As the eighth year after the cancellation of P.T. comes around, it's a sad reminder that fans will never get a chance to play it. Despite it being eight years later, plenty of fans still remember the infamous demo, and so does a previous Konami employee. The former Konami employee has come out providing a behind-the-scenes look into the development and removal of the Silent Hills demo and how they wish there had been things that could have been done differently.
While there are still fans that remain disappointed, there is still a profound love for the Silent Hill franchise and plenty of games from the series that are worthy of another playthrough. Metacritic has scored almost every game, and while not all of them have a stellar score, they still deserve some attention.
Silent Hill: Book Of Memories (2012) - 58/5.1
The 2012 Silent Hill: Book of Memories took a different route in its gameplay and was made exclusively for the Sony PlayStation Vita. It was developed by American game developers and later published by Konami. Despite some new gameplay that could have been successful, not everyone found it enjoyable.
This was a role-playing spin-off game with a protagonist receiving a mysterious book on their birthday, and user reviews vary. Some give the game a little credit by saying it was a nice portable game, while others say it was a huge disappointment due to the storyline and mechanics. Critics would also have similar takes saying it was a poorly developed, tedious dungeon crawler. While it didn't pan out well, at least there was some kind of attempt to make it a little different.
Silent Hill: Homecoming (2008) - 64/6.3
Like Book of Memories, Silent Hill: Homecoming would also suffer from some of the same issues. This was another entry made in the USA and was initially banned in Australia, and the game's release was canceled entirely in Japan. It certainly wasn't off to a great start.
In Homecoming, players are thrown into a shadowy world of chaos and horror that is the town of Silent Hill and investigate the disappearance of the main characters' brother. At the time, there were a lot of game crashes, and some found the puzzles way too challenging to want to continue, and some critics would note that it lacked the originality and tension that made the previous games enjoyable. On the plus side, the game did have one of the scariest-looking bosses.
Silent Hill: Downpour (2012) - 68/7.2
Silent Hill: Downpour had its problems, but more fans seemed to enjoy the story compared to the reviews shown for the previous entries. It was developed by Vatra Games and published by Konami for the Xbox 360 and Playstation.
After a transport vehicle crashes, inmate Murphy Pendleton becomes stranded in the town of Silent Hill and is soon subjected to horrors that not even his imagination could conjure up. Critics seemed to give Downpour more credit than the previous ones noting that it had a decent storyline and felt more interactive. They would also say that it was clear the developers had a fondness for the source material but that there were a lot of rough patches that should have been addressed before its release.
Silent Hill 4: The Room (2004) - 76/8.0
As the fourth installment of the series, Silent Hill 4: The Room received a lot of attention as fans waited for developers Team Silent to finish the game and Konami to publish it. In 2004 the game was released and received an overall positive response from those who played it.
The Room took a different approach, having the main character trapped in his cursed apartment, only allowing him to explore mysterious portals that lead to unknown horrors. The tension, disturbing environment, and the game having some of the most terrifying monsters in the series, caught the attention of both critics and fans, with plenty of them coming out to praise the game. While some critics noted that it seemed to look too much like the previous games and didn't have many unique traits, it was deemed an overall success as an entry to the Silent Hill series.
Silent Hill: Origins (2007) - 78/7.5
After the release of the 2006 Silent Hill movie, in 2007, Silent Hill: Origins was made, otherwise known as Silent Hill: Zero in Japan. The game looks like it took some inspiration from the film and added it to the game, and a lot of fans and critics were very pleased with what they received.
In this entry, players took on the role of the main character Travis Grady that finds the badly burnt Alessa in a home lying on top of apparent sacrificial markings. From there, Grady enters the hellish realm of Silent Hill. Aside from a few critics and fans mentioning combat issues and predictability and some critics noting how it failed to engage with players, there was an overwhelming majority of positive feedback for the game and what it gave players.
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories (2009) - 79/7.9
As the seventh installment of the series, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories has that same Silent Hill formula that makes the series what it is. However, it took some twists and turns that developers Climax Studios added.
Shattered Memories took on a different approach that allowed players to approach characters that offer different responses and are scattered in different areas of the game. The player takes on the role of Harry Mason as he tries to unravel the mystery of his missing daughter while walking through the horrifying streets of Silent Hill. The new direction added to the game by developers panned out well with fans and critics, along with the storyline and different atmosphere. While some were disappointed by how short it was, overall, it received a stellar score and plenty of compliments regarding the voice acting, atmosphere, and graphics.
Silent Hill 3 (2003) - 85/8.6
Silent Hill 3 isn't just the third entry of the franchise but a fan favorite with one of the best female protagonists in the horror genre. It is also the second game released on the PC and PlayStation 2 and was never ported to the original Xbox.
The third game has players take on the role of Heather, who is forced to explore and figure out the mysterious connection between Silent Hill and her fears. Some critics would mention how tedious the combat was and how it lacked proper pacing like the first two games. However, the story is considered more complex and one of the most grotesque entries, and many fans and critics loved it for those reasons.
Silent Hill (1999) - 86/8.9
The classic first installment where Silent Hill was introduced to the world is considered one of the best games of the series and considered one of the scariest 90s horror games. Developers Team Silent and publisher Konami released the game in 1999 and later re-released it on the Playstation Store.
Players took on the role of a man searching for his daughter that would later enter the world of Silent Hill, where the most gruesome monsters want nothing more than to tear him apart. Most critics had nothing but positive things to say about the story and the designs, while some players mentioned that they just don't like how it looks now.
Silent Hill 2 (2001) - 89/8.4
Silent Hill 2 is one of the most popular entries of the franchise and is a fan favorite. This 2001 game still has a cult following, and there are plenty of reasons why. The game has a dark storyline that centers around the character James, who travels through the hellish realm that would introduce the massive fan-favorite villain, Pyramid Head.
The disturbing imagery, haunting environment, storyline, and gameplay were a hit with critics and fans alike. While it had flaws, as some critics would mention it being too close in its content to the first game, fans and critics alike praised it as one of the best games in the franchise.