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Silent Hill: Revelation 3D in theaters October 26
Open Road Films has acquired the distribution rights to Silent Hill: Revelation 3D, the sequel to 2006's Pyramid Head fanservice vehicle film adaptation of the Silent Hill franchise. The movie will hit your local cineplex on October 26, and when we say "hit," we mean "climb through a moist, fleshy hole, screaming with the voice of an injured fawn trapped at the bottom of a well."Silent Hill: Revelation 3D stars Sean Bean, Carrie-Anne Moss and loosely follows the plot of Silent Hill 3, in that one of the characters is named Heather Mason and there's a lot of gross stuff probably. Silent Hill films that aren't about James Sunderland still don't really sit well with us, but we'll see anything that reportedly has Akira Yamaoka's music in it.Actually, we have to see anything with Akira Yamaoka's music in it. We attended a talk he gave during GDC once, and the music he played for his panel was actually a spiritually binding contract with dark, eldritch terrors. If we don't see this movie, bad things will happen to our organs.
PlayStation Plus in April: Ghost Recon: Future Soldier beta, free Shank 2, Shift 2 Unleashed
PlayStation Plus subscribers have a lot to look forward to in April. Starting on April 3, both Shank 2 and Shift 2 Unleashed will be available as free downloads for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Other free games for April include the PSOne Classic Silent Hill, PSN Minis Canabalt, Farm Frenzy 2 and Mystic Garden, and PSN title Frogger Returns.In addition to these free games, PlayStation Plus subscribers will get early access to the closed beta for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, which kicks off sometime this month -- no date yet, says the PlayStation Blog. Finally, discounts: House of the Dead 4, Disney Universe and GTA IV: Episodes from Liberty City will all be on sale this month at reduced prices.
Retailers: Silent Hill: Book of Memories delayed until May 31
Konami's attempt at a Silent Hill hat-trick for the month of March may have fallen short just before the buzzer: Silent Hill: Book of Memories has had its release date changed from March 27 to May 31, according to Amazon and Gamefly.As you'll recall, Book of Memories was originally slated to be released in February, relatively alongside the Vita's North American debut. It was then delayed until March, as was the Silent Hill HD Collection, in an effort to extract the highest amount of retail synergy possible from Silent Hill: Downpour's release.We've reached out Konami for confirmation; in the meantime, those of you who absolutely must be terrified on the go should load your MP3 player with the Silent Hill 2 soundtrack.Joystiq, its parent companies and their affiliates are not responsible for panic attacks, mental breakdowns or other disruptive/embarrassing public episodes caused by listening to the Silent Hill 2 soundtrack in public.[Thanks, Adam!]
Silent Hill: Downpour brings the old back to the new
As we saw back at E3, Silent Hill: Downpour evokes the feel of old Silent Hill games, by sending its protagonist Murphy into the familiar town, where he finds monsters, creepiness, and all sorts of dangerous puzzles. But producer Tomm Hulett says this version of the game isn't just about revisiting the setting of the old titles -- he's trying to collect some new fans as well. "Bringing Silent Hill into sort of a modern game, for old fans, mainstream, for new fans, whatever, it's interesting," he told us at a recent preview event. "Because you need to keep those classic elements but you need to make them interesting for people who are used to Dead Space or Red Dead." To that end, Downpour has a few systems in it designed to make sure that the new game not only lives up to the Silent Hill franchise, but allows newer players (and even those who just want a good scare) to experience all the frightening fun, too.%Gallery-142907%
Silent Hill: Downpour Design Director leaves Vatra Games
Brian Gomez, design director for Vatra Games' upcoming Silent Hill: Downpour, has left the company in order to pursue other opportunities a little closer to home. "When it was announced that Downpour was being delayed to 2012, my family and I came to the decision that I couldn't keep making the commute between Los Angeles and Brno for another 4 to 6 months," Gomez said in a letter to the Silent Hill Historical Society. Gomez reassured the Silent Hill hopeful that his absence will have no adverse effect on Downpour's development, as it is nearly completed. Gomez also implied creative differences between his vision and Konami's, although he did not cite them as a reason for his departure: "There's a lot of things I still want to do in this genre that Konami simply didn't let me do." Brno, the second largest city in the Czech Republic, is a solid 6,049.2 miles away from Los Angeles, which is a fairly substantial commute for any family man. Silent Hill: Downpour is still slated for a 2012 release, come rain or shine.
