Horror fans watching The Game Awards 2021 probably noticed that, shortly before presenting the award for Best Art Direction, Guillermo del Toro mentionedSilent Hill.The long-dormant horror franchise from Konami is an important facet of the genre, but ever since Hideo Kojima and Konami parted ways in the middle ofSilent Hills' development, the franchise’s future has been in doubt. Unfortunate as that may be, The Game Awards 2021 also announced another game that has some majorSilent Hillvibes:Slitterhead.If its appearance wasn’t enough, it just so happens thatSlitterheadis being developed by the creator of theSilent Hillfranchise.
Slitterheadcomes from the mind of Keiichiro Toyama, who directed the very firstSilent Hillgame with Konami in 1999 before joining Japan Studio in the same year. Since then, Toyama has continued working on horror games with theSirenseries, as well as exploring action-adventure inGravity Rush,but in 2020 Toyama left Japan Studio to form his own company: Bokeh Game Studio. What’s more, he’s coming back to horror with the bizarre and gruesomeSlitterhead.AlthoughSlitterheadmight be a little more explosive thanSilent Hillfans are used to, it could still have a lot of horror elements that Toyama built into the firstSilent Hill.
RELATED:Slitterhead Looks Like Silent Hill Meets Devil May Cry
In its time,Silent Hillwas a major step forward for horror, introducing atmospheric and psychological horror elements to a genre that largely preferred slasher-style horror. Toyama’s originalSilent Hillcertainly still had iconic monsters that Harry Mason had to confront, but combat wasn’t everything. The town of Silent Hill itself was crucial to the game, unsettling fans with its uncannily desolate cityscape, supernatural Otherworld, and low visibility. Lots of games use similar elements now, butSilent Hillshowed their potential, inspiring generations of titles.
Even with only one trailer out so far,Slitterheadlooks like it could conjure some similarly unsettling environments. Early on in the trailer, a man meets a woman in an alleyway, only to watch her transform into a hulking, skeletal monster. The juxtaposition of the dark, claustrophobic, but fairly normal alley with an unexpected monstrous creature certainly rings ofSilent Hill’s sense of dread, with danger lurking on every street corner.Slitterheadcould use its urban setting to create the same permanent unease thatSilent Hillcould create even when players were outdoors, rather than trapped indoors. In other words,Silent Hill’s design philosophy could lie at the heart ofSlitterhead.
RELATED:Slitterhead May Take Inspiration From a Real Japanese Urban Legend
There are certainly things aboutSlitterheadthat differ fromSilent Hill,which didn’t emphasize combat. While Harry and many of his successors could kill monsters,Silent Hillbuilds fear in the player partially due to their limited options in fighting off supernatural forces. In contrast, Bokeh Game Studio has indicated thatSlitterheadwill blend action with horror, giving the protagonist their own supernatural powers, which will let them slice and dice monsters. Even ifSlitterheadismore high octane thanSilent Hill,though, it could still create a tense, ominous atmosphere in many of its environments that’ll giveSilent Hillfans the kind of experience that they’re looking for.
It’s a shame thatSilent Hillhas fallen by the wayside when it was once such a horror icon. AfterSilent Hillsfell apart, Konami promised thatSilent Hillwould carry on as usual, but there hasn’t been any sign of a newSilent Hillprojectsince Kojima Productions createdPT.It’s entirely possible thatSilent Hillwill return someday, but Konami hasn’t given fans much hope lately. In the meantime,Slitterheadlooks like it could inspire the same type of fear thatSilent Hillbuilt its brand on. If Bokeh Game Studio delivers on a blend of exciting combat and psychological horror, thenSlitterheadmight be the spiritual successor thatSilent Hillfans need.
Slitterheadis in development.
MORE:Abandoned Has To Be Something Special, Even if it Isn’t Silent Hill
