So let me explain where it all started. Since Kojima's departure, Konami doesn't know what to do with their old classic beloved money-worth IPs. So they have been putting out Pachinko-machines branded with their classic franchises like Silent Hill. But as much money as a Pachinko slot machine can make, it is still only localized in only one place, Tokyo, Japan.
Since the infamous release of the "Playable Teaser for Kojima's Silent Hills reboot", aka the game "P.T.", Silent Hill has become a big buzzword despite the series never being that huge in the mainstream audience's radar, usually selling less copies than the likes of Resident Evil, Dino Crisis, Outlast, or Dead Space. But critically it's a well-respected horror franchise (and one of my favs right next alone Alone in the Dark).
But thanks to the huge success of Capcom's recent Resident Evil sequels and remakes, and the continuous boom of indie horror titles, the horror genre has been slowing coming back to the forefront of gaming, kind of like the VS fighting genre did last generation around Street Fighter IV's release. And like the return of VS fighting genre came several classics, now the companies that have the rights for a lot of classics are starting to come out now that the genre is back and solidified. Case in point, the recently announced Alone in the Dark.
It had been rumored Konami was working on 3-4 Silent Hill projects to announce all back-to-back and hit the scene while the iron was red hot. And surprise, surprise, it's all true.
Everything.
So now we found ourselves with a bunch of new Silent Hill projects. Of varying degrees of quality and faithfullness to the original games from Team Silent. Still, no Team Silent back.. A few key members are overseeing some aspects, like Akira Yamaoka overseeing the music of the remake (below). Let's recap ALL OF IT.
The Remake
The most random but expected title is the Silent Hill 2 Remake. People expected a remake in the mix. SH2 makes the most sense, along SH1, since it's a standalone story and one of the most popular and successful entries in the franchise. SH1 has more ties to the overacting plot, with the cult of Silent Hill, which SH3 connects into. But SH2's standalone nature really works in its favor. Surprsingly a studio I love, Bloober Team , is working on it, which explain the Westernized aesthatic of the game, it kind of reminds me more of Homecoming and Downpour than the classic 4 original Team Silent titles. Wait and see... if it's anything close to Capcom's remakes, we'll get a great game out of it.
The New Game
Then we get an original Japanese title, set in the 1950s. I like the sound of that. People seem to dislike how it takes place in the past and in Japan, but I like the idea of different Silent Hills across the world, which was probably gonna be the direction of Kojima's Silent Hills anyhow. This seems closer in spirit and tone to what Team Silent would have made, despite some generic mainstream audience's opinions (seriously, check the comments on youtube.. that's why I avoid participating or voicing my opinions on youtube..). Wanna proof? See Team Silent's following games, the Siren series. Plus I dig the classical remixes of Silent Hill themes from the trailer.
The.. Episodic/Anthologic Spinoff?
Then we get this mysterious title. Nothing much is known except the devs. But in the rumors Konami had opened a pitching meeting for an episodic SH spinoff series, kind of like The Dark Pictures Anthology series of recent games. Apparently even Supermassive Games participated in the pitching phase but wasn't kept on board. This looks like this might fit that rumor. Just watch, this Townfall game comes from Annapurna Interactive, the creators of Stories Untold and Observation. Sounds like a match made in heaven (or hell).
But that's not all!
The Movie.. 3?
A new third Silent Hill movie was announced! And it sounds too good to be true! SH's first film director Christophe Gans returns for a new film! Will it ignore the cheesy low-quality second film? Who cares! It seems it will bring back the superior atmosphere and visuals of the real first film. It only starts to shoot in february, hence why no pictures so far.
And finally, The Interactive Series...???
Finally we get a series. But not just a regular series. An interactive game/series hybrid project from Bad Robot Productions, yes, a J.J.Abrams production. People have been calling it a 4th game project, but just read into it for 2 minutes and you'll see this is probably more like an interactive "choose your adventure" Netflix-style series than a game. Even with Abrams, I'm not expecting much from this.
All in all, it's like Xmas came early for us Silent Hill fans. Will the series finally break into mainstream success? Will any of it be good or is it all cold mandates and overseeing from Konami? Will the devs pull out decents projects? Did we need a remake? Will Pyramid Head be shoved into all these productions for no reason but brand recognition?
Wait and see...
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