Silent Hill: Book of Memories is really about a book of memories
In this video, Konami producer Tomm Hulett explains the premise of the PlayStation Vita's weird spin-off game, Silent Hill: Book of Memories. "You receive a strange book. When you open it, you see your entire life story written on those pages," he said. "All your memories." You can then rewrite your memories and alter reality. Apparently, judging by the gameplay, all the player-created characters then rewrite their lives as monster-filled nightmares -- with Hulett suggesting that even Pyramid Head shows up. In any other game, that would be weird, but it wouldn't be Silent Hill if the protagonist wasn't totally bonkers. Speaking of gameplay, the above video features the first (early) direct-feed gameplay footage.
Silent Hill HD Collection also heading to Xbox 360, Konami 'aiming' for simultaneous launch on both consoles
' Silent Hill: Downpour producer Tomm Hulett announced -- in video form -- during Konami's Gamescom press conference that the upcoming Silent Hill HD Collection would also be coming to Xbox 360. It was initially announced for PlayStation 3 only. According to Hulett, the HD Collection's Xbox 360 version is coming as a result of fan response to the originally announced exclusivity. Without giving a solid release date (the game is currently pegged for "September/October") Hulett noted that Konami is "aiming" to release Silent Hill HD Collection on both consoles simultaneously.
The Game Archaeologist and the What Ifs: Climax's Warhammer Online
Let's begin with a little personal history. Back in 2008, I decided to get into the blogging scene by jumping on board the latest MMO hotness -- in this case, Warhammer Online. As I was growing increasingly tired of World of Warcraft, WAR seemed to offer a refreshing alternative: a darker world full of brutal PvP and awesome new ideas. So I joined the elite ranks of bloggers (hey, stop laughing so hard) and spent the better part of two years jawing about Mythic's latest fantasy project. And while Warhammer Online was, in my opinion, a solid product, it certainly failed to live up to the extremely high expectations held by both the development team and the players. No matter how it turned out, I really enjoyed talking about WAR, especially in the days leading up to its launch. One of the first articles I ever wrote for my blog WAAAGH! dealt with the first attempt to bring Warhammer Online into the MMO genre (as a fun aside, it was one of the first times I got my name on Massively!). It's a "what if?" tale that's tantalizing to consider -- an entirely different studio, Climax Online, creating a much darker version of Warhammer than we've ever seen online. The tale of the game's rise and fall (and subsequent rise and fall again) captivated me, and I wanted to expand my old article as part of our recent series into exploring MMOs canceled before their launch. So what if Climax had brought Warhammer Online to bear? Would it have eclipsed Mythic's vision or been its own animal? Hit the jump and let's dive into the pages of ancient history!
Play For Japan: The Album helps rebuild Japan, available now
Announced last May and originally slated for a June release, Play For Japan: The Album is finally available for your listening pleasure. The album features original tracks by 18 of gaming history's greatest composers, including Silent Hill's Akira Yamaoka, Metal Gear Solid 4's Nobuko Toda, and if you buy the album from iTunes, Super Mario Bros.'s Koji Kondo. The album is already available via iTunes in the US, Canada, and UK, and will be available everywhere else (from iTunes and Amazon) starting July 15. It costs $9.99 USD, one hundred percent of which benefits the Japanese Red Cross' efforts in rebuilding Japan's infrastructure. It also benefits your eardrums. The full track listing is after the jump.
A few shots of the Silent Hill: Revelation movie set
A handful of new photos have been posted on the Silent Hill: Revelation Facebook page. The pics don't offer a great deal of new information on the film, though we do get to see a bit of Silent Hill's traditional ashen/snow-covered wastes. We also get our first peek at Carrie-Anne Moss, who's looking awfully pale. Oh, and the nurses! Let's not forget the nurses ... as if our tortured psyche could ever let them go.
