The creepy, twitchy monsters in Silent Hill f are fascinating. At the same time as they infect Hinako’s hometown, the parasitic pink spider lilies are fairly whilst they rework each floor, from buildings to residents. These blooming creatures are concurrently beautiful to have a look at and fleshy luggage of ache that make me retch just a little bit. The entire recreation is soaked in an unimaginable environment that highlights the “magnificence in terror” method Konami is aiming for. But, regardless of being weak herself, Hinako can maybe be a bit too proficient at fight as she fights the foes fashioned by cursed flowers, even within the scariest of conditions all through my 5 hour hands-on with Silent Hill f.
In a single occasion, transported to an limitless foggy discipline plagued by Hinako’s buddies twisted into masked scarecrows, one unsuitable transfer as I remedy a riddle will see them lurch to life, blades spinning. Silent Hill f is about in rural Ebisugaoka in Sixties Japan, that means the one actual choice Hinako has for self-defense are destructible melee gadgets she stumbles upon – pipes, sickles, kitchen knives. The one approach to battle again is to be uncomfortably near enemies.
But, even with these scarecrows I shortly be taught their patterns. There’s the lunge I can dodge on the final second to activate an ideal slowdown. And there’s its chain assault – one, two, three, 4 – then they glow with a chromatic aura, that means I can hit them with a heavy assault to counter, opening them as much as large harm. For probably the most half, Silent Hill f is soaked in impeccable vibes that make me extra excited for the collection’ future than ever, however I am a bit baffled at why fight is like this.
F ’em up
Introducing the sport in a relaxing room in Konami’s Tokyo headquarters, developer Neobards does supply some clarification – Hinako’s sudden moments of prowess combating again towards monsters convey “adrenaline”, explaining facets like getting a full replenish of stamina after a well-timed dodged. In spite of everything, taking Silent Hill f to Japan as a substitute of America means narrower pathways in comparison with the extraordinarily vast roads of the US, that means it is not as simple to keep away from hazard. Hinako, collection producer Motoi Okamoto says, “has no alternative however to confront fears head-on”.
Do not get me unsuitable, I do not assume I would ever name Silent Hill fight good. The collection’ historical past of scuffles veer from downright terrible to useful at greatest. Nevertheless it can be evocative, efficient in its bursts of clunky violence. The greatest Silent Hill video games appear to know this properly. On paper, Silent Hill f could have probably the most well-crafted fight system within the collection so far, however in so doing in some way feels much less efficient at making a horror environment. Excellent dodges, counter assaults, and particular focus strikes give Silent Hill f extra fight techniques than every other, however within the construct I play it might find yourself feeling a bit overengineered.
Key data
Developer: NeoBards Leisure
Writer: Konami
Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Collection X/S
Launch date: September 25, 2025
I really feel like a hack evaluating it to Darkish Souls, however the principle boss battle in my demo – a teeth-heavy shrine maiden wreathed in pink fog – is a dodge-heavy affair on a giant bridge that has me discovering gaps in prolonged assault animations to dish out cautious poke harm. Getting my cursed monkey paw mitts on the PS5 controller, I am properly conscious of which muscle reminiscence I am drawing on as I bob, weave, and throw out combos of sunshine and heavy assaults. As bizarre as it’s to say there is overlap. It is not dangerous per se. Name it Fog Souls and possibly we’re cooking – NeoBards even highlights that ‘posture’ is a consideration for enemies, that means you possibly can stagger them with sufficient harm.
Although Silent Hill f ended up thrusting me into just a few too many straight encounters buying and selling blows with enemies, there’s nonetheless a variety of conditions through which evasion is inspired – and these stand out as extra horror tinged affairs. The sport’s opening sequences the place, defenseless, I’ve to run by a labyrinthine maze of alleys (referred to as ‘kinkotsu’ in Japan – actually ‘muscle and sinew’) avoiding lethal enemies has already turn out to be a collection high-point for me. I genuinely really feel rotated and on edge throughout these chases, and verticality actually makes these tiny streets criss-crossing throughout one of many city’s small rivers really feel like they maintain branching out from each other.
