Silent Hill f‘s main thing is that it sticks out within the wider Silent Hill series, due to its 1960s Japan setting. The game’s director has said in the past that they wanted to make something that is a “blend of new and nostalgic” when it comes to elements of the game, and it definitely nails the former from what we’ve seen so far.
Outside of the setting making it stick out, it’s also one of the only games in the series to not take place in Silent Hill itself (from what we know anyway, I’m sure there’s a swerve in there). And now the game’s publisher, Konami, is using this fact as a way to draw in potential new fans. On the official Japanese Silent Hill Twitter account, Konami posted (via machine translation), “This is a completely new work independent of the series. Even those who have never played the ‘Silent Hill’ series can enjoy this game.”
Granted – even though I know why Konami is doing this – that’s pretty much the case for the majority of Silent Hill games (outside of the first game and third). While there are details to be found in each game that hint at the events of others, the majority of stories in the series are self-contained. You’re really not missing too much in Silent Hill 2 if you haven’t played the original Silent Hill.
But it’s nice to know that Konami is positioning the new game as a starting point to get people into one of its best series, even if they’re going to have to deal with “faces ripped apart,” “a character burned alive inside a cage,” “entrails and sinew displayed on serving platters,“ and all of that heartwarming stuff.
