(Door wont budge.) (Door wont budge.) (Door wont budge.) (Door wont budge.) (Door wont budge.) (I need a key.) (Door wont budge.) (Door wont budge.) 10/10 authentic Silent Hill game

Scary

I don’t often buy games early, get the special edition, or even leave a review for them but here we are. I was so worried about getting spoiled on the next Silent Hill game I paid extra money to get it two days early. I do not recommend this game to any Silent Hill fans. This game does not feel like a SH game at all. I gave it so much slack and reserved judgment as long as I could only to regret purchasing this game. I knew it would be a departure from the tone of the original games but I had no idea that it would depart so far to feel like an entirely different series, I genuinely feel tricked into buying this game. I don’t believe that it was an SH game for a large portion of its production and I think I would have received it better if it didn’t bear the Silent Hill title. Things I did like: The game does look very nice. It took me a while to fiddle with the graphic settings to get stable performance without compromising its art style. The Middle school section of the game was very good. It was the most the game felt like classic silent hill and I quite enjoyed the tone and puzzles for that area. Things I disliked: If you're someone who thinks that the remake of SH2 “fixed” the combat of the old game you probably will like the combat of SHF, I on the other hand feel that cinematic combat is antithetical to the SH experience. I don’t think you should get the feeling of styling on the fear of pregnancy and ect. To its credit the combat did feel tense on hard mode. Ask yourself this, would SH3 have been a better game if Heather Mason could pop a Devil Trigger and have a fist fight with Claudia? You don’t know how on the nose I'm being with that statement. I stopped at 90% point of the game to write this review because it's roughly the release time for those who didn’t pay extra and I wanted to get the word out there to not buy this game. So in all fairness maybe the last 10% of the game could turn around and wow me But I would like to say that the story is very shallow. I was looking for a mature psychologically rich story and it never quite pulls through. It fails to produce the intrigue and ambiguity that the other games have. When it poses a question to entice you it feels like I missed something instead. I felt dumb for taking the time to invest into the story and characters only for it to devolve into a stupid super power fight where a character shouts their feelings at you mid attack. All attempts to build themes and express them through the creatures and environment felt so pointless when I got to a certain section. Just plain disappointing.

I like the story and setting of the game a lot so far, but because it's a Silent Hill title, I'm a bit overwhelmed by the amount of combat and action. I feel like the setting with the old Japanese town would be so much more intimidating if Hinako weren't going around like a character in a Souls game, parrying and fighting monsters left and right. Also, the game seems to be badly optimized to the point where I had to stop playing because I had around 10 FPS in the rice field section—even though I'm running an RTX 4080, 32GB RAM, and an i9 12th gen. I feel that it's not a bad game, but it clearly shouldn't have the title Silent Hill; it has too much action. Other than that and the bad optimization, I liked the game, but I'm not able to give it a good review yet, because if I pay this much for a game and am not able to play it on a 4000 franc PC, that's just a scam.

What this game has taught me is do not take Tylenol as a parasitic worm will eat your brain and take over your mind. Silent Hill F is a hauntingly, beautiful return to psychological horror with the integration of Japanese folklore and Silent Hill’s signature theme creates a unique cultural and narrative depth. Growing up and playing Silent Hill since it's 1999 release it has left a impact on me and proceeds to be one of my favorite series of all time. In saying that after immersing myself in hours of Silent Hill F it is a captivating experience and has left me astonished. Emerged both disturbed with trauma what might be the most refreshing take on the franchise in years. Meticulously crafted grotesque floral imagery, blending fear with beauty and breathes new life into the formula. The game-play value of the previous games is different. Inventory here is limited as you can only carry 3 weapons and a certain amount of items. It's not to frustrating to maintain them if you can appropriately get by doing tense fighting when needed. The puzzles can be challenging and obtainable just make sure to read everything. The combat in the game is also something new where you will have to dodge attacks almost like a souls game. The movement in the game also carry's the signature that has kind of a awkwardness. From a technical standpoint, Silent Hill F performs admirably. Frame rates remained consistent throughout my playthrough with no noticeable drops even during the more visually intensive sequences. Load times are reasonable, and I encountered no game-breaking bugs or crashes. One of the other aspects about Silent Hill I absolutely love is the ambient music. It has gotten me through so much in the past. Here like the other ones we have haunting themes, melancholic melodies and eerie sounds. The soundtracks go so well with it you feel connected. Pros: Monsters and environmental storytelling Grim atmosphere with psychological horror Puzzles that can have a challenge but feasible Score Cons Idk don't have none to say

Im a clown for preordering games.

