You see it, too? For me, it is always like this!
Angela Orosco, Silent Hill 2.
Imagine… Driving in the night… For a place you don’t really know… Looking for your deceased wife or your missing daughter… And then, suddenly, the only thing you see and know is… You don’t really know where you are. It is like you woke up in a nightmare. A new and really frightening nightmare.
Welcome to Silent Hill!
This is how an article about Silent Hill should start. A video game series that have huge impact in Survival Horror Genre, as well as Resident Evil series, too. Actually, my introduction is the intro of the first two games of the Title. A Title which introduce the fearsome Pyramid Head and made us to see nurses another way. A really scary way.
Silent Hill was introduced back in 1999 and was originally available only for the PSOne Console. The legend says that it was crafted by a Cult known as Team Silent. Well ok, that’s not really true. It is said that Konami pushed back some of its staff members that was about to dismiss. The staff had to work on a project that had to be appealing to United States Market. And this is how Team Silent, as it came to be known, was born. Keiichiro Toyama was the director and writter of the first Silent Masterpiece. Other known members are the programmer Akihiro Imamura, the producer Gozo Kitao and the composer Akira Yamaoka.
Although, many problems were arising as the Title was developing, the Team managed to overcome them, and finally in 1999 the game was released. The Title was mostly praised by critics and was commercially successfull. Team Silent won Konami’s Challenge. The gameplay and design marked its Genre, as well as its infamous fog. SH fans know well the story behind the fog.
Following the success of the first Silent Hill, Silent Hill 2 was released in 2001. It was available for PS2 console and later for XBox. In 2002 was also ported for Microsoft Windows. SH2, is considered the best of the series. It is ranked as one of the best of its Genre and one of the most emblematic games of the Gaming Industry, as well. Team Silent released Silent Hill 3 and 4, before their official breakup as a team.
Silent Hill 4, was the last part of the Series by Team Silent, and for many fans the last good installment of SH. The next releases was outsourced by Konami to other gaming studios, like Climax and Double Helix, receiving mixed reviews by both fans and critics. Although, they are not considered bad, it is said that they didn’t manage to be as worthy as the first four games.
In 2014 Silent Hills P.T. was released and came to be the last official part of the Series. Though, it wasn’t actually a full game, but a teaser demo, fans were really excited and was well-received. It was produced and directed by Hideo Kojima and co-directed by Guillermo Del Toro, starring Norman Reedus. But after Konami’s decision to cancel Silent Hills, P.T. was removed by Playstation Network, following disappointment of the entire Horror community.
Eversince, many unofficial ports and versions of SH, were introduced by fans. Moreover, Silent Hill Universe includes Movies, Music, Merch even Comics. This is a proof that Silent Hill is still alive. Many rumours since 2014, are found on the Net for a new Silent Hill game. But all of them, are proved to be just that. Lately, there are leaks of a project which appears to be related to Silent Hill. It isn’t officially confirmed by Konami, but it wasn’t rejected either.
So, could this mean that we would wander around the mysterious lake town of Silent Hill, again? Would we fight against its nightmare creatures and our inner self, as well? Are any of these really true or are just rumours made-up by the fans, just to light-up our interest and prove that this ghost town is still alive? Noone knows for sure. I want to believe that a new Silent Hill, or Silent Hill 2 remake as is rumoured lately, would be available soon enough. But for now, I suggest you to be patient and wait. You can always visit the Centralia-based town by any of the available released games of the Series. I am actually writing this article right now, trying to escape my recently haunted room. Is it really possible to escape this new nightmare?
Welcome to Silent Hill!
