There is never a dull moment in the world of Silent Hill anymore is there? From screenshot leaks of a purported Silent Hill 2 remake project at Bloober Team, to the original reporting that the IP, which has lain dormant for a decade, has several new entries in development; then there is of course the drama that surrounded P.T., the departure of Hideo Kojima, and the surge in ill-will that followed. The rumblings around a resurgence in the franchise, given the vein of form that its genre co-leader Resident Evil is in, are growing deafening at this point, and now it’s the South Korean Game Rating Committee who have let another cat amongst the pigeons.
Today’s news relates to a previously unannounced title having seemingly been outed by the Korean authority, one called Silent Hill: The Short Message. The eagle-eyed folk at Gematsu spotted the rating, and were quick to identify some key pieces of information amongst the listing. Firstly, the game is published UNIANA, an entity who is typically responsible for the publishing and distribution of Konami games in the region. The approval came yesterday, September 25, 2022, but was also not eh only Konami game submitted at this time with it being joined by eFootball 2023 which UNIANA also was listed as being the publisher of.
Previous reports would suggest that while Bloober Team is reportedly working on a remake of the franchise’s most acclaimed title, Silent Hill 2, Konami is working on new franchise entries to the franchise, something that it appears that this Silent Hill: A Short Message would suggest. The title itself though is not one that aligns neatly with many others that we’ve seen from the franchise to date. The subtitle, “A Short Message” may also serve as a hint. Could the game be short? Is it short because it’s a mobile game? Is it short because it’s a bit more episodic in nature, either like a TellTale Games title in brevity, or because they’re brief titles akin to SuperMassive Games’ The Dark Pictures Anthology entries?
In June of 2021, Konami itself announced a partnership with Bloober Team, a developer who had worked on horror games such as Layers Of Fear, Blair Witch, and The Medium. The release from Konami at the time read,
“Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. announces that it has formed a business alliance with the Polish game developer Bloober Team S.A. (hereinafter, “Bloober Team”). We will be collaborating on the production of content. Bloober Team is a game developer established in 2008, in Kraków, Poland. They have a reputation for authorship and artistry and has released many high-quality contents globally. We have been providing unique entertainment content and ways to enjoy it through the use of the latest technology. In the digital entertainment industry, significant changes in the business environment are expected in the future. We have decided to form a business alliance with Bloober Team with the aim of creating high-quality content by combining our respective characteristics and strengths. We will announce information about contents from the business alliance once details are decided.”
