they represented Eddie and Angela who had died (Angela was implied after walking up the stairs into the fire)
3. I guess they felt like their torture of him was done since he had figured out that he killed Mary by that point. Which begs the question why they fought James in the first place but idk maybe it was to buy time for Maria on the roof to get ready?
4. Well besides the reasons I mentioned in my previous post, he did seem a little on the selfish side though I kinda do sympathize with his plight though when it came to Mary by the end. Though the game said she both asked to die and also didn't want to die so maybe James made the decision for her. IDK, he seemed guilty about it all
5. By the end of it? I sympathized the most with Angela and none of the characters were particularly likable. I kind did enjoy Maria throughout the game though.
6. Angela by far was the most sympathetic. Eddie was bullied, I get it but he was a psychopath. Angela was depressed and molested by her father and it was enabled by her mother and was depressed about what she did to the point of suicide.

ssjevot posted...

But anyway back to Silent Hill. After finishing 4 instead of playing the outsourced crap check out Siren, made by members of Team Silent (also the same people who went on to make the amazing, but definitely not horror, Gravity Daze series).

Yeah 4 really drained me so I was about to take a break from this series anyway. I may come back to this series later on to play the others but I do kind of want to start another horror series as I've been craving them lately so thanks for the Siren suggestion! To my understanding the others weren't as good once the original team left the series but I'm still curious. They aren't bad to the point of being unplayable are they?

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WaterLink posted...

They aren't bad to the point of being unplayable are they?

It depends on who you ask, all of them except two were outsourced to different Western studios. The two that got the same studio are by Climax Studios and are Silent Hill Origins which is pretty fun even if the story directly contradicts stuff in the other games and it isn't scary at all as well as Shattered Memories which is a pretty interesting reimagining of the original game, but has really uninteresting gameplay. I guess I recommend the PSP and Wii version respectively. The other games in my opinion are straight garbage. Some may tell you otherwise but I see no reason to play them at all when there are so many good horror games out there.

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I see. I also have never played any Resident Evil games. Well, I did play one of them briefly at a friends house as a kid but not enough to count really. I did play the Amnesia games and Bioshock has some horror elements. But overall I'm not well versed in the horror genre at all and I guess my goal is to dive in a bit on the titles I've missed.

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WaterLink posted...

But overall I'm not well versed in the horror genre at all and I guess my goal is to dive in a bit on the titles I've missed.

Edit: Actually, after thinking about PS1 horror games, Parasite Eve and Galerians were pretty interesting (...must love tank controls).
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Yeah, Fatal Frame, Clocktower, Resident Evil, Parasite Eve, Galerians, Evil Within, Rule of Rose, Haunting Ground, Kuon, lots of good stuff to check out before the bad Silent Hill games.

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I do still have F.E.A.R in my Steam backlog. I remember really liking it but my computer died in the middle of my playthrough back in the day and I never picked it back up when I got a new computer. I'm think I might try to play through that again as my next venture and then take on the resident evil series
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WaterLink posted...

I do still have F.E.A.R in my Steam backlog.

The Extraction Point and Perseus Mandate add-on mission DLCs (aka, F.E.A.R. Files) are great.
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ssjevot posted...

... the bad Silent Hill games.

I've played and beaten all of the SH games; imo, none of them are bad.**

** Some SH games follow and incorporate signature SH themes more closely than others.
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I will maintain that Homecoming and Downpour aren't that bad.

But also I recognize I'm in the minority.

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WafflehouseJK posted...

I will maintain that Homecoming and Downpour aren't that bad.

But also I recognize I'm in the minority.

you strip away the atmosphere, design, monsters, soul etc... and you get a mediocre beat em up game and that's what the western silent hills are

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SoundNetwork posted...

you strip away the atmosphere, design, monsters, soul etc... and you get a mediocre beat em up game and that's what the western silent hills are

But they do have atmosphere, design, and some of the monsters in Downpour are pretty dope (they do kinda suck in Homecoming, admittedly), and I'd argue Downpour at least does have soul. I like Downpour even more than Homecoming because I feel like it was SUPER close to being an amazing Silent Hill game. The story was there, the protagonist was interesting, it had the coolest "big bad" since Pyramid Head, and one of my all time favorite Silent Hill puzzles was in Downpour, the one where you have to make the stage play.

Where Downpour (and Homecoming too, for that matter) really suffer is in the combat elements. The combat mechanics in Downpour are fucking stupid, and the fact that the "good" ending requires not killing any enemies when it's almost impossible to do so given the way combat and certain levels are designed is real dumb. I also think going for a semi-open world layout hurt Downpour, they should have kept the focus more linear and on the main story, cause the main story was actually pretty interesting. But overall, I really enjoyed Downpour. I thought the atmosphere and story was almost on par with the first 3 games.

Homecoming I enjoyed, but don't see myself ever replaying. Downpour though? I honestly could play through again, it's flawed, but there's enough bright spots to make it worth it.

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WafflehouseJK posted...

... [in Downpour] the "good" ending requires...

I was able to play and reload to watch several endings: Forgiveness (Good: +score, spare Anne), Full Circle (Bad: +score, kill Anne), and Role Reversal (Worst?: Anne kills you), even after I killed every enemy that didn't "social distance". lol

For the "good" endings do not kill enemies that have fallen on the ground--they usually bleed-out, but can get up and attack again--iow, don't *execute* enemies.

[ I executed enemies, but I still had a positive score b/c I made helpful/merciful choices for everything else. ]

The surprise (Best?) ending is hilarious: characters from different SH games throw you a party. Pyramid Head lumbers out, cutting the cake and the table it's on in half. LOL!!!

** Apologies for so many spoiler tags, but TC/others might want a "blind" Downpour playthrough experience.
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[ Btw, I enjoyed Homecoming because enemies *and* the character have action moveset skills/attacks. ]
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I really liked Downpour and thought it was the best SH title since the original Team Silent trilogy by a good hundred country miles. I remember being very disappointed to learn that they would stop producing titles after they finally made a decent game in my eyes...then I got disappointed again after P.T. was cancelled but that's a different subject.

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Homecoming had some good things about it but the writers clearly didnt grasp the lore much at all

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