Editing this real quick SPOILER ALERTS, I should've done this the first time. Sorry about that. BTW what's weird with me taking a vacation lol. So many comments talking about this. Some of you definitely need one with the way you react to someone having a different opinion as you. ❤:) I will start my review by saying that no, I am not writing this just to be a hater. I was really excited for this game. I couldn’t shut up to my coworkers about it for MONTHS. I took a week off from work to play it, and bought the 123$ (ouch) deluxe version. I WANTED to love this game. But unfortunately, I am just so incredibly disappointed, I need to get it off my chest. and I hope that I can help some people. I wasted my money here, please don’t waste yours. Just watch a playthrough on youtube, if you’re so curious. I promise it is not worth your time and money. Also I compare the game a lot to the SILENT HILL 2 remake (a masterpiece btw) so if you haven’t played it you might miss some of my points. Okay so let’s start with the positive, blink and you’ll miss it! Beautiful character/monster design. Great environmental Design. Amazing soundtrack. That's it. Yeah. Now on to the negative. Where to start. . . The optimization Now, that might be a skill issue from my computer, but my game was absolutely unplayable unless everything was on absolute low. The game would run on like 10 fps, and I even got a couple of crashes. SILENT HILL 2 remake ran perfectly on the same computer, so honestly, not sure what happened here. I guess I’ll let this one slide, since running the game on low didn’t really change much from the experience. Combat System This, this was offensive. I’ve seen a lot of people mention in their review that you don’t play a SILENT HILL game for the combat, but rather for the story. While I DO agree with that, this is NOT an excuse to make such a shitty combat design. I genuinely have no idea how anyone could find it fun or interesting. First of all, weapons have durability now, and you need to repair them. What is this?? Breath of the Wild???? Seriously, why did they do that? The combat mechanics are so clunky, there’s perfect dodges now, health bar, stamina bar, sigma fox arm transformation. I can’t man. I get that they wanted to try a different approach in this one, but it really breaks the immersion that we’re supposed to be in a SILENT HILL game. This reads more like a Beat Them All or something. . . General Complaint The puzzles are incredibly boring and easy. The upgrade system. Resident Evil aah mechanic. I don’t know what else to say here… The game is constantly telling you what to do/where to go. As soon as you finish something or enter a room, there will be a little pop up on the top left of your screen telling you what is your next objective. Like bro why is the game holding my hand like this? This was a huge fun killer for me. COMPLETELY breaks the immersion. SILENT HILL was always about exploring every corner of the map to find what you need/where you need to go. Not scary at all. In the whole game I think I jumped like twice and both times it was from the doll monster jumping on me from the ceiling, that’s all. Throughout the game you will find a lot of memos, but finding them isn’t satisfying at all. Let me explain. When I played the SILENT HILL 2 remake, I really liked going out of my way to find all the memos, because they all had a very human touch to them. When I read them, I could really imagine what life was like in the town before it became what it is. It’s little details like this that makes you feel all the love and developers put into the game. In SILENT HILL F, the memos kind of just… don’t make any sense really. Except for the diary pages left from Hinako’s friends, I really didn’t care to read them. I know it’s a nitpick on my part but hey, this is my review, I’m just writing what I was feeling while playing the game. All the characters are just… meh. Fox guy and Junko especially. It felt as if even the story didn’t know what to do with them. I wasn’t invested in any relationship between the characters. Hinako conveniently always has a map on her of every place she goes to. Funny how that works. The Story What even is the story here, seriously. The game is only around 12-13 hours long, and in all the hours I played, kind of nothing was happening. I feel like they tried so hard with the psychological aspects, that in the end nothing made sense. Hinako just keeps fainting or falling asleep and wakes up in another weird world with weird characters that literally do not bring anything to the table. Yeah so that fox mask guy? He’s kinda just there. Honestly though, the mystery isn’t even interesting, I didn’t feel the need to find out who he was or what he was trying to do to Hinako. The story is just not engaging?? When I played the SILENT HILL 2 remake, I already knew what the whole story was (I mean, the game is 24 years old lol) but even so, I couldn’t wait to get to the end and figure out what happened to Mary, you’re just so immersed in the universe. But in SILENT HILL F? I didn’t really care to find out anything, honestly, I just wanted to get it over with. All throughout my playthrough, I kept asking myself : ’’How many % am I into the game? I haven’t done anything…’’. I had some hope back when I got to the middle school section, but that part only lasted like 30 minutes, and it never got any better than that. Fun. And the ending??? You get at the last 10 minutes of gameplay and they hit you with the ‘’Hahaha, actually it was all a hallucination and the character was on drugs all along!!! You were the bad guy from the beginning. Crazy plot twist!!’’ Oh wow. So cool and interesting, amazing. Truly, they only slapped SILENT HILL on it because they knew it would bring more money. There is nothing in this game that will give you the SILENT HILL experience that you are probably looking for. If I could, I would ask for a refund. I finished it out of spite and I don’t think I will ever revisit it. Don’t even care to see what New Game+ has to offer. If this is your first SILENT HILL, don't bother and go for the SILENT HILL 2 remake instead, now THAT is a game that is worth your time and money. Whoever made it this far, thank you for listening to my rant, I hope I could be of help.

Silent Hill press f to pay respects.

Solving internal psychological traumas with a metal pipe since 1999. Silent Hill is so back!!! Ryukishi07 is a horror writing savant. He's very, very good at portraying psychological horror in a small town setting, which is what SH is known for. Do yourself a favor and play this with the original Japanese VO. I’ll be playing... with the lights on.

