In early April, the teaser of a mysterious game appeared on the official PlayStation channels. His name is Abandoned. As the weeks went by, he attracted the looks of the entire industry. Why? Various clues indicate that Abandoned could actually be a Silent Hill game liderado por Hideo Kojima. This is more relevant because the gaming community has waited for years for a new installment of the horror franchise.
We go in parts, because this story has several interesting chapters. On April 7, the PlayStation Blog dedicated a post to Abandoned, “a first-person cinematic survival horror shooter.” It will be exclusive to PS5 and its release is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2021. It is being developed by Blue Box Game Studios, a creative team that, apparently, was registered during 2015 in the Netherlands. On the other hand, and no less mysterious, the director of Abandoned it is Hasan Kahraman, a creative of which we have no previous reference.
“The story is centered on Jason Longfield, who wakes up in a strange forest. Abandoned and without remembering how he got there, Jason soon discovers that he was kidnapped and taken there for a dark purpose. Fighting for his survival, his main objective is to escape”, mention the brief description of Abandoned. They also released a teaser to give us a look at its setting. No one can deny that made us remember Silent Hill:
Ok, the normal thing would be to think that we are facing a debuting studio that has closed an exclusive agreement with Sony. It’s not that strange if we look at PlayStation’s latest moves and its commitment to newly formed studios. However, not just any game is advertised in the PlayStation Blog. Generally, it is a space dedicated to the exclusive of the brand and important projects of other companies, without forgetting some independent proposals that need reflectors to make themselves known. The latter, however, are usually presented together with other indies in the same publication.
The clues that it leaves us Abandoned
Following the suspicious announcement, some onlookers began to find details that were quickly associated with Silent Hill. The first one is the name of the director (Hasan Kahraman). His initials are the same as Hideo Kojima, who was behind the canceled Silent Hills. Do you want another clue? And you translate Hideo from Japanese to Turkish, the result is Kahraman. No information has been found on the trajectory of the aforementioned, not even a LinkedIn profile like that of any other developer.
A curious matter has to do with the logo de Blue Box Game Studios. Its most recent design is very similar to that of PlayStation Studios. At this point we can bring to the table the rumors about the supposed development of a new Silent Hill hand in hand with PlayStation. The bad news is that Konami later denied it.
Another reference pointing to Silent Hill we found it in the YouTube channel from Blue Box. The header image shows some hills (Hills in English) with fog in the middle. You surely know that fog has always been a hallmark of the Konami franchise.
Madness for Silent Hill broke out on Twitter
If all of the above did not seem mysterious enough, wait until you see the following. During this week, taking advantage of the anticipation for E3 2021, the Blue Box Twitter account published a message hinting that Abandoned era Silent Hill.
“Guess the name:
Abandoned = (First letter S, last letter L). The revelation is coming. “
Obviously, the craze was unleashed on social networks and multiple internet forums – the topic now has its own community on Reddit: /TheblueBoxConspiracy-. Due to the overwhelming interest in the publication, Blue Box he left to clarify that they had no relationship with either Konami or Hideo Kojima. They apologized for “mocking” Silent Hill:
We want to clear things up. We have no relationship with Konami. Silent Hill is owned by Konami. We have no relationship with Hideo Kojima. It was never our intention to make fun of the name of Silent Hill. We sincerely apologize for this.
Regarding their trajectory, the study affirms that, although they have not worked on their own project before Abandoned, in the past they collaborated as support team for other titles. Which? They did not reply.
Fans of Silent Hill they become detectives
Did you think that the statement calmed the waters and diverted attention elsewhere? You were wrong. Some members of the community became detectives to look for evidence that would reinforce the theory about Silent Hill and, indeed, they found her (via ResetEra Y PlayStation LifeStyle).
Hasan Kahraman is registered on the PlayStation Network as “SneakyWarriorr”. In your history of titles played you will find Demond Blood, a game that is not even listed on the PlayStation Store. As if that were not enough, it exposes a cover of Siren Head, a manga whose artist is Junji Ito. The above declared in September 2020 that he would like to work with Hideo Kojima on a game of Silent Hill.
Hasan Kahraman has an alternate profile picture with the designation “DEVCON2021”. This event was held on June 15 and 16, days when the internet lost its tranquility with the topic Silent Hill.
Hasan Kahraman has obtained 1.238 trophies to date. This is the same number that appears on a TV ad from Silent Hill 4.
The first trailer of Death Stranding: Director’s Cut, Hideo Kojima’s most recent project, shows Sam Porter Bridges in a blue suit (Blue) entering a box (Box), which some people have associated with the name of the mysterious studio. Additionally, the character carries an object on his back with the flag of the Netherlands, the place where Blue Box Game Studios is supposedly registered.
On December 3, 2016, during the PlayStation Experience, Hideo Kojima revealed that Kojima Productions would establish a secondary study in Amsterdam, capital of the Netherlands. Blue Box Game Studios was registered in 2015.
Geoff Keighley, renowned friend of Hideo Kojima and organizer of the Summer Game Fest 2021 (where the trailer for Death Stranding: Director’s Cut), acknowledged that Hasan Kahraman contacted him to request his help to reveal his game (Abandoned). He anticipated that there will be news in the next few weeks.
Q: #AskGeoff hey Geoff wtf is happening with @BBGameStudios ? Can you talk about the game or the team ? Their previous… https://t.co/Vd7zqp1x2J…
– @Light01C— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) June 17, 2021
A marketing strategy that could have an adverse outcome
After the stir generated, only two possible outcomes are in sight. The first, and that many wish, is that Abandoned be really the first look at the new Silent Hill. In that case, Hideo Kojima would have done his thing again. One theory circulating on the internet is that its reveal trailer, which will be able to run in real time on the PS5 on June 22, could be a demo with more tracks than what is on the way. However, the opposite could also be the case. That is, it is a well planned deception.
Blue Box has likely resorted to a marketing strategy that is as interesting as it is dangerous. Yes, they managed to attract the spotlight and glances on Abandoned, but if it is not Silent Hill, the reaction of the community could be negative – a situation that I hope does not arise. We live in a time of tension and toxicity in social networks; all these movements and references could backfire for the intentions of the study. On Tuesday, June 22, we may solve the mystery – or part of it.
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