Following much discourse and a general disbelief thatSilent Hillwould return, the franchise is back and looks more promising than ever. Several newSilent Hillgames are confirmed to be in development, including the enigmaticSilent Hill f,Silent Hill: Townfall, andSilent Hill: Ascension. The most notable among these announcements, however, is a remake ofSilent Hill 2being developed by Bloober Team. Konami has officially entered the modern realm of remakes, and its first foray seems to capitalize onSilent Hill’s most beloved entry.
Many fans seem excited about the degree of faithfulness seen inBloober’s cinematicSilent Hill 2teaser. Still, this is likely not the installment that fans would have chosen if they were asked whatSilent Hillgame needed a remake, or could improve as a reimagining.Silent Hill 2certainly has areas it could improve on, like any originalSilent Hillgame. But it is also highly popular and has better stood the test of time than its counterparts. Therefore, a case can be made for otherSilent Hillgames receiving their own faithful remakes followingSilent Hill 2.
RELATED:Why It Makes Sense for Konami to Make a Silent Hill 2 Remake Instead of Silent Hill 1
Some Silent Hill Games Could Be Bolstered by a Remake
The consensus among fans is that the first fourSilent Hillgames are relatively similar in quality, withSilent Hill 2being Team Silent’s crowning achievement. Whenever fans look back onSilent Hillfondly, they are probably reminiscing about the originalSilent Hill,Silent Hill 2,Silent Hill 3, orSilent Hill 4: The Room.
The originalSilent HillandSilent Hill 3are narratively connected, though some fans were not as interested in the Order’s cultist antagonist. IfSilent Hillreceived more remakes, any of these other three original games would be a great choice. The originalSilent Hillcould improve most in terms of its low-poly resolution, while gameplay in all of them could also excel, and potentially take afterSilent Hill 2’s new over-the-shoulder camera.
Silent Hill 4: The Roomcould be fantastic to remake with greater fidelity in the apartment, reimagining the chain-strewn door. As long as newSilent Hillgames are also being developed in the meantime, fans would probably have no problem withTeam Silent’sSilent Hillgamesgetting remade for modern audiences.
Other Silent Hill Games Are in Dire Need of Redemption
TheSilent Hillfranchise then endured a stark departure from what fans enjoyed.Silent Hill: Origins,Silent Hill: Shattered Memories,Silent Hill: Homecoming, andSilent Hill: Downpourare generally regarded as the franchise’s worst installments. This is obviously due to personal preference, with some fans enjoying some of them for their own reasons. But since they are commonly lumped into a disliked category, they would be the most deserving of remakes.
If Konami wants to rehabilitate its image, it could rectify the games that players had the most concerns with and reimagine them as completely different experiences. Remakes give Konami the opportunity to keep the essential essence of a game such asSilent Hill: Downpour, for example, but re-engineer it to be much more favorable with changes to gameplay and narrative.
On the other hand, it may be in Konami’s best interest to leave these particular games alone. This way,Konami could carve out a new path for theSilent Hillfranchisethat looks ahead to the future instead of looking back.
Silent Hill 2is in development for PC and PS5.
MORE:Silent Hill 2 Remake’s PlayStation Exclusivity Closes an Iconic Game Off
