Game review: Silent Hill f (PS5)

The Silent Hill franchise had been dormant for years, until last year when Konami released the excellent Silent Hill 2 remake from developer Bloober Team. With the IP now popular again, a new entry in the franchise has been released this year called Silent Hill f. 

Despite having the Silent Hill brand name, Silent Hill f does not have any direct relation to the other games in the series. Silent Hill f is its own entry, focusing on a young Japanese girl named Hinako Shimizu, living in a rural town set in the 1960s. 

Living with an abusive father and an unsupportive mother, Hinako decides to run from home to join her friends in town. Everything seems to be normal until a mysterious fog engulfs the town and kills one of her friends. After that, the town is rife with monsters, and Hinako's life is never the same again. 

Hinako now suffers from hallucinations, with the game switching between the real world and even a weird dream world. The game is a psychological horror in every sense of the word and has slightly different gameplay mechanics from last year's Silent Hill 2 remake. 

The biggest change in this game is that it does not feature any firearms whatsoever! Hinako can only arm herself with melee weapons, which makes the game more frightening and difficult compared to other Silent Hill games in the past. 

There are limited resources and weapons in this game, so you will have to just grab anything you can in order to survive. The combat is also pretty challenging because Hinako has a stamina bar, and this will deplete every time she goes for an attack. 

The best way to combat this is by attacking a few times, then resting for a few seconds to regain stamina. Her stamina also depletes when she dodges, so perfect timing is needed. 

Another thing you have to look out for is her health bar. The enemies in this game are relentless, and you will die a lot of times if you are not careful enough. The best way to regain health is to seek out any bandages, pills, or food that is lying around. 

Hinako has a sanity bar too, and this is important to look out for. Hinako can get mentally exhausted if her sanity depletes, and this can affect the way she attacks so it can make her more vulnerable during combat. 

The other thing you have to remember is that each weapon has a durability bar as well. You must find any new weapons to replace broken ones, or use a tool kit to fix and repair damaged ones. Luckily, if you are roaming around in the dream world, this place has unlimited weapon durability. 

Speaking of weapons and resources, Hinako cannot carry an infinite amount of items, so you have to make sure to pick up the most important things. Resource management is important in this game, like in Resident Evil, so be careful not to stock up on useless items. 

Silent Hill f isn't all about combat either because the game does make use of puzzles in order to further your progress in the game. There are clues to help you solve puzzles, and you can refer to the game's journal for more tips and tricks. 

Much like in other games, Silent Hill f makes use of save points called 'Hokora Shrines'. You can also pray at shrines in order to increase her stats, including health, sanity, and stamina. These places are important, so make sure to use them whenever you can. 

The other big part of Silent Hill f is its challenging boss battles. These bosses are longer and more difficult than in any other Silent Hill game in the past. You have to make good use of dodging and using the best weapons in order to come out on top. 

The last major thing about the gameplay is that Silent Hill f has a ton of replay value. This is because certain decisions you make in the game can trigger multiple different endings. It's similar to other Silent Hill games, so this game isn't just a one-and-done experience. 

For a single-player game, a first playthrough will last around 20 hours. Of course, the number of hours will increase if you want to see all of the endings. Not to mention, getting a platinum trophy will also prolong the gameplay way past the 20 hour mark. 

In terms of graphics, the character models are almost photorealistic at times, even when the camera is zoomed in up close. As for the level design, the game is dark, atmospheric, and very scary-looking. Don't expect to see any levels taking place on a sunny beach, that's for sure!

While the game's combat can be challenging and frustrating at times, Silent Hill f is still an excellent horror game. It may differ in part from Silent Hill 2, but the story is engaging, and it's sure to scare most players with its grotesque enemies and level design. 

Verdict: 8.5/10