Among all the upcoming games in Konami’s portfolio, Silent Hill f is arguably the most intriguing one. Announced during the Silent Hill Transmission event in 2022, the game is going to be the first new mainline installment in the Silent Hill franchise since 2012’s Silent Hill: Downpour. It is being developed primarily by Neobards Entertainment, a studio that, up to this point, has mostly done nothing but support work for other AAA games, like Resident Evil 2 (2019) and Marvel’s Avengers. The script for Silent Hill f is also, interestingly enough, being written by the famed Japanese writer Ryukishi07, who is best known for his work on the When they Cry visual novel series.
As its reveal trailer suggests, Silent Hill f is not going to be a traditional Silent Hill game. Rather than being set in the fictional American town the franchise is named after, Silent Hill f is going to take place in Japan, sometime during the Showa period (1926-1989). Since mainline Silent Hill entries have never taken place in the mid-to-late 1900s before, Silent Hill f can be considered a prequel of sorts. Because it’s a standalone entry that lacks much of the narrative baggage from the franchise’s other titles, the game will probably serve as a good starting point for Silent Hill newcomers. However, Konami’s decision to release Silent Hill f immediately after Silent Hill 2 Remake could risk turning away some new fans.
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Why Fans Should Keep Silent Hill f Release Date Expectations in Check
A recent ratings board listing makes Silent Hill f feel imminent, but this development isn’t the sole determinant of when the game is coming.
Silent Hill f May Not Appeal to New Silent Hill 2 Fans
Silent Hill 2 Remake Successfully Revived the Silent Hill Franchise
The Silent Hill 2 Remake, developed by Bloober Team, was a welcome surprise for the long-suffering Silent Hill fanbase. After years of disappointing releases, like Silent Hill: The First Message and Silent Hill: Book of Memories, many were prepared to write the game off as another failed attempt by Konami to resuscitate the franchise. However, when it came out on PS5 and PC last year, the Silent Hill 2 Remake became a runaway success. Much to the surprise of some, the game garnered glowing reviews from both journalists and fans, with many citing it as one of the best horror titles in recent memory.
Bloober Team and Konami’s remake of Silent Hill 2 is very faithful to the original game. Even though it has a much longer runtime and a considerably overhauled combat system, the game still maintains the spirit of the 2001 horror classic. Because of this, Konami likely made the right choice by choosing Silent Hill 2 Remake to revive the franchise with. It not only appeals to long-time fans of the series, but it’s also modernized enough to attract new audiences. Given that the Silent Hill 2 Remake is one of the fastest-selling installments in the SH franchise, it’s probably many people’s first-ever Silent Hill game.
Silent Hill f and Silent Hill 2 Remake Are Two Different Types of Games
Silent Hill 2 Remake‘s success puts Silent Hill f in a difficult position. Since both games seem to be very different from each other, they may not appeal to the same audiences. Silent Hill 2 Remake‘s approach to the horror genre is very Lynchian and psychological in nature, somewhat like Twin Peaks. Silent Hill f, on the other hand, appears to be taking a lot of inspiration from Japanese folk horror and East Asian mythology in general. These two types of horror are both great on their own, but Silent Hill f being an immediate follow-up to Silent Hill 2 Remake may set weird expectations for the future of the Silent Hill franchise.
Silent Hill 1 and 3 Remakes May Make Silent Hill f Look Like the Black Sheep of the Family
Konami is reportedly working on remakes of Silent Hill 1 and 3 with the help of Bloober Team. These two entries in the series are fairly similar in tone to SH2, so if they do get rebuilt for modern platforms in the near future, they may overshadow Silent Hill f and make it stand out even more than it already does. Because of this, many newcomers to the SH franchise who are expecting a Silent Hill 2– or Silent Hill 3-style experience from Silent Hill f may end up being disappointed.
- Developer(s)
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Neobards Entertainment
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