Silent Hill Collection will be on PlayStation 3 only, this fall [Update: PS3 exclusive for 'right now']
Konami didn't have much to say about the newly HD-ified Silent Hill Collection when it was announced during the company's pre-E3, but a short listing in a recent email revealed some more details. As we knew already, the Collection includes only Silent Hill 2 and Silent Hill 3 with new, high-definition graphics. What we didn't know is that the Silent Hill Collection will be available on PlayStation 3 only, unlike the Zone of the Enders HD Collection and Metal Gear Solid HD Collection, both of which will also make it to Xbox 360. That PlayStation 3 release brings with it the requisite trophy support, "all-new voice acting directed by Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, and a fall 2011 release window. Update: In an interview with Joystiq, Silent Hill producer Tom Hulett stated that the Silent Hill Collection is PS3 exclusive "right now." According to Hulett, "It's always been a primarily Sony platform series. So, right now we're just aiming at a Sony exclusive, which isn't to say [that] in the future it won't be available anywhere else, but right now it's a Sony exclusive. Keep those multiplatform fingers crossed!
Konami reveals Metal Gear Solid, Zone of the Enders, Silent Hill HD remakes
The Metal Gear Solid HD Collection will feature MGS 2, MGS 3: Snake Eater and MGS: Peace Walker -- strangely, the original Metal Gear Solid is absent. Why not just touch up Twin Snakes? Regardless, the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection will be available on the PS3 and Xbox and support 1080p graphics and, on the PS3, a neat 'Transfarring' feature where you can transfer your Peace Walker game save from your PSP to your PS3. As for Zone of the Enders HD Collection, it's a collection of Zone of the Enders and Zone of the Enders 2, natch. Little beyond its existence was given, outside of a tentative 2012 launch window. It'll also be available on both the PS3 and Xbox 360, with the former version supporting the new Transfarring feature -- though in what way we're still trying to get clarification on. Update: Our own Mike Schramm is on-hand at the Konami event in LA and asked for clarification on the Transfarring feature in ZOE HD. "Wait for future announcements," a Konami representative replied. Looks like we'll have to wait for that clarification! The Silent Hill Collection will feature only Silent Hill 2 and 3, touched up in HD. No exact consoles were mentioned.
The Revenant infects The Secret World
Take one snip of Hitler's hair, a joybuzzer from Stephen King's IT, and the charred remains of Darth Vader, stir them all together in the Black Cauldron, and you'll cook up the perfect recipe for evil incarnate -- also known as The Secret World's Revenant. MMORPG.com has the scoop on Funcom's newest monster reveal for The Secret World. Conjuring shades of Lord of the Rings' Nazgul and Silent Hill's Pyramid Head, the Revenants are about as dark as they come: cloaked figures wielding black swords and feeding on pain and death. Plus, they get the nifty ability to turn into icky creatures like rats and worms, so chances are they have one of your phobias tucked up their sleeves. Revenants promise to be tough enemies who throw about plague and disease like it's candy, and players will reportedly encounter them in the Maine section of the game. You can check out more pictures of this big nasty in the gallery below! %Gallery-72395%
Silent Hill composer's guitar auctioned for Japan relief
What's scarier, being absolutely broke or regretting never taking a chance to have a piece of video game history? An auction for Akira Yamaoka's guitar and FX amps, which were used to create the audio atmosphere for a little franchise called Silent Hill, is currently underway on eBay (and will last for five days). The auction is part of Play for Japan, a coordinated effort to present consumers and gamers with means to help the relief effort in Japan. If you partake, you'll not only feel good about donating money to Japan, but you'll possibly give this guitar a new home and outlook on life, one filled with joy, sunshine and family -- not giant death bunnies and other unspeakable horrors.
Watch these impressive Silent Hill and Dragon Age fan film trailers
It might seem strange to pair Silent Hill and Dragon Age fan film trailers in one post, but they just happen to share the same director, Leo Kei Angelos. Both projects are planned for release as complete short films later this year, and they already look impressive. In fact, if the super, super creepy trailer is any indication, the Silent Hill inspired film, The Confined, just might turn out better than its full-length cinematic counterpart. Check out both trailers after the break.
