In some methods, Silent Hill f represents a recent begin for the revered franchise. The primary new mainline entry in over 13 years unfolds in Japan, removed from the collection’ namesake foggy American city, and throughout the Sixties, no much less. To see how these adjustments are molding this installment, I traveled to Konami’s workplace in Tokyo to play the primary 5 hours of the survival horror title. Regardless of the radically totally different setting and period, Silent Hill f seems like a return to the basic entries, albeit with some ache factors surrounding fight.
In the event you’re a newcomer to Silent Hill, fret not; developer NeoBards and Konami are treating Silent Hill f as a recent slate divorced from the established canon, making it an excellent entry level. The sport stars Shimizu Hinako, a rebellious teenage woman residing within the small, secluded city of Ebisugaoka. Hinako has a tumultuous residence life. She hates her abusive father and resents her subservient mom for permitting her father to have his means with them. That is maybe why Hinako rejects conventional feminine roles and behaves extra “masculine”, to the chagrin of her mother and father and even a few of her buddies.
Regardless of projecting a troublesome exterior, Hinako thinks little of herself, writing in her journal that “there’s not a single extraordinary factor about me.” Hinako does adore her older sister, nonetheless, viewing her as a protector and confidant. Sadly, her sister has since married and moved out, leaving Hinako alone in a house she detests.
Hinako finds assist in her childhood buddy, Shu, and fellow buddies Sakuko, a spunky woman hailing from a household of shrine clergymen, and the extra shy Rinko, who could have a crush on Shu. Sadly, it isn’t lengthy earlier than a sinister fog and crimson vein-like vines overtake their residence. I don’t know why or the way it occurs, however the village is reworked right into a nightmarish, but hauntingly lovely model of itself, due to the blood-red flower blossoms overtaking all the things. Monsters stalking the streets have changed Ebisugaoka’s residents, and Hinako turns into separated from her buddies.
Chatting with developer NeoBards artistic director Al Yang, Silent Hill f primarily attracts design inspiration from Silent Hill 1 and a couple of. Concerning fight, nonetheless, the staff examined Silent Hill 4: The Room and its extra melee-centric motion. Don’t anticipate to wield weapons in Silent Hill f; Hinako solely makes use of close-range weapons comparable to pipes, bats, and knives. Weapons additionally degrade and break with use, and you’ll solely equip three at a time. Though you possibly can restore them utilizing instrument kits, a part of Silent Hill f’s problem is available in monitoring weapon sturdiness and figuring out if it’s price sporting down weapon towards a terrifying foe.
I make this willpower typically; the village’s slim alleyways means circumventing enemies isn’t as simple because it was in earlier Silent Hill video games. As such, I usually needed to depend on Hinako’s dodge to evade assaults, which expends a stamina meter. Executing a last-second good dodge replenishes this bar – an important ability to grasp as you’ll want your power to fend off unavoidable threats.
Bludgeoning fleshy, mannequin-like creatures and eerie masked scarecrows feels weighty and fittingly clumsy (Hinako is only a child, in any case), whether or not utilizing gentle assaults or slower, extra highly effective heavy assaults, every carried out utilizing the appropriate shoulder buttons. If this configuration sounds suspiciously Souls-like, it’s not completely inaccurate. Between the deliberate assaults and the necessity to continuously monitor the stamina bar, Silent Hill f has shades of the subgenre From Software program popularized.
Whereas that’s effective, Hinako’s stamina regenerates too slowly for my tastes. Even while you don’t absolutely expend stamina, it takes a few second and a half earlier than it begins to refill, which seems like an eternity as a result of it’s simply lengthy sufficient to be susceptible to successive assaults from the much-faster enemies. Monsters transfer rapidly and erratically, and dodging threats like a leaping foe that hops round Hinako expends a ton of power in a short time. I typically died merely from missing the power to flee after dodging two or three assaults in a row. Hinako describes herself in her journal as being a former observe and discipline athlete, so that you’d assume she’d have higher conditioning.
One large, virtually Souls-esque boss battle was an absolute nightmare due to this stamina limitation, and never simply within the literal sense. Greatest described as a demonic youngster wielding a spiked hammer, a torn maw of flapping pores and skin, and draped in priestess robes with lengthy needles protruding of her, she’s absolute nightmare gasoline (particularly since my demo station was close to a life-size statue of her). This monster’s relentless assaults require fixed dodging, extra so than the delayed regeneration of your stamina meter can deal with. Tack on that you just want stamina to retaliate in addition to chase her when she begins disappearing/reappearing across the enviornment, and taking her down is infuriatingly robust. I spent a full hour on this battle and I wasn’t alone. Each individual I spoke to shared related frustrations, and I hope it is reworked for launch after giving my critiques to the artistic director.
When operating away isn’t an choice, you possibly can interrupt enemy assaults by retaliating once they emit a telltale jittery glow. Nailing this efficiently stuns the enemy. When you can obtain this by holding a pointy lookout – counter home windows are fleeting – a mechanic referred to as Focus makes figuring out these openings simpler. By holding the left shoulder set off, the display screen darkens to raised expose and prolong the length of the counterattack window.
