Konami delivers a horror game for the ages : NPR

Silent Hill F explores the trauma and terror of societal expectations of the 1960s in Japan.

Konami

hide

tilting legend

Konami

Like a silent protagonist of the hills descends more and more in madness and depravity, inevitably, they all ask a version of the same question: Is it a dream?

This investigation cuts to the heart of the brand of “the psychological horror” of Silent Hill. If Resident Evil draws his frighteners from the immediate terrors of the material world (predators, death, lack of resources), Silent Hill generates fear by having players of the fragility of the human mind and the uncertainty of a shared reality. What is real? What is it?

Silent Hill fans will soon wonder if they are those who dream. This is because Silent Hill F is one of the best most daring, darkest, most brilliant, dirtiest and most flat games in the whole series; A huge success that has a bit seemed unfathomable.

After more than a decade of negligence and intermediate entrances, Konami has now released two consecutive Hill Silent Bangers in less than a year. Silent Hill 2 did the impossible by redoing an emblematic game. But Silent Hill F is even more impressive. It is a brand new entry that perfectly includes the attraction of the franchise. But it is also the one who takes daring risks with his framework and his narrative approach.

Silent Hill F tells the story of Hinako, a growing teenager in a small village in Japan in the 1960s. Her story begins with largely domestic problems: friction with parents, the imminent perspective of marriage, growing discomfort between friends for life. But it quickly becomes clear that these banal events are rooted in a different and very real type of suffering. While this inner conflict becomes more obvious, the magnificent mountain village gives way to rot, decrease and of course the real monsters.

The interior conflicts of the silent protagonists of Hill are often reflected in the frame and the world of the game.

Konami

hide

tilting legend

Konami

What works so well here is how an ambiguity coat is constantly draped on the story, made at the right time to keep us hanging. Who is Hinako, and how is it involved in this story of violence and madness? What role do his friends play in all of this? Who is the mysterious man in the Fox mask (and what does he want with her?)

The new game is rifted on a dynamic more than any game of previous Silent Hill: the role that society and culture play in the information of the mental rupture of our character. Is crazy hinako, or is the world around her mad? Hinako is fighting not only against his own mind, but with rigid patriarchal standards and pressures of the time. This social context is a constant presence in the history of Silent Hill F.

All the numerous questions and loose ends of the game are not answered after the roll of credits. There is a lot to mine here, much too much for a game, and I can’t wait to dissect this story alongside other fans and youtube video trialists. It is this kind of game. A puzzle that is filled with mysteries and clues, laughing for interpretation.

There are other things for poetic waxing. The cutscenes, many, are among the most artisanal and elegant that I have seen in a video game. The rhythm of the game is relentless. His puzzles are intelligent and rarely a nuisance. His difficulty is finely settled (even in history mode, this is how Konami suggested that I play the first time).

If I had Nitpick, I would point out that the game (a lot discussed) on combat scenarios and mechanics. There are light attacks, heavy attacks, development attacks, meters … It’s a little too much. Although the game in a credible way these frequent meetings in the story, I would certainly have exchanged a handful of them for some additional puzzles or scary episodes of exploration.

But the best silent games live and die by their atmosphere and their story. Silent Hill F is an absolute triumph in this regard. To my surprise, this is my favorite game of the series from the original Silent Hill 2.

Yes, it’s so good.