Pretty But Terrifying

Silent Hill f is the type of game that makes you say, *Wow, this is beautiful* right before it punches you with horror. The character models are so realistic, you’ll start wondering if they’re alive? The game’s environments are basically an art gallery of terror. Gorgeous architectureand perfectly creepy town

Combat

Gameplay itself is smooth, no weird clunkiness But the combat? Imagine if Dark Souls and a survival horror game had a baby On paper, that sounds like torture. But honestly? It works. Every fight feels intense The best part? The combat feels fair. Hard, yes. But not cheap. (Okay, sometimes cheap, but in the fun way.)

Weapons (Use,Break,Repair)

Unlike Silent Hill 2 Remake, weapons here don’t last forever. They break faster than cheap headphones But you can repair them with toolkits you find around the map It adds tension because every swing feels like a decision: “Do I use my weapon here or save it for something uglier later?” Honestly, it’s one of the smartest design choices

Monsters

The enemies are disgusting—in the best way They’re slimy, twisted, and move like their bones are Wi-Fi signals They’re also unpredictable, so just running away is often the smarter play And the bosses? Chef’s kiss. Brutal, and a mix of *I hate this* and *this is awesome*

Puzzles

The puzzles have their own difficulty setting, just like Silent Hill 2 Remake On story difficulty, you feel like Einstein. On hard, you’re Googling *how do I think* It’s the right balance, not too many puzzles to slow down the game, but enough to make your brain sweat between fights

Performance (Runs Fine)

The game’s built in Unreal Engine 5, so yeah, it looks gorgeous Performance is mostly solid, with a few hiccups early on. Nothing game-breaking

Hinako, My Beloved

Let’s be real: Hinako owns this game. She’s beautiful, mysterious, and already my desktop wallpaper Whoever designed her deserves a raise

So Many Endings

This game doesn’t stop at one ending. It has five. Yep, five. Each comes with its own boss fight, and there’s even a UFO ending because Silent Hill loves trolling us Replay value is insane. I started New Game+ and doors that once said *Won’t budge* suddenly opened It’s like the game laughs at you *Congrats, you finished. Now do it again*

Sound and Atmosphere

Of course Akira Yamaoka is back for the soundtrack, and of course it slaps The music shifts perfectly between hauntingly beautiful and oh god what is behind me Combined with the Japanese folklore setting, the whole vibe is eerie and unique it’s Silent Hill, but fresh

Final Thoughts

Silent Hill F is everything creepy, gorgeous, stressful, and weirdly addictive It breaks your weapons, your brain, and your patience, but you’ll still love it Between the story, replay value, monsters, and Hinako, it’s one of the strongest Silent Hill entries yet. Totally worth playing just don’t expect to sleep well after Also, play this in Japanese dub with English subs. Even if you don’t know Japanese, the vibes are unmatched it just feels right

Another game I really wish I could give a mixed review for. the story and setting are great, the combat is flawed but the problem comes with how proud the devs were of this combat so they make you constantly take part in it. Here's the thing, i was skeptical of a silent hill in a japanese setting. But honestly the devs did a great job with that. the setting of the town itself is incredible and the story is also quite captivating. My issue is with the combat. Ill compare it to sh2 remake melee combat which was so well made it almost made the game too easy. But it didn't, at the end of the day the game was still tense and scary and the combat didn't feel cheap or unfair. Silent hill f is kind of the opposite, they didn't want it to be simplistic so they ramped it up, in some ways they went too far with mechanics i won't discuss to avoid spoilers but lets just say they were clearly very proud of this combat system its just really tedious. in one on one fights and in the town the combat totally works, there is risk and reward, there is perfect dodging and stamina management but it works because you can always try to avoid combat and because most of these encounters are 1 on 1. By the end of the game you have been through at least 20 or more multi enemy locked in a space and can't leave until they are all dead fights and I have to emphasize that when dealing with more than 2 enemies this game gets really obnoxious. It also commits a personal cardinal sin of mine that being homing attacks. some projectile attacks from a certain recurring miniboss enemy have curved in the air more that 90 degrees to still hit me because I did not dodge(why do i need to dodge when im clearly positioning myself away from the enemies attack location) and one enemies pounce grab attack has on more than one occasion slid around a full 90 degree corner to still hit me anyway. its just feels frustrating in all the ways that sh2 remake was tense. good horror balance does not kill you because when you die the tension dies with it and it takes time to build back up. the point is to be immersed as the character and be scared for their life but once they have killed you once or more in a short time what are you scared of? getting killed? they already did that.

The atmosphere is great, the eerie music is great, and the story is interesting enough to play through. but the combat? not good at all. just feels like a souls-like with watching the stamina bar, perfect dodging and parrying. i was okay with it until, like most survival horror games, it goes to more action and you are faced with multiple enemies and even have to defeat all enemies to proceed. It went from having fun to feeling like a chore real quick. overall i cannot recommend this game, pick it up on sale.

