Hideo Kojima was at one point ready to helm a new game in the Silent Hill franchise. In 2014, players were treated to a glimpse of what this would be like with a playable teaser, aptly titled PT. The project was unfortunately scrapped due to a falling out between Kojima and Konami, leaving players with nothing but the promise of what could have been. Theories and appreciation for PT continue to this day, with gamers unable to get enough of the terrifying loop around trying to escape an endless corridor.
One of the pivotal elements that made PT such a scary experience was a ghostly figure who haunted the player. Appearing periodically throughout the demo, sometimes in scripted moments and other times at random, Lisa's freakish appearance and uncanny mastery of the "jump scare" was unforgettable. Since the game came out, players have been able to pick apart some details about Lisa's gameplay mechanics and symbolism.
PT - Lisa's Behavior in Gameplay
Lisa's behavior in PT would sometimes play out in expected ways, but for the most part she was highly unpredictable. Her erratic movements created a sense of unease, as it was never clear what she would do next. She would commonly appear at random throughout the repeating hallway, making great use of suspense. This turned the most mundance everyday places such as doorwalls, halls, and bathrooms a nightmare to navigate.
Furthermore, Lisa could directly interact with and kill the player. While players try to navigate the location and solve puzzles, Lisa is constantly stalking the halls. If the player is too careless and gets close to Lisa, she can possess the player, which results in the sound of heavy breathing audible behind the player as well as extra footstep sounds while moving. The most haunting aspect of this is when Lisa utters the phrase "look behind you." If players are daring enough to follow these instructions, Lisa brutally murders them, causing the game to reset and continue the loop - similar to repeating game cycles like in Deathloop.
PT - Lisa's Symbolism
For such a small experience, a great deal of care was put into the details of PT. This can be seen with the photorealistic graphics on display, but it carries into the presentation and symbolism around Lisa too. There is a photograph of a husband and wife that, if interacted with, lets the player see the wife's right eye burn away as text appears on screen saying "gouge it out." When Lisa's ghost is seen up close in PT, she has a missing eye, implying it was gouged out during a murder.
On top of this, Lisa's dress can be seen covered in a great deal of blood around the stomach. During the experience, players are able to hear a radio broadcast covering the story of a woman being shot in the stomach while pregnant. Considering the fetus that can be found in the bathroom, the imagery of an unborn baby being killed is a repeated image in the game - a visual horror not uncommon in the Silent Hill series.
It is unclear how much Lisa would have factored into the official Silent Hills experience, or if Kojima designed her for the purposes of this demo only. Either way, her brief moment in the spotlight left an undeniable impact on fans of horror, and raises questions as to whether Hideo Kojima will revisit a concept similar to PT in a future project.