The rumour mill for Konami’s Silent Hill franchise has been in full swing as of late.
From outlandish reports of Microsoft buying the Japanese publisher’s gaming back catalogue, to more plausible news of the company partnering with Sony to develop two brand new Silent Hill titles, to even the unlikely possibility of a re-collaboration between Konami and everyone’s favourite Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima. Long story short: even though there hasn’t been any official confirmation from the publisher, the Silent Hill series feels like it’s finally back in the spotlight now, and that’s even before mentioning the new cinematic sequel that’s officially been given the greenlight, too.
That said, some fresh new intel that pertains to Konami’s beloved survival horror franchise has begun to make the rounds, and it comes from one of 2020’s most prominent leakers, Dusk Golem AKA AestheticGamer over on Twitter. According to them, Sony is developing the game using the Japanese team best known for stylish action-adventure, Gravity Rush, and nerve-racking horror series, Siren.
That includes Keiichiro Toyama, the director of the original Silent Hill who had reportedly been wanting to make another horror game for quite some time. Unfortunately, due to the soft sales of the Siren and Gravity Rush series, Sony’s willingness to give Toyama a substantial budget was limited. Roughly around two years ago, Konami then began looking for developers for two different Silent Hill projects. Sony somehow managed to come away with a partnership, though AestheticGamer admits they don’t have further information about this.
Furthermore, the leaker goes on to describe that Sony and Konami will be sharing development costs for the new Silent Hill game, but that they’ll also share the profits as well. With the Japanese publisher’s support, Sony is ensuring that Toyama gets a significant budget. However, the budget is still likely going to be smaller scale than other games from Sony as Toyama apparently still has to prove himself.
Additionally, many other employees who previously worked on Silent Hill are reportedly back and involved with this new project. Those mentioned include Akira Yamaoka, composer for the Silent Hill franchise, and Masahiro Ito, art director for both Silent Hill 2 and 3 and the monster designer for the original title. Essentially, if this news is true, it may well be the glorious renaissance that the legendary horror series so desperately needs.
But what say you? Would you like to see a brand new Silent Hill title? Or would you prefer the series to be left to rust in the otherworld? Grab your static-filled radios and let us know in the usual place down below.
