For the first time in a long while, it seems like Silent Hill fans have cause for optimism, and Silent Hill f‘s appropriately unsettling reveal is a big part of that. Silent Hill f will be the first new game in the franchise since Silent Hill: Downpour in 2012, so needless to say, there is a lot riding on its success.
But of course, there is a far greater, less speculative, reason why Silent Hill has been getting so much positive buzz lately: Bloober Team’s terrific Silent Hill 2 remake. Though eyed with suspicion by many fans of the original ahead of its release, the SH2 remake turned out to not only be a faithful retelling of the 2001 horror classic, but an expertly crafted, clever, and sophisticated reimagining of it. Changes that Bloober Team made to the original’s structure and presentation only served to strengthen its narrative, not hinder or alter it, and the result is that the seminal SH2 story can now be experienced by a broader audience. Konami may want to ride the Silent Hill 2 hype train for as long as possible, making Silent Hill f a sort of spiritual successor, but this would be a bad idea.
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Why Silent Hill f Could Make or Break the Franchise
Silent Hill f looks promising, and one can only hope that it lives up to high expectations, for the sake of the franchise as a whole.
Silent Hill f’s Protagonist Needs Her Own Identity
Konami Has to Avoid the Temptation to Make Hinako Another James Sunderland
Minor spoilers ahead for Silent Hill 2.
Hinako Shimizu is the unlikely hero at the center of Silent Hill f. A teenage girl embroiled in a mysterious and ghostly plague in the small town of Ebisugaoka, Hinako is clearly dealing with some psychological issues independent of the unfolding supernatural events. The game’s official reveal trailer is, unsurprisingly, rather vague and enigmatic, but it clearly conveys an intimate and emotionally evocative tale, focused more on psychological horror than jump scares.
Silent Hill‘s particular brand of psych-horror was introduced in the first game, but it wasn’t truly established until Silent Hill 2, whose compelling narrative about grief, guilt, and trauma put it in the same class as horror masterpieces like The Shining and Jacob’s Ladder. But as is often the case with successful entries in larger franchises, subsequent Silent Hill games tended to try and recreate Silent Hill 2‘s approach to storytelling. This has had mixed results, with the recent Silent Hill Ascension perhaps being the best example of how delicate themes, like those at the heart of SH2, can be devastatingly mishandled.
So although Silent Hill f will ostensibly feature a mature, personal, and psychological story, it hopefully won’t come across like Silent Hill 2 fan fiction. If, say, Hinako’s arc revolves around the twist that she committed some horrible act and is now plagued by guilt, then there’s a very strong chance that it will feel derivative and old-hat. To build a better future for the franchise, Silent Hill f needs to stake itself in more original ideas.
Why Silent Hill f’s Story Will Probably Differ from Silent Hill 2’s
There’s been a lot of buzz surrounding Silent Hill f‘s lead writer Ryukishi07, and for good reason. Best known for the When They Cry visual novel series, Ryukishi07 is one of Japan’s most compelling and innovative horror writers, and has inspired all manner of boundary-pushing VNs, including Doki Doki Literature Club. All of this is to say that, although he is a big Silent Hill fan by his own admission, Ryukishi07’s fingerprints will be all over Silent Hill f, and his commitment to unconventional, highly psychological narrative-crafting is sure to make the game feel remarkably unique. Ryukishi07 is nothing if not inventive with his storytelling methods.
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Neobards Entertainment