One other scenario has me trying to find ema – small image tablets hung at Japanese shrines – whereas pursued by a sound-detecting enemy that, although Hinako can bust its head in with a pipe, will at all times regenerate after sufficient time has handed. Like combating the scarecrows, the concept of Hinako completely parrying these nightmarish foes into pulp is kind of humorous, however having these fights merely add strain to a broader goal is a great method of balancing each. Even excellent fight play will not ‘remedy’ a variety of encounters with out utilizing your noggin too.
Having these fights merely add strain to a broader goal is a great method of balancing each.
One other sequence has a hulking knife-wielding foe bear down on me, although the one approach to progress is scramble for a key that is fallen down a properly with the intention to escape, both maintaining it busy or taking it out of motion for simply sufficient time to nab it. The stability solely actually shifts throughout in-between parts in common encounters the place the fight simply feels extra rote and inconsistently paced.
Some shrine-set sections ramp up hazard, beginning with no enemies earlier than drip-feeding you extra as you seek for a key to progress, then devolving into an outright chase as you desperately flee for security, with no probability to battle again. As you may anticipate, Silent Hill f is at its greatest while you really feel very a lot on the backfoot. Neobards recreation director Al Yang says that is finally the objective: “You are not fairly positive what’s across the nook, however you are additionally not fairly positive in case you’re ready to take care of it on the similar time”.
Fs in chat
Nonetheless, this new method to fight is probably the one time Silent Hill f feels off stability throughout my 5 hours with the sport. In each different side, Silent Hill f feels remarkably assured and confident, and with good purpose. Hinako Shimizu is having a tough day even earlier than her rural hometown Ebisugaoka is submerged within the mysterious fog that brings with it weird pink flowery growths which can be as stunning as they’re lethal. A lady has already disappeared, and unusual sightings close to the city have some considering the city’s guardian spirits could also be sad. Leaving her home as Hinako’s mother and father argue as soon as once more, she meets up with a bunch of college buddies who appear to leap erratically between being completely satisfied she’s round to calling her a “traitor”.
Earlier than Hinako can get an actual sense of the scenario, issues solely worsen when the fog descends and so they’re separated attempting to flee from the eerie presence. The growths that come together with it rework Hinako’s hometown right into a maze of streets she should desperately dart down, however past the acquainted turning into in any other case she’s additionally thrust into a wierd otherworld realm after a near-death expertise – a large, twisting shrine that appears to stretch far into the gap, stuffed with unusual puzzles that seal every gate ahead. Removed from the economic labyrinths of US-set Silent Hill, the shrine realm actually offers Silent Hill f its personal distinctive id.
Although Silent Hill f’s story and setting feels contemporary, there’s greater than sufficient recognizable components for this Japan-set chapter to nonetheless really feel very Silent Hill. To date, the construction sees Hinako having to comply with within the footsteps of her buddies as she pushes her method by new slices of the city that turn out to be more and more extra harmful over time. Reaching these areas then requires extra dense exploration combining taxing puzzle fixing with enemy evasion, whether or not that is buildings on the town just like the native faculty, or getting into the unusual shrine realm.
It is a loop that those that performed the Silent Hill 2 remake final 12 months shall be conversant in, and whereas Okamoto says they’ve tried to keep away from “repurposing Silent Hill 2 too carefully”, he does say Silent Hill 2 is probably the largest supply of inspirations Silent Hill f attracts from throughout the collection.
Whereas a few of these jaunts by city are maybe a bit extra linear given the narrower Japanese streets, there’s nonetheless purpose sufficient to go off the crushed monitor to stuff her pockets with lore notes and, after all, restoration gadgets – from capsules to recognizable treats like ramune soda. A few of these may even be given at checkpoint shrines as choices to construct a religion foreign money. (We’re instructed “some actions require religion” by the builders – a line that simply goes extremely arduous so far as I am involved.) It makes deciding what to maintain for your self a risk-reward consideration, aided by the very fact Hinako’s pockets can solely include so many gadgets. Religion could be traded in to revive sanity and the like, or for upgrades and kit – random omori could be drawn that give Hinako buffs reminiscent of enhancing protection or decreasing enemy line of sight.
Every tour to this point feels prefer it reveals a bit extra about Hinako’s buddies, and their relationships. To dig deeper into the scarecrow riddles I discussed earlier than, every part revolves round a be aware about how a personality perceives Hinako, leaving you to trace down the posed scarecrow the textual content pertains to. For instance, one is about placing on a “well mannered smile”, that means it is advisable take a look at the masks to discern the right one, which can then level you in the direction of the subsequent set of posed enemies.
