Silent Hill fis riding the wave of goodwill established by the fantasticSilent Hill 2remake last year, and it seems to be going smoothly so far. That is to say, audiences are generally excited for thisradically distinct take on theSilent Hillseries, marked by a particularly obvious shift in setting from small-town Maine to small-town Japan.
But aside from the positive reception ofSilent Hill 2’s remake, a lot of the positive buzz surroundingSilent Hill fcan be attributed to its talent pool, specifically its lead writer Ryukishi07. A self-proclaimed long-time fan of theSilent Hillfranchise, Ryukishi07 was quickly hailed as one of the best possible options for its next outing. But many gamers, especially those in the west and unfamiliar with contemporary Japanese media, might be wondering why exactly this is the case, and why the writer is so prominently featured inSilent Hill f’s marketing.
Why Ryukishi07 Is Such a Great Pick for Silent Hill f
Ryukishi07 Is Best Known for the When They Cry Series
In the mid-2000s, Ryukishi07 formed 07th Expansion, a group of amateur creatives looking to craft meaningful and unique stories. Totally untethered from the games and manga industries, 07th Expansion created the firstHigurashi: When They Crygame on a shoestring budget, launching a self-sustained, grassroots marketing campaign to get the fledgling series off the ground. Despite its rudimentary design and miniscule production value,Higurashi: When They Cryquickly gained tractionwith online audiences, eventually growing into a wide-spanning franchise—a testament to the strength of Ryukishi07’s writing.
The series follows an intense sequence of bizarre events and regularly leverages motifs like the occult and paranoia. The games are visual novels—or sound novels, as Ryukishi07 calls them, due to their emphasis on sound and atmosphere—and many of its entries are only loosely connected by themes and broader messages,not unlike theSilent Hillfranchise itself.
The plot of the series itself is rather hard to summarize, not just because of spoiler concerns, but also because it’s cerebral and somewhat confusing at times. What’s important forthe prospectiveSilent Hill fplayer to knowis that they are very Japan-focused, often criticizing and dissecting Japanese politics and culture through their supernatural and bizarre stories. Moreover, the games are incredibly psycho-centric, putting the player in unsettlingly intimate and often troubling narrative scenarios, which birth the deep horror that the series evokes. Just based on these high-level, broad-strokes elements, it should be fairly clear why Ryukishi07 seems so well-suited toSilent Hill.
Why Ryukishi07 Is Such a Great Choice for Silent Hill f
On their face,Silent Hillgames are about haunted towns and demonic beings, but in reality, they are about people. For instance, it’s not the disturbing appearance of Pyramid Head that makes him so scary—it’swhat Pyramid Head representsfor protagonist James Sunderland. TheWhen They Cryfranchise can be described in much the same way, as while the games often center on murders, supernatural entities, and inexplicable Lovecraftian horrors, it’s themes of guilt, trauma, and love that make them so affecting.
The firstWhen They Cryseries,Higurashi When They Cry, takes place in a fictional Japanese town called Hinamizawa, based on the real town of Shirakawa. Ryukishi07 is once again blending the real with the fictional throughSilent Hill f’s setting, which is based on the real town of Kanayama.
Ryukishi07 is certainly a singular writer, and his work’s focus on relatable psychological horror makes him a strong choice forSilent Hill f. And with Konami’s stated interest inmakingSilent Hill fa particularly Japanese story, focusing on explicitly Japanese themes, Ryukishi07’s history of cultural critiques could mean an even more engaging and mature game narrative.
Silent Hill f
WHERE TO PLAY
In 1960s Japan, Shimizu Hinako’s secluded town of Ebisugaoka is consumed by a sudden fog, transforming her home into a haunting nightmare.As the town falls silent and the fog thickens, Hinako must navigate the twisted paths of Ebisugaoka, solving complex puzzles and confronting grotesque monsters to survive.Immerse yourself into Hinako’s world imagined by renowned author Ryukishi07, with entrancing music, including pieces by Akira Yamaoka, and beautiful visuals in a gripping tale of doubt, regret, and inescapable choices. Will Hinako embrace the beauty hidden within terror, or succumb to the madness that lies ahead?Discover a new chapter in the SILENT HILL series, blending psychological horror with a haunting Japanese setting.
