10 Terrifying Silent Hill Monsters (And Their Meaning)

10. Nurse (Silent Hill 2)

Silent Hill 2's Nurses have proven to be one of the series' most enduring enemies. Since their first appearance, these faceless monstrosities have gone on to feature in subsequent entries like Homecoming, Origins and the (surprisingly not-terrible) 2006 movie. 

Which makes absolutely no sense, as they were created to represent a very specific aspect of a single individual - Silent Hill 2 protagonist James Sunderland.

Every monster in Silent Hill 2 represents a negative emotion from its central cast. Sometimes the symbolism is obvious, as in the case of Abstract Daddy - a nightmarishly graphic depiction of the sexual abuse suffered by tragic teenager Angela Orosco. In the case of the Nurses, however, the player needs to look a little deeper.

While it's initially unclear why James Sunderland is being attacked by faceless hospital workers with disturbingly attractive bodies, players can eventually puzzle out the truth behind their design. As it turns out, James' wife Mary spent years in hospital wasting away from an unknown illness. Although the game never spells it out for you, the Nurses represent James' repressed guilt over sexualizing the nurses who looked after his terminally ill wife.

Given that these nightmare creatures represent a very specific aspect of one man's psyche, it's baffling as to why the Nurses have cropped up in so many other Silent Hill games. Unless, that is, Konami are making the point that society's desire to see sexy nurse uniforms outweighs its interest in narrative coherence. In which case, fair enough.