Contrary to its title, Silent Hill f does not take place in the titular town of Silent Hill, but rather in the fictional town of Ebisugaoka, Japan. According to Silent Hill series producer Motoi Okamoto and Silent Hill f story director Ryukishi07, Konami’s decisions to work with NeoBards Entertainment and change the game’s setting are meant to bring the franchise back to its Japanese horror roots.
NeoBards Entertainment’s involvement and the push for Japanese horror focuses on the theme of “finding the beauty in terror”
In the recent Konami Press Start Live livestream showcase, Okamoto highlights how the Silent Hill franchise combines the essence of Western and Japanese horror. According to him, recent entries have been shifting more to the Western side, which is why he wanted Silent Hill f to be completely inspired by Japanese horror.
Okamoto’s push for a Japanese-horror-focused Silent Hill led to Konami handing the development reigns to NeoBards Entertainment, a Hong Kong-based independent game studio known for working on titles like Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, the current console generation versions of Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, and the Resident Evil 2 and 3 remakes. Okamoto felt that NeoBards Entertainment’s track record of dealing and communicating with major Japanese publishers would be a perfect fit for what he had in mind for Silent Hill f.
Despite the change in setting, Okamoto states that Silent Hill f will retain the psychological horror themes the franchise is known for. He wants the concept of “finding the beauty in terror” to be prevalent throughout the game, which, to him, is the essence of Japanese horror. Judging by the juxtaposition of nature and the grotesque in pre-release images and stills (where Silent Hill f’s use of red spider lilies is on full display), this certainly seems to be the case.
The 1960s setting combines forgotten Japanese superstitions with the modern world
Ryukishi07 discussed Silent Hill f’s 1960s, Showa era setting, saying the development team wanted to challenge themselves to work on yet-unexplored themes in the Silent Hill franchise. Given its timeframe, the Showa era features familiar concepts as well as Japanese customs and superstitions that have long been forgotten by many people. Lead Level Designer Kaiyu Chang says that NeoBards Entertainment hasn’t forgotten about the Silent Hill franchise’s Otherworld realm, and has crafted levels for both realms that let players experience the unique aesthetics and sensibilities of Japanese culture while staying true to Ryukishi07’s storyline.
Silent Hill f is set to release on September 25 for the PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X|S.
