During the latest Silent Hill Transmissions stream held on March 14, Konami officially announced Silent Hill f. The new title’s Showa-era Japan setting is a distinct departure from previous entries, but Silent Hill f will also be the first game in the franchise to be rated CERO:Z (ages 18 and up) in Japan.
While it’s still possible for the age rating to be revised prior to the game’s release, at the time of writing, Silent Hill f is the only game in the series with such a high rating, as all numbered titles from Silent Hill to Silent Hill 4: The Room have been rated CERO:C (ages 15 and up). Even the Silent Hill 2 remake, which was given a mature (17+) ESRB rating in the West, remained CERO:C in Japan. Other Silent Hill entries developed outside of Japan have been rated CERO:D (ages 17 and up) at the highest.
On the other hand, it might be worth mentioning the case of 2008’s Silent Hill: Homecoming here. Homecoming was developed outside of Japan and initially released in the West, but it’s Japanese release ended up being cancelled. The title is known for having some of the goriest depictions in the Silent Hill series, and it was appropriately given a mature ESRB rating in the West. Back when the Japanese launch was cancelled, Konami told Japanese outlet GIGAZINE that they judged that the game was not suitable for the Japanese market during the localization stage (although they cited overall reasons, beyond just gory expressions, as the reason). Perhaps Homecoming would have been rated CERO:Z if it hadn’t been cancelled.
As for the upcoming Silent Hill f, storefront descriptions suggest that the CERO:Z rating itself is primarily due to the game’s depictions of “crime.” The Steam page further warns of “depictions of gender discrimination, child abuse, bullying, drug-induced hallucinations, torture, and graphic violence.”
With a scenario written by Ryukishi07, author of the acclaimed Umineko and Higurashi When They Cry series, Silent Hill f is currently in development for the PC (Steam/Epic Games Store), PS5 and Xbox Series X|S
