Konami is host to many gaming franchises that have reached international levels of appeal, with Silent Hill being one of its most critically acclaimed series. After a long absence of new releases, Konami has made a sudden and surprising step that could hint at a new official Silent Hill game in the works.
After the cancellation of Silent Hills in 2015, very little news was heard about the unique horror series. The departure of big-name creators like Hideo Kojima and Norman Reedus felt like the end of Silent Hill as a series. However, the titular town has appeared on a collection of updated trademarks that Konami has reclaimed, opening up more possibilities for the franchise.
The source of this reveal comes from chizai-watch, a Japanese trademark website that allows for the tracking of purchased domains. Reddit user LongJonSilver posted screenshots and links of trademarks currently owned by Konami Digital Entertainment, clearly displaying Silent Hill amongst other Konami IPs. This suggests that Konami is ready to develop newly acquired games, as mentioned in previous press statements.
A closer look at the trademark categories and commodities adds more weight behind the rumor of a brand new Silent Hill game. Examples listed include a "headset for virtual reality," "game software," and the somewhat bizarre "exercise skill training simulator." It appears that Konami is looking to branch out with more advanced technological feats to bring its IP into the competitive modern gaming scene. Other developers have been reproducing the P.T. demo using VR software, so Konami may opt to continue this trend moving forward to match the intensity seen in previous entries like Silent Hill 2.
Recently, the Silent Hill trademark was bought to troll Konami by a third party after letting it expire. Konami has now updated the trademark seemingly in response to this litigation, but the addition of several details in the document has gotten fans talking about the franchise again. However, it is currently unclear whether a new game is going to be developed by Konami due to its silence over previously updated trademarks.
Despite various rumors surrounding the revival of Silent Hills after spending 7 years in development hell, it remains to be seen whether Konami will be able to breathe life back into the psychological horror staple. Fans of the enigmatic Silent Hill series are still holding out hope that Konami's efforts to preserve its ownership of old franchises will be the first step on the road to a brand-new release.
Source: Reddit