Could this be it? After years of waiting for a true worthy successor, being a Silent Hill fan had become something of a pain. Iteration after iteration, sequel after prequel after semi-reimagination the series has struggled and failed to rekindle the creepy flame that burnt so brightly with the first three games that to this day rank among the best and most gruesomely creepy survival horror titles in gaming history.
So this month will see the release of not one but a staggering three numbers of Silent Hill games. One is the obligatory HD remaster collection containing Silent Hill 2 and 3. One is the cringe inducing “isometric online coop shooter” Silent Hill: Book of Memories. While being developed by lauded developer WayForward, the very nature of this game seems like a guaranteed disappointment to most fans of the series. And not just in a “they changed something now it’s ruined” way. The only thing that could be worse in this regard would be Silent Hill Kart. Though that one, I’d actually want to play.
The third game in the row is where the magic could in fact happen once more. Developed by Czech dev team Vatra Games, it’s a notable new entry in the series, not just because it is in fact the first Silent Hill game that will not feature Akira Yamaoka doing the music. Silent Hill Downpour promises a completely new spin. And so far, things look—and sound—promising.
Early gameplay videos show a Silent Hill that’s just as drenched in fog and ominous foreboding as the earlier entries to the series. Downpour might have lost most Japanese involvement, but the game unquestionably still promises that eerie Silent Hill mood. The graphics might not bolster the most powerful engine with the fanciest effects, but those are not really important to a Silent Hill game anyway. What’s on show is a good grasp on how to do this particular kind of horror. The protagonist spends a lot of time alone in the town, exploring. There is a lot of tension and calm-before-the-storm to be had here it seems.
What’s important to me is, that Vatra really go their own way. Downpour won’t have features or creatures taken from either the movie or earlier games. It’s a unique, fresh take on the series.
While it’s questionable if that exactly is what this series needs, since the past few games all seemingly tried exactly that to no avail, it’s still a title that promises a lot, and the developers seem to have their heart in the right place for a game like this, and have a handful of interesting ideas on top of that.
A very simple feature, but one I find outstandingly well done for a survival horror game, is the door camera. Whenever the player opens a new door, the camera pans closer to Murphy, the protagonist, looking straight over his shoulder and into the room ahead This gives the notion of carefully but decidedly opening a door and taking a first, careful look around at what might lie ahead. Another promising thing that has not really been seen in action yet is the “open town”. Downpour supposedly lets Murphy enter a lot more houses, finding a lot more things to do in Silent Hill than previous games allowed.
As a longstanding fan of the series who’s been pretty let down by everything since The Room, I can’t help but be reluctantly optimistic about the game, based on what can be found in terms of previews, interviews and gameplay demos on Downpour so far. Sure, the whole concept can still fall apart, Silent Hill is a series, a recipe, that seems really hard to get absolutely right. But I for one will give Vatra the benefit of a doubt here.