PAX East 2011: Stalking through DDO's Update 9
One of the scariest games I ever played has to be the original Silent Hill. A nearly empty town shrouded with fog and featuring one of the most terrifying elementary schools ever devised? Yes, this is why I didn't sleep much in 1999. So when I started to get flashbacks as Fernando Paiz took me through the creepy alleyways of Dungeon and Dragons Online's upcoming update, I had to excuse myself and run around the PAX East show floor for a few minutes while shrieking like a tormented cat. OK, it wasn't that frightening, but I definitely was getting a Silent Hill vibe from the latest adventure pack that Turbine has crafted for the game. Coming "soon" (TM, all rights reserved, void in Utah and the Yukon Territories), DDO's Update 9 promises to bring a wide assortment of lavish treats to a hungry populace. At the center of it is a level 15 quest chain that centers around mysterious abductions, a skittish population, and nightmares made flesh. Hit the jump as I recall my brush with certain death in these adventures and relate the other jewels of Update 9!
Silent Hill soundtrack collection is frighteningly huge
For the next entry in its outlandishly enormous CD box set series, Konami is releasing a collection of music from the Silent Hill series. The Silent Hill Sounds Box, despite its name, isn't just nine discs full of radio static; it's actually eight discs of game soundtracks, from the original through Silent Hill: The Arcade, with a ninth disc full of trailers. The ¥13,230 ($160) set also includes a booklet full of concept art. It'll be released in Japan on March 16, but is unlikely to make it into even the least haunted towns in America.
Your contribution to Silent Hill: Downpour is of grave importance
Finally, your chance to break into the burgeoning field of virtual grave design! Konami announced a Facebook-based contest in which aspiring monumentalists will be able to have their "spine-chilling burial sculpture" reproduced in Silent Hill: Downpour. Konami will pick its six favorite sculptures on February 10 and then open it up to public voting. "Since this is a new chapter in the Silent Hill saga," the announcement notes, "sculptures must be original works and not based off of existing characters or creature designs." So, Pyramid Head is out ... but if you want to make an actual pyramid, that's probably fine. It's actually kind of a classic in the tomb business.
Catch the prison bus to Silent Hill: Downpour this fall
Konami officially unveiled Silent Hill: Downpour this morning (leaving, of course, the veil of fog around the town), announcing a fall European release for Vatra Games' exploration of our favorite psychological punishment destination, and sending out a bunch of new screenshots. We're no longer limited to looking at a guy looking at a truck! In addition to giving us a good look at Murphy Pendleton, the poor sucker doomed to guide us around the new version of Silent Hill, these screenshots offer a glimpse at a few in-game locations: the diner, always a staple of Silent Hill, and the "Devil's Pit," some kind of mountainous area with a rickety-looking ropeway train between peaks. There's also some unidentifiable subterranean area that appears to be covered in rusty grates, in case you were concerned this wasn't actually a Silent Hill game.%Gallery-114964%
Pyramid Head resin statue exacts a hefty price
Patient Session Recording Excerpt: Harry Sunderland (12/01/2010) " -- right in the flamingo." "And that's when you realized it was a nightmare, Harry?" "Yes. It was so palpable, like I could feel gravity pulling my stomach out through my feet. And this figure just stands there, watching me flounder and sink into my own house." "And this figure, you say, has very distinct geometric attributes." "He's got a triangle, or maybe a pyramid for a head. Wait. Oh my god. I -- how did I miss this? I'm so stupid!" "Don't be so hard on yourself. Remember, you're here because you may be insane, not because you're a dummy." "Well, I just got back from Japan, and I bought this Trims-made Pyramid Head figure. This thing is a detailed resin statue, doc. It's a Konami Style exclusive and it took them forever to make it." "And where did you put it?" "Right above my bed, on a shelf. I mean, I paid like $344 for it. You have to put that stuff on display." "Why is that, Harry?" "How else are people going to know what elements of popular culture I enjoy?" "Of course. So, tell me about this Pyramid-headed person." "Well, he's from the Silent Hill video games. He's, like, an enigmatic representation of guilt and tore some lady's skin off in the movie. You know ... I'm beginning to think I should have gone for Valtiel. That's what you're thinking, right? This statue hovering over me is messing me up. " "Okay, I'm going to stop your supposed self-diagnosis right there, Harry. This rationalization isn't doing you any good. Let's talk facts: you spent $344 to sleep underneath the creepiest thing in the world. That's worse than the guy who came in here with a Pennywise snuggie." "And what happened to him?" "I told you -- I don't treat dummies."
