Silent Hillis undeniably up there with the most controversial franchises in gaming. There have been perennial rumors that it would reappear under the guise of a new IP or with a remake of some sort.Kojima Productions’P.T.demoand the subsequent cancelation ofSilent Hillsare perhaps where these rumors began, as it would seem the franchise was dead in the water thereafter.
Fans reminisce abouthow influentialSilent Hillis as a psychological survival-horror game, and while it is possible that moreSilent Hillgames could be made, it is questionable whether it should be given that opportunity. Games such asSilent Hill: Downpour,Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, andSilent Hill: Homecomingare considered to be among the worst in the franchise, and many fans would agree that another installment could reflect those titles rather than the ones that made it such a special IP to begin with.
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Silent Hill Has an Impressionable and Timeless Premise
Following the original trilogy,Silent Hill’s games have had mixed receptions. But the originalSilent Hilltrilogy andSilent Hill 4: The Roomdemonstrate how malleable the franchise’s premise is with different protagonists occupying each installment.Silent Hillintroduces players to characters whose grief or guilt is manifested and confronted in a hellish, unpredictable landscape. That is what makes James Sunderland’s traumatic and intimate tale so engaging inSilent Hill 2, for example, and this is what later games would lack as they attempted a drastic exploration of new gameplay mechanics.
Ifa newSilent Hillinstallment or remakeis truly in development, it would be a disappointment for fans if it was unable to meet expectations. The nextSilent Hillendeavor needs to be astonishing and take the franchise back to its roots if it has any hopes of winning purists back to its side, and that may be too tall an order. Instead, fans may be prepared to letSilent Hillpass into memory if other titles are given the opportunity to stand in its wake.
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Other IPs May Be Able to Iterate on Silent Hill’s Premise
Because of fans’ concerns that the franchise would only continue with more lackluster installments, it may be for the best ifSilent Hillis shelved while other developers iterate with their own original horror properties. Remakes have swept the industry en masse, and it would not be surprising to many fans ifSilent Hilldid receive its own, for whichever original installment.
That said, psychological horror is perhaps better left in the hands of developers who do not need to contend with the enormity ofSilent Hill’s legacy. Future games could explicitlydemonstrate theirSilent Hillinspirationin terms of a narrative-driven character drama, or through similar motifs and imagery thatSilent Hillwas able to produce.
With any new psychological horror game announced in the near future, there will always be comparison to the beloved franchises that came before it. WhetherSilent Hillis revived or not, the general horror genre in gaming has never had a more optimistic-looking future, and it is exciting to see what will come in the future.
