Silent Hill is nothing if not a franchise with similar set-ups. Troubled protagonists who happen upon the foggy town before becoming swept up in its machinations, and ultimately having to face their traumatic past. It’s a premise that’s worked very well, arguably peaking in Silent Hill 2 (and its remake, by extension).
But while Silent Hill: Townfall, Screen Burn’s newest mainline entry, seemingly starts in the same way, it may not progress in the same fashion. Humorously describing the start as “So far, so Silent Hill” to Eurogamer, writer/director Jon McKellan said, “There are themes that feel very reminiscent of Silent Hill. We are leaning into those expectations.
“We will be massively subverting those expectations, too. We want people to feel familiar with it, but leverage that. It’s leveraging that familiarity to build something new out of that that surprises players and takes them on a different journey, while somehow still feeling like Silent Hill.”
It’s interesting because of McKellan’s experience with the original Silent Hill, which he played while sick in his teens (and still doubts the validity of the experience). That this subversion comes from a fan’s understanding is interesting, but the goal remains the same – to draw people in.
Launching on September 24th for PS5 and PC, Silent Hill: Townfall is the first full-length first-person title in the series. While we’ve seen a decent amount of sneaking about, there’s plenty of combat, as the development team promises that melee battles will offer a “real scrap.” Be careful about how aggressive you are, though, because that’s one factor that can determine the ending.
There are five in total to unlock, with two secret endings tied to New Game+. Obviously we’ll need to wait for more details on what they offer, but in the meantime, a new trailer will debut at Gamescom Opening Night Live. What more could Screen Burn, Annapurna, and Konami reveal to keep the suspense burning? We’ll find out on August 25th.