I just finished my first playthrough of Silent Hill f, and honestly, it’s already one of my favorite games in the series. The story grabbed me from the start—it begins mysterious, then slowly becomes emotional, creepy, and thought-provoking. Some parts were a little predictable, but the ending genuinely surprised me. There’s even a post-credits twist that raises more questions. Plus, you unlock multiple endings in New Game+, so i’m definitely coming back. Once you get the hang of dodging and stamina management, the combat feels smooth and tense. Melee weapons like pipes and knives make every encounter feel dangerous in the best way. Boss fights are challenging without being unfair—just learn the patterns. The puzzles, especially the door ones, are tough but satisfying and really nail the classic Silent Hill vibe. The visuals are gorgeous and super unsettling. The monster designs are grotesque yet creative—some of the best in the series. The Japanese setting adds a fresh layer of horror; the shrines, rituals, and clothing all contribute to a deep, eerie atmosphere. One of the most interesting parts is Hinako’s duality—sometimes she’s unconscious or dreaming, and you enter a dark spiritual world. It feels like a battle between the human and inhuman inside her, and whether that’s symbolic or literal, it’s powerful and disturbing. As the story progresses, the characters—and especially Hinako—grow more dynamic and thrilling. Her journey pulled me in completely, and just when I thought I had her figured out, the game delivered a wild twist. Without spoiling anything, she unlocks a powerful new ability halfway through, and from that point on, her combat became my favorite part of the game. It hit hard—both narratively and mechanically. I ran into a few technical issues (some lag and crashes), but they didn’t ruin the experience. If you’re sensitive to that kind of stuff, maybe wait for a patch—but honestly, it’s worth playing now. Compared to older Silent Hill games, this one balances nostalgia with bold new ideas. It’s emotional, atmospheric, and deeply unsettling in all the right ways. NeoBards really nailed it. Highly recommended for fans of horror, psychological stories, and the Silent Hill legacy.

I'm going to have to not recommend buying this game if you don't want to support a game developer that is promoting modern feminist propaganda, as the overall theme of the game is marriage is bad and men are bad without going into spoilers. My opinion of the game after playing through once is the story is quite average nothing mind blowing, Silent hill 2 was much better story wise and gameplay as well. Combat is melee only with weapons that can break, something I hate so I used a trainer to remove that annoyance you also have stamina to deal with which I didn't really mind as it does make combat a bit more tense and enemies can be damage sponges which can be annoying as well and towards the end it does get tiring to engage in combat. Performance was fine other than the usual traversal stutters you get in UE5 titles. The review video by Griffin Gaming goes into more details if you want story elements spoiled for you. Edit 09/29/2025 I tried to slog through a new game plus run to see one of the different endings and to see the alternate cut scenes I was reading about being in new game plus but the ones I did see had very little to add to the story as they are quite subtle changes like having a flashback to something that happened in your first play through which does make sense to do with how the endings connect together to culminate in the final ending and in the {SPOILER} very beginning where the parents are talking about Hinako's arranged marriage {SPOILER} and the new bits of lore scattered throughout you're better off just watching the different endings on youtube because the gameplay is just not good enough and too much is the same to make it worth wasting your time playing through three more times just to see them and get the whole story. I was really looking forward to this game with how much I enjoyed the silent hill 2 remake which was my first silent hill game, there are things that are really good like the atmosphere, the music, and the japanese mythology baked into the story which really draws you in at first but then you get to the endings and finally figure out what's going on and find notes talking about how all the men in the village are just like her father men who are emotional, deadbeats, abusers, and treat women as nothing more than objects and about how worthless life is if that women's only role in life is to support these worthless men. Then marriage is painted in the light of being trapped in a cage making women lose all their freedom. It's really hard not to see these things as being done on purpose and not just part of the story since these days pushing certain narratives in new games, TV shows, books, And movies are done to do just that, as these company's prefer to shove their ideologies and political views down people's throats instead of just making a good story with well written characters and great gameplay so we can have a moment of escape from the stress of everyday life and get lost in a new world for a few hours.

Lock on targeting! Parrying! Perfect dodge! Bullet time! Detective mode! Meter management! RPG mechanics! Super saiyan transformations! "Sir, This is A Silent Hill game" Good story/art, but suffers badly from the plague of modern game Biz-Dev. Disregard "design" and shoehorn in as many mechanics as possible, just so you can list them as "features" in order to please corporate/marketing. Video games, especially survival horror games, are defined by their limitations. what if "FEATURE CREEP " was the real horror??? sorry, ill see myself out.