Nevertheless, performing Focus drains Hinako’s Sanity meter, a useful resource additionally spent to carry out charged Focus Assaults. By holding down the assault and Focus buttons for a interval, this particular assault offers large harm on the expense of Sanity. Nevertheless, readying this assault leaves Hinako susceptible, and absorbing harm that interrupts your Focus Assault lowers the Sanity bar itself. Focusing whereas wielding heavier weapons, like a sledgehammer, permits Hinako to carry out a block towards most assaults, however this expedites weapon degradation. To maintain your head above water, an merchandise wheel allows you to use varied therapeutic gadgets, in addition to these restoring Sanity, on the fly.
Fight might be very difficult, particularly when coping with multiple adversary directly. I died typically, respawning at prayer shrines serving as checkpoints. When the going will get robust, Shrines supply alternatives to enhance Hinako’s possibilities. For instance, you possibly can equip her with an omamori, charms that add useful perks, comparable to lowering stamina utilization. Nevertheless, you possibly can initially solely equip a single omamori at a time, and I usually swapped them out throughout particularly brutal encounters.
Shrines additionally mean you can current choices, whether or not valuables discovered throughout exploration or sure consumables like well being gadgets, to earn a particular foreign money referred to as Religion. Spending Religion means that you can replenish your Sanity meter primarily based on the quantity spent. You too can use Religion to buy new omamori from a randomized pool, type of ike a loot field. I’m not wild on gaining new omamori on a cube roll, provided that it not solely prices a whole bunch of Religion factors to purchase, however every buy raises the price by one other 100. Why would I need to save up a whole bunch of Religion factors once I don’t even know if the omamori I get shall be useful to a given scenario?
Exploring the labyrinthine Ebisugaoka presents many otherworldly surprises, areas, and mysteries. This consists of the surprising help of an enigmatic and questionably reliable masked man. Draped in white robes to match his white hair, who or what this younger man is stays to be seen, however he possesses supernatural talents and seemingly needs to assist Hinako keep alive. Whether or not that is out of pure altruism or if the masked man has his personal sinister agenda should await the complete launch, however Hinako encounters a number of eerie hints to not belief this individual.
In between combating or avoiding monsters, I encountered a number of elaborate puzzles, obligatory and optionally available, whereas exploring Ebisugaoka’s foggy streets. These riddles might be as intelligent as they’re devious. One required utilizing a poem to search out the right illustrations from a number of, scattered boards stuffed with wood photos – all whereas evading a patrolling blind beast delicate to sound. Whereas I loved most puzzles, a number of left me scratching my head, and never in a great way.
At one level, I used to be trapped in a foggy, open farm discipline that warped me again to its begin if I proceeded aimlessly. Discovering the right path required pinpointing a particular creepy scarecrow out of a giant group of them, and my solely clue was a cryptic message that felt slightly too obscure. Every time I assumed I knew what to search for, I selected the flawed scarecrow, bringing it to life to assault me as punishment. I bumbled my means via 5 cases of this train (which felt two rounds too lengthy) and completed with out ever actually greedy what I used to be doing.
These workout routines, together with a sequence in an deserted center college that required unlocking doorways and avoiding threats, finest evoked the Silent Hill of previous. Interiors require discovering keys to unlock sure doorways. You unravel bespoke puzzles to earn new gadgets or clues. All of the whereas, you’ll confront all method of monstrosities roaming about. The open world comprises sure optionally available constructions you possibly can discover, too, comparable to the house of the city physician, which has its personal mini thriller surrounding his whereabouts.
It’s unclear what number of optionally available areas, puzzles, or enemy encounters Silent Hill f presents, however they seemingly feed into its a number of endings. True to collection custom, Silent Hill f has 5 totally different endings. Nevertheless, these alternate endings don’t turn into obtainable till the second playthrough. The primary playthrough ends precisely the identical for everybody, as NeoBards and Konami need to inform a purposefully crafted story with an intentional starting, center, and finish.
When you’ve seen the canonical ending, subsequent playthroughs think about your actions (how is unclear) and result in branching outcomes. NeoBards says it didn’t write these endings as being “Good” or “Dangerous”. Relatively, they’ll be up for interpretation. And sure, one of many endings is the fan-favorite and foolish UFO conclusion.
Silent Hill f raised the hairs on my neck greater than as soon as, due to its scary creatures and efficient sound design, amplified by incredible 3D audio. Whereas I’ve a number of misgivings with fight, I like the sport’s presentation, setting, and ambiance. Puzzle-solving is intelligent and fulfilling, and I’m intrigued to see the place the story goes (particularly the branching endings). Primarily based on what I performed up to now, the sport is preemptively checking the packing containers of not solely a robust Silent Hill recreation, however a enjoyable survival horror expertise.
Maybe greater than something, I’m simply blissful to see the Silent Hill franchise firing on all cylinders once more. Silent Hill f has the makings of a robust entry that maintains the optimistic momentum of final yr’s nice Silent Hill 2 remake.
