70%PC

Decent Maria prequel. New weapons.

60%PC

Kind of pointless since this negates the story from the main game.

70%PlayStation 2

Good time, some additional back story for Maria, nothing special

70%Emulated

Considering I didn't really care for the base game, I'm surprised I liked this sub scenario as much as I did. This is mainly because I found the subject matter more interesting. The themes it deals with like slowly going insane, resigning to your fate and the idea of taking your own life but at the same time you consider your life precious enough that killing yourself is too painful to do. I found these concepts fascinating and the fact that this sub scenario made me reflect on all this much and it's only 30 minutes to finish is a testament to how less is more and how what you do with the time you are given can really elevate a piece of media.

Ernest Baldwin is also one of the most interesting characters in the series and is one of SH2's more interesting characters. Where the ambiguity in the base SH2 game I found annoying, the ambiguity here I found more intriguing since the subject matter resonates with me more. Does Ernest represent what little sanity Maria has left? Is learning that Baldwin wasn't really there basically just Maria slowly going insane and accepting her fate? Was doing his requests esstentially showing that Maria never had any control over her fate to begin with? The fact that I'm thinking about all this in a sub scenario that lasts 30 minutes is a rather impressive feat.

There is some nice songs here that wasn't in the base game like Terror in the Depths of the Fog and Morning Calm. I liked that Love Psalm played in the end credits.

As for the gameplay, it's basically SH2, monsters on normal difficulty die in 2 or 3 pistol bullets tops and you are showered with healing items and ammo, there is hardly any puzzles either. It kind of feels like an experimental indie game with just random sections of "shoot some monsters". There is no final boss either kind of furthur cementing this point. I did like that you got to visit a mansion a la Resident Evil even if it is much much smaller by comparison.

Apart of me wants to see if this gets the Resident Evil 4 Separate Ways(2023) treatment and there is full on adaptation expansion going on with this being a DLC expansion to the SH2 remake but only time will tell.

Overall, if you can find a way to play this, it's an interesting 30 minutes to an hour of gameplay you can find and something I can point to as a good example of "less is more".

85%PC

i really loved this prequel even though it was short, playing as Maria and learning more about her and Ernest was interesting and fun. i still have hopes that it will get a remake

80%Xbox

It’s a little extension for the original SH2. It’s cool for what it is, and can be beaten in just 1h and a half max. It is hard to considere it a separate thing to the game, but it’s understandable since it’s exclusive to the Greatest Hits (PS2)/SH2: Restless Dreams (Xbox) version(s). It’s a pity it’s so short.

The SH2 itself is hands down a 10/10. As an expansion/complementary scenario, this is a solid 8/10.

80%PC

Not much to say here because not much was added, but I think it was really interesting to learn about Ernest and his past. Was fun to play as Maria also.

80%PlayStation 3

Born from a Wish has some unsettling ambience and adds more complexity to Maria, though is very short.

60%PlayStation 2

Some insight into the character of Maria. How she is a creation of James and still a victim in this situation in many ways. I just don't think this was a necessary addition to SH2. It rehashes ideas we already knew or speculated.

60%PC

What was that?
Şimdi bu neydi?

80%PC

its aight

80%PC

An interesting glimpse into the mind of a certain pivotal character. I'll let you figure out who.

Worth a playthrough.

70%PlayStation 2

It was cool to play as Maria, like even the character walking movement was unique as her.

50%Emulated

Expansión muy corta que expande un poco la historia de Maria

50%PC

Not enough fog

50%PC

meh

60%PC

Short and simple. It's good. Doesn't expand too much on the story, but further solidifies Maria's origin as a figment of the town and James' grief.

70%PC

Nothing too special but a good palate cleanser to say goodbye to SH2 after finishing the main game.

80%PlayStation 2

Nice creepy little side story to Silent Hill 2. It's basically more of the same, but nothing wrong that that, since it's short and doesn't outstay its welcome.

80%PlayStation 3

Born from a wish is a pseudo prequel to the main game, is a nice compliment if you need more SH2 and also want to make a little more sense or to understand the main story.

You play as María, and similarly, as the main campaign you start the game with zero context and little info that you the player must unveil in the lapse of 1 or 2 hours, the story is as cryptic as ever for the most part at least, at some point you have some "direct hints" that are not so expositional but it sure gives you a lot of understanding to the character and the overall story of SH2.

Expect more or less the same kind of rhythm as the main campaign but in shorter bursts, if you like the original game you'll certainly like this extra slice, but don't think you'll find a lot, is just an extra slice of a good cake.

You play mainly in a new location that by the way is creepy and nice-looking, remind me more of Resident Evil. At some point towards the end, there's a puzzle that took me quite a bit of time, its clumsy execution made me re-do it with paper, a thing that I liked btw, but I can see how someone else would find it annoying and maybe cheap.

Overall, this side campaign is good, at some point even gave me an emotional punch which I didn't expect to give me, I say if you want more SH2 give it a go since is more or less a similar experience albeit an extremely condensed one, just make sure that you play it after beating the game not before, it sure is a "prequel" but it also hints you information about the main game that you're supposed to find towards the ending.

100%PlayStation 2

one of the best games ever made in human history
don't spoil this for yourself by looking it up beforehand
just go into it with a mind like a blank slate

60%PlayStation 2

When "Silent Hill 2" released on Xbox, it included a bonus sub-scenario called "Born From a Wish". In this vignette the player controls the character "Maria", shortly before she meets the primary protagonist James. Maria's tale here is difficult to describe without spoiling the entire thing. Let's just say overall it's a ghost story. Depending on how the player interpreted the plot of "Silent Hill 2", Maria's actual existence outside of James' awareness can be contemplated a few different ways. The truth of course is absolutely subjective, its verisimilitude tangible solely in the mind of the beholder. As by design.

+It's another interesting tale from Team Silent.
+The Baldwin mansion feels lived in and real enough.
+The scenario thankfully ends before it wears out its welcome.
+The ending was foreseeable but still a gut punch.
+Once upon a time Konami actually gave a damn!

-The crux of the experience is in yet another large abandoned building.
-Lots of asset reuse from SH2.
-No new enemies.
-Weak "puzzles" as usual.
-Offers little character development for Maria overall.

I'm not one to dismiss a gift, and "Born From a Wish" was indeed a gift for latecomers to "Silent Hill 2". In that regard, I applaud Konami for caring enough to allocate the resources. As a standalone story, "Born From a Wish" has legs and is above average in the writing department. As an exposition on Maria herself, this scenario rather fails, and if anything only adds yet another layer of murkiness to the overall "Silent Hill 2" mythos.

As intriguing as the plot is, once again I didn't care for the actual gameplay here. Exploring another locked-door-a-thon old building, beating on weak baddies, solving goofy puzzles, tracking down keys, it was all the same bland thing as the core "Silent Hill 2" gameplay harbors. Which I guess for most people is actually really awesome. Alrighty, I'll be the odd man out. With "Born From a Wish" I came for the plot, and at least I wasn't disappointed in that regard.