All is good except for the price, 80 euros for a normal basic edition game is theft, also some little performance issues. Buy it on sale !

woke slop

I don’t recommend this game. Short or meaningless reviews aside, here’s my experience: skip this new “Silent Hill.” Buy Silent Hill 2 Remake or Silent Hill 4 on GOG—cheap, 4K, worth your time. Heroine’s concept vs. in-game model? Fine. But it’s 2025—facial animations should be expressive, not stiff and awkward. Here, cutscenes feel frozen, worse than Siren 1 & 2. Adaptations and new directions are fine, but the real issue is whether the developers truly understand what Silent Hill is. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Because it’s an important addition, I’ve condensed my comment ： In the comment section, many people criticized me, saying I don’t understand, and that the new Silent Hill is simply a derivative, an interpretation, or a new way to present the IP, including location changes. Regarding this, here’s my point: since the old games are set in a fixed country and region with underlying local beliefs and folklore, suddenly switching the new game to Japan requires replacing all the setting details and elements from the inside out to truly achieve deconstruction and recomposition. Since the new game is set in Japan, some argue this alone is a “new interpretation.” But the question is: why does it still use fog? This is more of an “IP identifier” than an adaptation to Japanese culture. Retaining fog may be a form of legacy, but it contradicts the idea of “reconstruction and new interpretation.” A truly new interpretation should reconstruct the work based on the new background, cultural logic, and the horror methods appropriate to that culture. Do you understand what the horror elements of Japanese nuclear-themed stories are? Fog? No. One common element is dusk. Why is dusk often used in Japanese horror? It’s tied to Japanese horror culture. In Japan, dusk is a psychological transition period between day and night, when light gradually fades. Transitional periods naturally induce uncertainty and anxiety, increasing people’s unease about their surroundings. In nuclear-themed stories, dusk is often used to create a tense atmosphere, placing the player in this ambiguous state between light and dark. Japanese ghosts and folkloric tales also often occur at dusk or night. This timing is deeply rooted in cultural perception. During dusk, shadows overlap and objects’ outlines become unclear. In Japan, especially rural areas, dusk naturally evokes feelings of isolation and oppression. Therefore, if the new game truly considered and understood Japanese culture and horror traditions, it should have replaced the fog with approaching dusk. Light and shadow transitions, moving shadows, and blurred visuals could create a stronger sense of unease and pressure. Considering the game is set in the Showa era, dusk would fit the era’s events, social background, and societal tension. Yet the new game didn’t do this. And this is what people are calling a “new interpretation” or “new presentation.” Ultimately, the game never fully separates itself from some old elements, nor explains the transition clearly—so what are we even calling “new interpretation”? I think dusk—with eerie lighting, music, twisted shadows, scarecrows, and its loneliness—would be far more terrifying than fog. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Can “Silent Hill” refer to any place or region? Yes. But in the classic games, the setting, art direction, folklore, and mythos were connected and consistent, all anchored to one small American town. The core story unfolded there, branching into nearby locations and characters – not just random, disconnected backdrops. You can’t just change the setting, country, and culture on a whim. If you do, then it’s no longer Silent Hill, and your story has to stand on its own – which demands strong writing, cultural understanding, and originality. And frankly, this game shows none of that. The “new” plot isn’t better than the old ones, and it’s not even scary. Instead, it recycles generic horror tropes we’ve seen a million times. The original team borrowed, studied, and learned from great writers, painters, and directors, and combined that with their own artistic vision – that’s why Silent Hill became legendary. Just remember that moment in Silent Hill 2 when James slumps on the hotel sofa in front of the TV for a full four minutes, with nothing but camera work and music – that’s art. Do you think reviving and continuing such an IP is easy? No. You have to study, truly understand, then deconstruct. If it were that easy, masterpieces wouldn’t be so unique. Of course, as society has declined in cultural level, aesthetics, and depth of thought, new players who never experienced the old series will naturally think this is good. They’ve only ever consumed low-tier products, so even “pig feed” tastes fine to them. The root cause isn’t entirely their fault, but yes, individuals still share part of the blame. ====================== Story-wise, this game mixes Japanese folklore, yokai myths, and modern J-horror clichés—flesh walls, red fog, blob monsters—nothing original. Set in Showa-era Japan, the atmosphere feels weaker than old tokusatsu like Ultraman Leo and lacks the haunting vibe of Fatal Frame, Yomawari, or FromSoftware’s Kuon. The narrative starts abruptly with a “mystery man,” vague hints, and no clear hook. The era is just window dressing. Why is this village cursed? What’s its origin? The game never says. Instead, it dumps the heroine’s family drama and sprinkles random notes—poor setup. Pacing is off too. On the way to Rin’s house, characters reminisce and preach life lessons—excuse me, horror or high school diary? Survival is at stake, not philosophizing. Compare Siren 1 & 2: multiple characters, viewpoints, no wasted words. This new writing is shallow filler. Players used to low-quality content have become pigs themselves. ====================== Gameplay: the developer’s lack of skill is obvious. Character movement is stiff, with turning animations out of sync with the model, and the player often gets stuck on edges of objects. They added a stamina bar, draining from running, dodging, and attacking. Why? Is adding a stamina bar the only way they know to create “challenge”? So the heroine quickly tires, wheezes, and collapses mid-chase – while enemies are designed with absurdly fast, long-range, tracking attacks. Their hitboxes often connect before the animations even finish, and dodging doesn’t help because the attacks bend toward you. It feels unfair, sloppy, and frustrating. Player attacks are just as bad: no real impact sound, no convincing hit reaction. Monsters barely flinch, just shift into some awkward canned pose. Combat is floaty, imprecise, like skating on ice. Even at point-blank range, your swings don’t auto-correct toward enemies – you’re forced to manually calculate spacing or just whiff into thin air. Then there’s weapon durability and repair crafting on top of it all – pointless busywork, like painting a turd and calling it design. Puzzles? Often vague and poorly written. Take the scarecrow puzzle in the fields: the text shifts between “I” and “he” in confusing ways. Are you supposed to interpret expressions? Gestures? Directions? The clues are too muddy to be satisfying – it just feels like guesswork. ====================== Map design: the semi-open layout resembles Silent Hill 2 with blocked roads and restricted areas, but here it’s atrocious. Paths are unclear, repetitive, and padded. Invisible walls? Worse. Trucks block roads you could squeeze past, fields you could cross—yet you can’t. Ridiculous detours force you along narrow paths while enemies roam freely, sometimes even blocked by a hay bale. Obstacles are fine if meaningful—like Silent Hill 2’s symbolic walls. Here? Nothing. Just arbitrary blocks. Why not use red spider lilies as barriers? This laziness insults the player’s intelligence. Preventing me from walking through an open rice field isn’t clever design—it’s brainless. ======================

