Silent Hillhas delivered some of the scariest experiences in all of gaming. Unfortunately, the series has been mostly stagnant for the last decade, only having a few spin-offs trickle out during the tail end of the last console generation alongside the poorly receivedSilent Hill HD Collection. However, gaming’s other great horror series,Resident Evil, has seen an incredible resurgence after a few less than stellar entries, so there’s no reason whySilent Hillcan’t make a comeback.
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The Kojima ledSilent Hillswas unfortunately canned, but that doesn’t mean the foundation it laid out can’t be transferred to a futureSilent Hilltitle. These are 10 things aSilent Hillreboot needs to do if it wants to bring the series back into the limelight, similar to whatResident Evil 7did forResident Evil.
10Unique Setting
Yes, eachSilent Hillgame is set in the titular town, but that doesn’t mean a reboot can’t get a little creative with its setting.P.T.took the world by storm largely due to its unsettling hallway setting, something that hadn’t been seen in many video games before.
Silent Hillis a scary setting because it mirrors normal, everyday life so well, so why not take that to the next level and make the game take place in an even more intimate location? A similar idea was attempted inSilent Hill 4: The Room, but that concept could easily be elevated to the next level witha bit ofP.T.flair.
9First-Person Perspective
P.T.changed things up for theSilent Hillseries by restricting players to a first-person perspective, and that feature should definitely transfer to a future reboot.Resident Evil 7did the same thing, and it amplified the scares in that game tenfold.
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Silent Hillsettings are scary because they’re so familiar, and employing a first-person camera would allow players to feel even more immersed in the horror.P.T.is already an excellent proof of concept, and there has yet to be another game that captures the sense of dread of walking down a hallway at night as well as that game did.
8Have Little Combat
Survival horror games don’t rely on combat as their primary mechanic, but aSilent Hillreboot should forgo combat almost entirely. Ideally, players in a survival horror game should feel helpless, and taking away the means to defend themselves is a great way to achieve this.
Recent horror games likeOutlasthave attempted this to varying success, andSilent Hillshould definitely follow suit. There should still be some combat, but weapons and ammunition should be incredibly scarce. Lisa inP.T.cannot be killed, but she also doesn’t pose a real threat to the player in the grand scheme of things, creating horror through the atmosphere rather than combat.
7Livestream Connectivity
Streaming on websites like Twitch and YouTube has blown up this generation, and aSilent Hillreboot should absolutely take advantage of this phenomenon. Twitch extensions and other forms of streaming connectivity have provided new ways for streamers to interact with their audiences while also making the game more enjoyable for both parties, and it would work wonderfully in aSilent Hillgame.
The audience being able to mess with streamers by triggering certain sound effects or other in-game things helps keep things tense for the person playing, and it would add another layer of unpredictability to the game.
6Psychological Horror
Silent Hillhas always placed psychological horror at the forefront of the experience, but aSilent Hillreboot needs to double down on what made the series so great in the first place, especially when other horror franchises likeResident Evilhave had huge resurgences lately.
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Silent Hilloffers a very particular type of horror, one that many other video games don’t do very well, and aSilent Hillreboot could absolutely know it out of the park.P.T.laid the groundwork for aSilent Hillgame that gets inside players' heads like never before, and if that were to be applied to a full game, it would be one of the best in the series.
5VR Support
If aSilent Hillreboot is going to adopt a first-person camera, then there’s no reason why it shouldn’t have VR support.Resident Evil 7had VR functionality on PlayStation 4, and even to this day, it remains one of the best games available on any VR platform.
VR would lend itself wonderfully toSilent Hill’s spooky atmosphere, and the small-town setting would feel just as eerily familiar as the Baker estate inResident Evil 7.Resident Evil 7alreadydraws heavy inspirationfrom the canceledSilent Hills, so everything would come full circle if aSilent Hillreboot were to take inspiration fromResident Evil 7.
4Low Visibility
It’s a well-known fact that the fog in the originalSilent Hillwas born out of technical limitation, but it served as a key part of that game’s atmosphere and mood. Even though technology has advanced significantly since the original PlayStation, aSilent Hillreboot should keep the fog, both as an homage to the classic games and as a way to maximize performance and graphics.
Employing fog and limiting the field of view will not only create a more tense experience, but it will also allow the developers to squeeze every possible ounce of graphical power out of the current generation of consoles, resulting in an incredibly realistic looking game.
3Great Story
The firstSilent Hillgames were not just praised for the horror aspects, but also their stories.Silent Hill 2in particular features a story that’s just as captivating today as it was when it first released, and aSilent Hillreboot needs to nail the narrative in order to be seen as a true successor to the classic titles.
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The town of Silent Hill reflects the thoughts and mental states of those that wander into it, and that concept provides rich opportunities for fantastic storytelling. Video game stories have come a long way over the past few generations, and a modernSilent Hillstory has the potential to be something special.
2Social Elements
Solving the final puzzle inP.T.was a collaborative effort between thousands of people all over the Internet, and aSilent Hillreboot should feature similar social elements. The main game should be playable solo, but there should also be optional elements and hidden puzzles that require collaboration with others.
Having deliberately confusing puzzles could even enhance the horror, adding to the sense of alienation and powerlessness thatSilent Hillgames do so well. It would also extend the game’s life significantly, revealing new narrative elements or secret areas well after the game releases.
1Spooky Audio Design
Sound is crucial in creating effective horror, and aSilent Hillreboot needs to have great audio design to really scare players. The majority of the scares inP.T.were auditory, and everything from the strange man on the radio to the cries and moans of Lisa excelled at unsettling the player and putting them on edge.
Especially if aSilent Hillreboot adopts some of the other things on this list like VR support or a first-person camera, audio can elevate the experience to the next level, playing tricks on the player and making them question if what they’re hearing is real.
