The fans of Silent Hill we suffer a lot. This popular series of horror games was forgotten by its own creators for more than a decade and its long-awaited return has not been what we expected. The project Ascension It was a disaster and many of us have doubts about the ‘remake’ of Silent Hill 2. In the midst of this sad panorama we received an unexpected surprise, a new and free game developed in part by Konami itself. In this review we are going to discover if Silent Hill: The Short Message It’s the revitalization this franchise needs.
The existence of this title was already well known. I have been reporting leaks related to The Short Message for almost two years. What really surprised me was discovering that it was an extremely short and free game. Is a narrower focus what the franchise needs after so long?
Anita is a teenager who visits an abandoned building complex at the request of her friend Maya, who is painting graffiti there. The place is practically destroyed and Anita discovers that there is a strange monster chasing her through the hallways. Now she must find her friend and escape from this dangerous place.
This is a first-person horror game in which, unlike the vast majority of games in this saga, there are no weapons or any way to defend ourselves from the dangers that lurk in front of us. Most of the game can be described as linear exploration – or ‘walking sim’ as some would call it – and we are only in charge of exploring the rooms and corridors of the building looking for documents and elements that illuminate the story. There are also chase sections with a bizarre cherry blossom monster and all we can do is run until we find an exit.
Since you already know that this is a free game, I assume you don’t expect me to Silent Hill: The Short Message
A “modern” story
Instead of a gun or a metal pipe, the protagonist’s main tool is her cell phone. Anita not only uses it as a flashlight to illuminate the scenes, but also to communicate with her friends through text messages that progress the plot. This aims to be a modern story in which the horror is related to cyberbullying, the obsession with the number of followers on social networks and the feeling of loneliness and isolation that the COVID epidemic left us.. These are all very good ideas that, handled well, can be used to shape a terrifying story with important messages.
But Silent Hill: The Short Message It’s not that story.
It’s clear that the developer team behind this game had good intentions. I appreciate all the trigger warnings they included to warn of potentially disturbing scenes regarding topics such as suicide, self-harm, family abuse and bullying. But they don’t know how to use these themes effectively within the story. The result is forced and very unsubtle.
Like other games in the series, this is a story about a person tormented by guilt and past traumas. As we explore the village, we learn more about Anita’s relationship with her friends Amelie and Maya, what happened between them, her past with an abusive mother, and her insecurities. So far so good. It is a story with a lot of potential and that touches on the topic of suicide with respect, but it is completely wasted because of its narrative.
The main problem is its lack of subtlety. Every time there is a revelation or a twist in the plot – which are quite predictable – the protagonist is in charge of explaining everything in detail, nullifying any possibility of interpretation of what happens. Plus, it’s nothing original. It seems that the developers based the story on “their perception of adolescence” and not on what really happens in school hallways and on social media.. It is the same story of bullying that has been told since the 80s, only this time with mobile phones involved.
Many of the elements he uses to tell the story don’t even fit well with the others. The subplot about an abusive mother isn’t bad, but it doesn’t go anywhere and doesn’t inform much about the rest of the story. The social media part is completely unnecessary. He also uses some video footage that serves as ‘flashbacks’ of conversations with Maya, but they don’t add much, they look cheap and the voice acting is very bad. Maybe the problem is the duration, because In these two hours you can’t do much with so many ideas and some of them are left half-finished.
A flower monster
What attracted me most to Silent Hill: The Short Message was discovering that Masahiro Ito had worked on this game. He is the legendary creature designer of the saga and creator of Pyramid Head. Their main collaboration here is the creation of the cherry blossom monster, the creature that torments us in the chase sections.
Although its design is strange and some may describe it as “ridiculous” after seeing it in screenshots, the truth is that it is quite terrifying when we are playing. Its animation is incredible and the theme of cherry blossoms is important to the plot. Combining this creature with the traditional rust aesthetic of Silent Hill and Akira Yamaoka’s soundtrack creates truly tense moments. The problem is that they can also be somewhat frustrating.
One of the cherry blossom monster chases occurs in a maze that can be annoying, but sooner or later we will find the exit. The problem is the final chase, in which we have to find five objects to open a door that is closed in the style of Silent Hill 4: The Room. This section is really difficult due to the convoluted design of the maze and it is necessary to “die” several times in it to learn its routes and escape towards the end of the game.
The worst part is that this is not the only part of Silent Hill: The Short Message which can be frustrating due to its design. Shortly before we have to solve a puzzle that is absurd because there were no puzzles in the game until that moment. Although it is not difficult, we have no context of what we have to do. Here is a guide to that part, in case you need it..
¿Es The Short Message a true Silent Hill?
It is in the sense that it is named after the saga and that it is developed by Konami (in collaboration with Hexdrive), but the truth is that The elements we like most about that game series are not present here. In addition, the link with the other deliveries of Silent Hill is non-existent. The name of the town is indeed present in one of the documents we found while exploring, but the reason for this is really clumsy.
Because of this, more radical Silent Hill fans may greet this game with disdain. If it had had a different name, there would be no difference in its content. In fact, it would have been better, since it would not be in the shadow of expectations.
Silent Hill: The Short Message It’s not a bad experience, but it’s not a great game either. He has interesting ideas and very good intentions, but he doesn’t know how to bring them to fruition. At least it’s free and not a huge investment of time. If you have PS5 and are curious, nothing stops you from trying it.
Although a short game in the saga Silent Hill It sounds like a really good idea and we really appreciate that it’s free, The Short Message It’s disappointing. His good ideas are wasted and the story doesn’t know how to handle its elements of social media, bullying and teenage angst. We appreciate your ‘trigger warnings’ and your good intentions when it comes to talking about topics as strong as suicide, but that doesn’t help much if the rest of the game doesn’t work well. Its mediocre performance on PS5 and poor voice acting finish sealing the potential that this title had. Only the monster design and the soundtrack make it feel like a true installment of the cursed town saga.
Review of Silent Hill: The Short Message made based on a digital copy for PS5 downloaded for free from the PlayStation Store.