I think the game's ok during the first half and there's a lot to appreciate about it overall but I think it goes downhill a lot in the later levels. It's a psychological horror action game that mostly resembles Silent Hill 4 for it's weapon durability/stamina bar and Silent Hill 2 for that game's approach to storytelling. I played the game on Hard mode, so I can't say what the experience of the game is like on Story difficulty. Some of the best moments in the game are when you're solving puzzles, when you're quietly walking around and hear a strange noise coming from somewhere in the environment or when you notice something that's slightly off or altered in your surroundings. The game needed more disquieting non-combat sections like these. While there's a lot of grotesque imagery throughout the game and some dark moments/symbolic implications in the narrative, I never found anything overly disturbing or frightening while playing for the first time, but this probably varies from person to person. The enemies in the beginning of the game do manage to instil some dread, but as the game progresses there are so many they end up just being frustrating to deal with when you're trying to find items and solve puzzles, not really giving the game's ambience and atmosphere a chance to breathe. It eventually all just devolves into the game throwing enemy after enemy at the player to impede progress. In later sections the game almost veers into character-action territory, encouraging you to fight enemies with a ridiculous power up ability in order to progress. This was a slog on hard mode, and felt incredibly schlocky and out of place for a series known for it's subtle and mostly understated approach to gameplay and psychological horror. The game says in the tutorial part of the journal about survival being about knowing when to run and when to fight, but it seems to forget this advice completely after forcing you into enemy encounters you can't escape from. Fighting multiple of the same handful of enemy types over and over again in tight corridors is very frustrating. At one point the game makes the player fight a repurposed boss that spawns even more enemies 3 times in a row. At a certain point I just wanted the game to be over. It's definitely not a souls-like but there are a lot of similarities to the controls and focus on timing present in those games. I thought the slow, deliberate combat usually worked OK for one on one encounters, but fighting a room full of quick-moving enemies is frustrating to deal with when you're so slow to recover from anything, especially if you're in a tight spot since your attacks sometimes bounce off walls and enemies can block doorways. I found myself getting stun-locked to death in some cases because Hinako wasn't able to deal with all the oncoming attacks. The gameplay felt very 'videogame-y' to me too. Performing perfect dodges where you Bloodborne dash 2 metres with a slow-motion effect or having a yellow glowing vignette before performing a focus attack doesn't feel particularly immersive or like it belongs in a psychological horror game to me. It probably would've worked better and felt more grounded if the combat was simpler and enemies actually reacted to your hits. The clunky, slow combat in the older games wasn't conventionally 'good' but it helped sell that you were playing as a normal person trying to fight otherworldly monsters with a blunt weapon. F takes this into account somewhat but adds extra bells and whistles that pushes the combat into an uncanny place between action and survival-horror. I also wanted options to turn off some of the HUD elements like the blood spatter and current objective, as I found these distracting too. You really don't need text to show up every 2 minutes giving the player hints like 'solve the puzzle' or 'run away from the fog monster'. The older games never had this issue, and respected your intelligence enough to let you figure out where to go for yourself. Trying to progress and reading notes while being chased by a pack of enemies (especially the blind ones on all fours that can run faster than you so you can't get away from them easily) became a miserable experience towards the end of my first play-through. Especially since on Hard these enemies can be huge damage sponges, meaning your weapons will degrade quickly if you engage them. If your weapon's nearly broken Hinako will also chime in every 10 minutes reminding you that she needs to find a new one, just to rub salt in wound. I didn't mind weapon degradation as another mechanic to take into consideration, but outside of the shrine levels weapons get damaged too quickly. This became an issue later on when you were more or less required to fight everything. The limited inventory became tedious to deal with too, even when upgraded. I'm fine with horror games forcing you to be mindful of what you're carrying, but being prompted over and over to swap one item with another because you saved up too many and having to run back to a shrine to convert them into points got annoying, especially when you're surrounded by enemies you're trying to avoid. With all it's flaws Silent Hill 4 already solved this issue back in 2004 by giving the player a box to store weapons and items for later. While I do like that the story goes down the psychological route and the dialogue is mostly decent, it isn't exactly subtle in it's presentation at times (especially the obnoxious monster introductions). There's a clear theme of gender expectations and the treatment of women in 1960s Japanese society running throughout the narrative; later in the game this is especially spelled out to the player, with one boss just shouting stuff out like 'we don't have a choice. It's a woman's role in society...' ad nauseum. The characters and performances are well fleshed out though, and I liked reading more about them in Hinako's journal to put the pieces together. I'd recommend leaving the voices on Japanese since that makes the most sense for the setting. While I like that it's trying something fresh in terms of the setting, story and overall aesthetic, the game can sometimes get so far from what the Team Silent games were visually and mechanically that it feels like something else entirely. Change isn't always a bad thing, but if you're fully committing to such a bold new direction then you probably could've just made this a new IP (obviously if it was called 'Town of Inari' though it wouldn't have sold as well). I prefer the dynamic third person camera of those older games too. Camera angles would often be used to highlight/obscure environmental details and establish a sense of place. I did end up liking Akira Yamaoka's soundtrack/sound design, the psychological approach to storytelling, the authentic-feeling environments, the illustrated map, Hinako's journal/notes and the game's occasional emphasis on puzzles and light exploration (especially in the town and the school level). I'm also glad there are next to no references to other Silent Hill games aside from Hinako's Robbie costume. Putting shoehorned references to The Order or Pyramid Head in this particular game would have been pretty jarring fan-service. Overall even if the game wasn't called Silent Hill I'd still have issues with it. It's better than the Western attempts to revive this franchise, though at this point I'd still prefer Konami to just leave the series be and do something completely different. I've started a second playthrough to see what else the story has to offer (after beating the final boss you get a fairly abrupt ending implying there's more to uncover, similar to how Nier Automata handles new game plus) and I do like that there are already a few changes. From my negative experience with the second half of the game though I'm pretty reluctant to return to it. Wait for the price to come down if you want to play it, it's extremely overpriced right now for what it is.

