The more Silent Hill f promises change, the more it stays the same; for better or worse. While its ‘60s Japanese setting distances it far enough from previous entries to invite newcomers, fans will feel right at home exploring its foggy, monster-ridden roads. As a horror experience, Silent Hill f’s creepy new threats fall short of being truly terrifying thanks to an overreliance on the same handful of scare tactics. As an action game, the brutally intimate combat, like the weapons you wield, loses its effectiveness over stagnant encounters. The intriguing though sometimes perplexing narrative begs for reinterpretation over multiple playthroughs. Silent Hill f faithfully retains the series’ classic elements with some cool reinventions to deliver a more than respectable horror romp; I just wish it were scarier and, ultimately, more substantial.
Teenager Shimizu Hinako’s troubled life in the small, rural village of Ebisugaoka becomes horrifically altered by the sudden arrival of a sinister fog. Her neighbors have either vanished or been transformed into grotesque creatures. Friends Shu, Sakuko, and Rinko are in grave danger. But the unfortunate fates of the town and Hinako’s friends are merely set dressing for Hinako’s story, a girl whose rebellious nature and trauma are rooted in the rigid gender roles of the time period. This turmoil comes to a head in ways I found both fascinating and mystifying, especially thanks to the strangely helpful presence of an enigmatic masked man.
This may be a strange statement to make about a game so full of horrific and gruesome imagery, but Silent Hill f is beautiful. The art direction is fantastic, juxtaposing unsettling enemy designs with hauntingly gorgeous environments, such as supernatural temples and, most prominently, the cursed, bloody “flowers” gradually claiming Ebisugaoka. Cinematics are wonderfully composed and aided by a powerful and hair-raising score by long-time Silent Hill composer, Akira Yamaoka. I never stopped admiring Silent Hill f as an interactive art piece, no matter how hard it tries to make you look away in terror or disgust.
Your mileage with gameplay will vary based on which of the two confusingly labeled difficulty settings you choose at the outset. Combat and puzzles have their own challenge settings: Story and Hard. Despite these labels usually representing two polar extremes on the average difficulty spectrum, Story is described as offering the “traditional Silent Hill difficulty” in regards to action; Hard is presented as being the same for the puzzles. I chose this combination with “tradition” in mind for my first playthrough, and while I liked the puzzle difficulty, the action proved disappointingly easy. An overabundance of recovery items means I rarely felt up against a wall or challenged to ration my supplies, something I couldn’t say about, say, Silent Hill 2. Enemies drop fast, and the Sanity meter is virtually a non-factor despite being the combat’s biggest new feature (more on this later). Despite Story promoting a more classic experience, those seeking any sense of challenge should opt for the Hard difficulty for action and puzzles. However, I ultimately wish the game offered a more balanced middle ground (or made it easier to determine what constitutes a “Normal” difficulty).
Exploring the village is a more harrowing prospect compared to past games, thanks to its narrow alleys and pathways that often funnel players into danger; I appreciate how this prevents me from trivializing threats by casually circumventing them as was possible in older entries. While it’s still possible to evade and flee most encounters, fighting is often the way out. Hinako is brave, but she’s not a trained fighter, so her weighty and clumsy melee-focused combat not only suits her, but nailing light and heavy attacks has a satisfying impact. Breakable weapons add welcome intensity to battles; I like weighing whether it’s worth damaging a powerful bat or axe on a threat. Managing stamina to swing or dodge attacks complements this tension, spicing up the otherwise simple confrontations. I also like how the game forces players to study foes to find openings to nail timed counterattacks that briefly stun targets.
Playing on Hard difficulty forces players to manage Sanity, a meter that drains when using a Focus mechanic that lets you better pinpoint enemy openings to counter. Sanity also fuels a more powerful charge attack at the risk of being interrupted and losing a substantial chunk of this resource, which must be restored by spending Faith, the game’s currency. I enjoy the sense of risk vs. reward that Sanity offers; managing it makes the game tougher without feeling suffocating. A light element of customization comes in equipping special charms that add different perks. While not a major game changer, I do like how this allows me to create simple character builds, like equipping various charms centered on health regeneration.
Regardless of the difficulty setting, the combat loses its luster halfway through the roughly 10-hour adventure due to the disappointingly limited enemy variety. Expect to bash a few slightly different flavors of fleshy mannequins, shrieking multi-headed monsters, a ferocious sound-sensitive beast, and maybe three other enemy types. Whenever I heard a distant groan or a heavy, hair-raising step, I’d get excited about encountering a new horror, only for an enemy I killed or fled countless times to shamble out of a corner. Worst of all, this repetitiveness dulls the scares; I stopped dreading the dangers ahead because I knew it’d be something I’d confronted many times, and I was well used to their ambush tactics (some of which can be pretty cheap). The few proper bosses, such as a nightmare-inducing demonic shrine maiden, offer more refreshing and entertaining tests of your skills and bravery.
Puzzle-solving features a greater variety and is more consistently enjoyable. I enjoyed Silent Hill f most when it settled into comfort-food survival horror exercises of finding clues to locate various keys to open doors while exploring creepy interiors, such as an abandoned middle school. The generally well-designed puzzles creatively tested my logic and observation skills, though exploring a foggy farmfield by identifying the correct scarecrows using vague clues grew frustrating due to its unclear rules. Environmental puzzle-solving, especially in more otherworldly areas, maintains an air of freshness the combat lacks. I always looked forward to seeing what strange riddle Silent Hill f had up its sleeves.
Silent Hill f’s tricky-to-discuss story, despite boasting a few powerful and even emotionally upsetting moments, left me scratching my head more than anything. Though it leverages themes such as feminism, domestic abuse, and, possibly, addiction well enough for its symbolism, the second half takes an admirably wild turn for the (even more) bizarre. Without delving too deeply, Hinako’s sense of reality and identity becomes distorted in ways that, while clearly designed to feel disorienting, still left me walking away wondering what exactly was happening and to whom. Whether by design or because I’m too dense to “get it” is up for debate, and while subsequent playthroughs may clear the fog, I shouldn’t feel so lost on the first (and for likely some players, the only) go around.
Hinako’s friends feel underutilized, and the game heavily relies on written diary entries to flesh them out in a questionable case of telling rather than showing. Her best friend, Shu, is the most underserved ally despite his significance to Hinako’s life. The somewhat compact runtime means things escalate pretty quickly to the point that supporting character arcs end abruptly, making them feel more like pawns than I’d like. I firmly believe horror games should be on the shorter side to keep their scares from growing stale, but even I was in disbelief at how relatively quickly Silent Hill f ramps up to its big finale, especially when the combat encounters still felt like they were in first gear. While the first playthrough grants the same canonical ending for everyone, five optional conclusions await in New Game Plus, where your actions influence the finale to add some nice replayability.
Silent Hill f is a curious beast. Despite my misgivings, it’s a good Silent Hill game and an enjoyable survival horror adventure in general. The game nails its oppressive and creepy atmosphere, and it boasts a killer presentation from visuals to audio. The combat is faithful to past games while adding cool, effective wrinkles, but for how heavily it’s emphasized, the game fails to have players engage with it any differently than they had in the opening hours (save for one mid-game twist). Perhaps my biggest gripe as someone who loves to be scared is that you’ve seen the extent of how Silent Hill f plans to frighten you within its first half; beyond that, it’s diminishing returns with very few surprises. I like Silent Hill f, but I was prepared to have a love affair with it, and I’m left feeling as foggy as its quiet, ill-fated village.
