An under-appreciated game that is not without its quirks, but is still worth a try.
The main story arch revolves around the protagonist, Alex Shepard, who arrives back in his childhood hometown of Shepard's Glen after being wounded in battle. Upon reuniting with his mother, he discovers his younger brother, Josh, is missing and sets out to find him, encountering various demonic creatures.
As the player controls Alex and progresses through the game, they are able to add a modest selection of weaponry to their arsenal, ranging from a combat knife to a rifle, as well as unlockable weapons on consecutive playthroughs. While such a variety of weapons may seem to make the game appear as an "action-adventure", there is actually very little ammunition compared to the amount of enemies which need to be confronted, meaning conservation of bullets is of utmost importance. The melee weapons provided, some being fast as others are slower, provide more than just a challenge of hand to hand combat with a nightmarish horror. Being too close to certain fixtures in the backgrounds (i.e. walls, tables, etc.) will cause you to become wide open for an assault, leading to your ultimate demise on more than one occasion.
There are well known bugs within the game as well, with some being humorous to others being downright frustrating. While laughing at monsters stuck on fixtures in the game world may be all well and good, the infamous second boss, who shall remain nameless, has been known since the game's original release to "glitch", thus making it impossible to beat. There is nothing more frustrating than having to redo one of the toughest fights in the game because of some technical error. Ugh!
For those who enjoy "collection" achievements/trophies, Homecoming offers three different item types to collect: serums, photographs, and children's drawings. Why is someone leaving experimental, health-boosting drugs lying around? I have no idea, but I'll take 'em! Unfortunately however, to get 100% of all the collectables you will be finding yourself running back a forth a lot to areas that had already served their purpose in the storyline.
Overall, Silent Hill: Homecoming is a decent game that had a lot of potential, but was ultimately neglected in its final stages of development. Although relatively old by game standards, it is still worth renting especially if you happen to be a survival-horror fan. While definitely not the best in the series, or the genre in general, it's still worth its weight in salt.