IDK guys… I think a lot of people are just caught up in the Silent Hill hype train, desperate for any SH release. But after about an hour and a half in, I have to say—I’m not impressed at all. This doesn’t feel like Silent Hill. It feels like a watered-down, sugar-coated version of what the series is supposed to be. The atmosphere isn’t unsettling, the story doesn’t pull you in, and the horror is practically non-existent. I’ve played Silent Hill 1–4, and I just finished the SH2 remake leading up to this launch, so the series is fresh in my mind. Compared to SH2—which delivered tension, dread, and emotional weight—this feels more like Rainbow Island Adventures with a Silent Hill skin slapped on top. The depth, the fear, the psychological edge that made Silent Hill legendary… it’s just not here. And here’s the thing: this game costs $80. At that price point, expectations should be through the roof. I was hoping for something memorable, something that stands alongside the classics. Instead, it feels like a $30 experience at best. If the gameplay doesn’t pick up soon, I’ll honestly be considering a refund. Steam allows refunds within 14 days of purchase and under 2 hours of playtime. I’ll update if things get better—or worse. To give credit where it is owed the performance is great! It didn't pick up for me. I'll wait for a sale. Disappointing hallloween game.

TLDR; It’s still Silent Hill: you’re knee-deep in psychological trauma, everything wants you dead, every hallway is a threat and you’re solving it all with a rusty pipe. Proof that horror games can still be immersive, tense and genuinely unsettling without cheap tricks. Do yourself a favor and trust the devs, play your first run on Story Mode so you can enjoy the atmosphere and narrative. The combat is tuned for multiple playthroughs and if you start on higher difficulties you’ll only end up frustrated. To get the full story, you need three playthroughs anyway so you can play on higher difficulties later. Runs shockingly well for a UE5 game, smooth on my very average PC and even on Steam Deck. Already better optimized than half the AAA industry. Super immersive, with solid voice acting and a soundtrack that nails the Silent Hill mood: oppressive, grim, and uncomfortably personal. Silent Hill combat has never been about being “fun.” It’s about dread. You’re supposed to feel underpowered, waste precious resources on a swing that barely connects, and realize that sometimes running is smarter than fighting. “High risk, no reward”? Exactly. Surviving is the reward. One more hallway, one more save point, one more puzzle. That’s the whole DNA of survival horror. You’re a terrified high school girl who’s never swung a pipe in her life. Of course it’s clunky. It’s supposed to feel desperate, not empowering. But here's the contradiction: the game wants you to avoid fights, meanwhile forcing you into them. Early on I actually liked the combat. But the further you go, the more it falls apart. Exploration gets punished because you’re better off rushing past enemies. After the school section the game just throws enemies at you nonstop and it's forced combat. Silent Hill should feel hostile and punishing, yes, but here the combat isn’t terrifying, it’s tedious. All you feel is annoyance when you hear enemies. At certain points, your main objective becomes “Destroy the enemies” with what exactly, my patience? The atmosphere, the setting and the story are carrying the experience, while the combat design keeps dragging it down. Story-wise? The way it blends Silent Hill’s psychological horror with rural Japanese folklore and atmosphere feels genuinely fresh, not like a betrayal. It’s not just fog and gore, it’s rituals, superstition, and horror that feels disturbingly grounded. Ryukishi07 delivered. That said, finishing the game once isn’t the full picture. There’s NG+ and NG++ where new cutscenes, documents, characters and even bosses get added. These aren’t throwaway extras either, they expand the narrative in ways that are essential to fully grasping the story. Think less “Dark Souls NG+” and more “NieR: Automata” in how it gradually reveals itself. By the time you’re deep into your second or third run, you’ll still be seeing new storytelling beats and character growth that completely reframe earlier parts. Silent Hill has never been about rushing and this entry is no different so take your time, because one playthrough barely scratches the surface. And here’s the thing: if fans gatekeep every change, this series will die again. Resident Evil has reinvented itself over and over and people welcomed it. Silent Hill can’t just recycle SH2 forever. If you actually want this series to live, you have to let it grow. Overall? 8/10. The combat and ancient inventory system sucked a lot of the fun out of it but the story and atmosphere are strong enough to make it worth playing.

