For the last year or so, the internet has circulated several rumors regarding the future of Konami's long dormant survival horror franchise, Silent Hill. Ever since the publisher cancelled its Silent Hills project following a very public divorce with Hideo Kojima, fans have kept their eyes out for any signs of a revival. Having already been teased once by Konami via the now-legendary P.T. demo, there's a case to be made for their vigilance being justified.
Against the backdrop of the ongoing conspiracy surrounding indie developer Blue Box Studios' Abandoned, Konami have chosen to pour gasoline all over the situation by unveiling a new line of Silent Hill themed merchandise. While the timing of this is admittedly suspicious considering the ever growing list of rumors surrounding the series, the presence of new merchandise sadly doesn't mean it's going to be accompanied by the announcement of a game any time soon.
Konami Marketing History
Historically, Konami has built up a reputation for having wildly unorthodox marketing campaigns unlike the approach other gaming publishers employ. Often, many of them don't even end up having obvious motivations or end results. With that in mind, the random unveiling of a skateboard decorated with a zombie nurse is actually quite a tame marketing strategy.
Between 2016 and 2017, Konami produced a number of Metal Gear Solid themed commercials in collaboration with Ford, to promote the manufacturer's then latest range of cars. While hilarious in execution to anyone who's played those games, none of them ended up having absolutely anything to do with a new game announcement. David Hayter even returned as the voice of Solid Snake, distancing them further still from Konami's most recent entries in the franchise as well.
What's possibly triggered the creation of this latest line of clothes and trinkets is, ironically, the speculation that's been rampant online over recent years surrounding the chances of Silent Hill's return. Perhaps Konami has decided to quickly cash in on the buzz as much as it can, unaware of how it could be interpreted.
Comparatively speaking, it's a lot easier to organize a line of merchandise than it is to fund a development team and build the AAA survival horror gaming experiences that fans are anxious to see. Based on its track record, there's just as much chance that Konami unveils another Silent Hill themed pachinko machine off the back of this. There hasn't been a mainline entry in the Silent Hill franchise since 2012.
The Merch Campaign Itself
Examining the marketing material that was used by Konami to promote the new merch campaign, provides a number of clues that further distances it from the likelihood of being tied to a new game. Take the logo that featured in the Silent Hill 'Coming Soon' Twitter post from a few days ago, which deliberately blends together the lettering from each of the four main numbered entries in the franchise.
While fans were quick to point out the space left next to the Frankenstein-esque logo that could be filled by a potential number five, the use of classic logos feels much more like a nostalgia invoked nod, than it does a wink to the future. Significantly, in the actual Konami Store website the Silent Hill 2 typeface has replaced this amalgamation, pouring even more water on that missing space.
Thankfully, there's plenty of potentially credible rumors circulating the internet that point to some form of a new Silent Hill project. With Sony's now restructured Japan Studio, Bloober Team, and even Kojima himself having been supposedly linked to the series at one point or another, there's just about enough to infer something is potentially in development. While it's fun to speculate that the Konami Store is the first signs of this coming to fruition, in this circumstance it alone sadly isn't enough evidence to suggest fans should start getting too excited yet.
Silent Hill has no currently announced projects in development.