Scriptwriter Ryukishi07, recognized for his cult traditional indie horror video games Higurashi and Umineko, has been concerned in all of the deepest particulars of Silent Hill f’s writing, together with these puzzles. The collection’ greatest puzzles are greater than summary brainteasers, revealing extra about every entry’s themes. The identical goes for Silent Hill f, the place Ryukishi07 has ensured nearly each puzzle it is advisable remedy can also be placing within the work narratively.
The varsity that caps off my hands-on exemplifies this excellently with a complete internet of conundrums to unravel that inform me concerning the tapestry of relationships between the youngsters and lecturers that when crammed the empty halls – from pulling aside origami messages that spout horrible curses in the direction of rivals in affection, to unravelling ‘lady code’ secret notes to seek out out locker combos.
Thematic forte
The Sixties backdrop is not only for the aesthetic (although collection veteran composer Akira Yamaoka has created a stunning soundscape for it), however is getting used as a leaping off level to discover gender dynamics of the period – fairly merely the pressures round rising up as a woman in that period. At one level Hinako wonders in the event that they’re being cursed as a result of they “simply wish to maintain taking part in Area Wars”, and one other character notes that she speaks like a boy when hanging out along with her male pal, Shu. To which he responds “I’ve by no means handled her like a woman.”
It is a fixed chorus. The character glossary notes that Hinako’s sister “left to get married” as a girl ought to and hasn’t been round since. Choose-ups like ladies mags have headlines like “a girl is just full when she’s liked” and radios say issues like “what good is a girl who cannot even cook dinner correctly?” Silent Hill characters typically must battle by a hellish world twisted to replicate their nightmares. It is fairly clear that societal pressures for Hinako to develop up are what Silent Hill f shall be all about.
I’ve grown very fond and mesmerized by the probabilities that come up from the interval in between the previous and current.
“On the subject of exploring time intervals, in case you go too far again in time it clearly turns into so indifferent from our acquainted actuality that it principally turns into a fantasy, whereas the current, after all, could be very a lot grounded in actuality and there is actually no room for interpretation, as a result of all the things could be very clear reduce,” Ryukishi07 tells me, discussing how his earlier recreation Higurashi was set in a small Japanese city within the ’80s, and Silent Hill f likewise however within the ’60s.
“I’ve grown very fond and mesmerized by the probabilities that come up from the interval in between the previous and current, the place these two concepts of fantasy and actuality will intersect,” he continues. “On the subject of Silent Hill f [for] the sorts of themes that I used to be exploring, I consider that that crossroads landed proper across the Sixties.” It is taking advantage of the setting, from nostalgic throwbacks just like the design of the city’s native candy store to deeper points.
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Clear concepts do not essentially imply Silent Hill f is easy. Removed from it. Promising a number of endings, the primary playthrough would be the similar, however subsequent playthroughs will supply new areas, bosses, and branching paths. To date, unusual messages Hinako can discover even make me surprise if a number of routes are a part of the core narrative itself. The odd method Hinako’s buddies act round her – typically fairly dismissively – consistently have me questioning what is going on on, and that is even earlier than moving into all of the unusual occasions and notes yow will discover within the otherworld shrine realm that trace that bigger forces could also be at work.
Ryukishi07’s most well-known video games have extraordinarily difficult plots – however, crucially, all ones that make sense as soon as the mysteries turn out to be revealed. The actual fact I might so simply start to kind the puzzle items and start to give you concepts for what all of it may imply after only one demo session is already a large plus for me, even with the data I could by no means be really sure.
It seems like Silent Hill f will strike a stability. Every ending, in any case, will apparently be unclear if they’re good or dangerous in collection custom. However there’s already lots throughout the opening 5 hours of the sport which have me idea crafting, underlining and circling phrases in my pocket book. I could also be wobbly on the fight feeling a bit overbaked, however there’s nonetheless time earlier than launch for this to be tweaked and, to be trustworthy, a lot of it may be handled within the ordinary Silent Hill method of bashing and hoping for the most effective. However relating to vibes and environment, Silent Hill f is opulent – I can not wait to wade deeper into the fog and take a look at my greatest to determine what all of it means.
As is normally the case for our pre-release protection, in-development footage and screenshots are proven right here for Silent Hill f.
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