i think it sucks it just feels gay and sucks because youre not james and james is cool but being little jap girl makes it so gay and the little asian boys walking around dont make it any better

scary

I'll just cut to the chase, this is woke garbage. It's not even remotely scary. The gameplay is utter trash and everything is scripted and easy. Story and voice acting is straight up cringe inducing. I'm refunding this baby game garbage.

Silent Village Not so bad (SOULS) Walking Simulator on Story Difficulty so far since Graphics Optimizing on Quality & Mouse Camera overreacting (90-180 ° Jumps) +++ amazing Atmosphere +++ super Sound ++ good Graphics ++ fine Leveldesign (could have more Animals like Crows, Black Cats & interesting Places) --- limited Movement (not inside Houses not around Houses, sometimes only small Ways --- Inventory (only few Slots, no stacking of Medi Kits (1 only per Slot, but 3 Bandages= to less at least 2 Medi Kits per Slot + Upgrades Options?) & Repair Kits should have own Extra Inventory Slots like 3 Weapons (hopefully upgradeable later too? 7,5/10

Genuinely one of the worst games I've ever played, this is the first time I've ever written a real review on here because of how terrible this game is Has no subtlety or charm, no atmosphere or staying power. It has none of the good qualities from the original silent hill games that made them great and only the negatives from the more recent ones. The combat is terrible and shoved in your face constantly, you literally can't go more than 1-2 minutes without them throwing one of the 4 copy paste enemies at you over and over and over. I can't tell you how tired I was of killing the same knife enemy after the 200th time. They never let you have a moment to take in the scenery or build up a creepy mood because it's just constant terrible combat. Not the mention the dumb idea of adding item degradation for no reason, why they think this little teenage girl needs to be hauling around 3 iron pipes rather than just having 1-2 weapons is beyond me. The stamina bar is too small and takes too long to start recharging so it doesn't work for the souls like combat they are going for especially towards the end where they are throwing 3-4 enemies at you at once. Avoiding combat by running away like the older games also doesn't work because they start forcing you to kill them to proceed like its a devil may cry game. The enemy designs themselves are also extremely generic and waste the amazing opportunity they had to draw from the rich Japanese culture of monsters and mythology. Instead you just get lady with a knife, lady with a knife but red, guy without a face, other guy without a face but he turns red and big fat guy without a face, another big fat guy without a face but different clothes etc. Just boring no creativity forgettable garbage. Even one of the most important boss fights story wise is just the exact same normal enemy you've seen before. Just lazy. The setting is also wasted, with hardly any time spent in the town and a majority of the game spent in the overworld "dream" sequences that are just very tedious mazes with, again, the same copy paste enemies just thrown at you over and over. These sequences also go on for far too long and are just a slog to get through. The story itself also has no subtly and will cram the point its trying to make down your throat several times to make sure even the most brain dead players understand it. It starts off too fast, explains too little and then tells you that you need to play through this entire mess 4 or 5 times to get the "true" endings where they explain more, which I can't see anyone ever doing. I don't care about any of these characters or what happens to them. The music itself is not bad, with the composer from the original games making a return but it hardly plays a part in the game at all. If there is any background music during gameplay you can't hear it over the constant fighting you'll be doing. Anyone that actually enjoyed it is a braindead plastic slop enjoyer that watches youtube shorts on their sticky ipad with crumbs on their chest clapping their feet and giggling at ai generated videos.