A game titledSilent Hill: The Short Messagehas been rated in Taiwan, specifying PS5 as a platform. Curious events started in September 2022, the supposed new entry in theSilent Hillfranchise was rated in Korea, without specifics about which platform it would be available on.
The Korean rating attributed the publisher as Uniana, a firm that frequently publishes Konami games in Korea and also produces amusement arcade machines. At the time, the rating seemed to be connected to some leaked images from earlier in the year that sparkedSilent Hillrumors. Konami has since announced severalSilent Hillprojects, none of which bear the titleThe Short Message.
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Projects that were announced included along awaited remake ofSilent Hill 2,Silent Hill: Ascension,Silent Hill: Townfall, andSilent Hill f. The lack ofThe Short Messageseemed as though Konami had perhaps changed the name to one of these titles. However, as first spotted by Gematsu, the Taiwan Digital Game Rating Committee has now ratedSilent Hill: The Short Messagefor PS5, even though the listing has now been taken down. The publisher is noted as being Konami, and it is listed as containing “violence, terror, and inappropriate speech.”
This information answers some questions, but raises a few others. Any speculation of Uniana releasing an arcade game with theSilent Hillbranding can now be dismissed. Further details pertaining to this mysterious game, such as why it was not announced with the otherSilent Hillprojects, remain unclear. The secretive nature ofThe Short Message, however, feels fitting for thedeep lore ofSilent Hillas a franchise.
It is an exciting time for fans of the psychological horror title, as theSilent HillIP has been dormant for 10 years, not counting Hideo Kojima’sPT. The playable teaser had been similarly somewhat secretive, andPTstill inspires new games today. While previous titles sinceSilent Hill 4had somewhat mixed receptions compared to the classicSilent Hillgames, the lasting effect ofPTshows that there is still great interest inSilent Hill.
Perhaps Konami also learned that the element of mystery is a key factor in the franchise and decided to withhold some projects, such asSilent Hill: The Short Message, from the public as long as possible. With so manySilent Hill-inspired titles, such as the creepy lookingPost Traumaannounced at The Game Awardsand countless others on Steam and Itch.io, it seems clear that the franchise still holds a lot of weight.
