Silent Hill Discussion

[Bigfoot]

I hate double posts, but this is exciting enough to break that restriction.

Silent Hill 4: The Room / DanceDanceRevolution Extreme Update:

Cynthia Music Video from DDR Extreme:

The music video from DDR Extreme featuring Cynthia's character model singing Mary Elizabeth McGlynn's (aka Melissa Williamson) and Akira Yamaoka's remix of "Your Rain," "Your Rain (RAGE MIX)." The song was featured on the limitedly released North American version of the Silent Hill 4: The Room soundtrack, available only by pre-ordering the game. The video itself was released on DDRX well before the game, but few people knew what they were watching.

Fortunately for us, a fan has uploaded the music video and offered it for viewing on YouTube. The video begins very much in the traditional Silent Hill manner with Cynthia singing in an alley from Building World from SH4. This is followed by a short montage of footage from the game itself shown in black & white. However, what proceeds that is somthing completely unexpected and will probably catch you off-guard. I won't spoil it here, but it's well worth checking out. Enjoy.

YouTube.com - Akira Yamaoka feat. Elizabeth McGlynn - Your Rain (RAGE MIX)

God, I hated that video.

So someone clear things up for me. I just watched the movie, and it's been FOREVER since I've played the games... so, why is it that at the end they're in like, two different worlds?

Well, basically throughout the whole movie I guess since when they were in the school searching for Rose, they were in the same area, but it was a different world.

[Poiso]

I'm currently having a discussion with a friend regarding links between the movie and the games and the continiuum of the game's plots in general. It's weird stuff. Any insights on these questions?

Is Dark Alessa really Sammael?

What are Alessa's final motives post-SH1 in the games? Why does she seem to be spending her time helping out dudes like James?

Is Rose dead or is she currently conscripted into servitude under what her daughter has become? It could lead into the SH1 cult, or something.

[ifirit]

Warning: Silent Hill, Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill 3 & Silent Hill Spoilers

I'm currently having a discussion with a friend regarding links between the movie and the games and the continiuum of the game's plots in general. It's weird stuff. Any insights on these questions?

Sure, I love questions about Silent Hill.

Is Dark Alessa really Sammael?

No, Samael does not exist. Metraton is also an improper name to use for the god that resides in Alessa from the games. It's simply know as the god or "God?", sometimes as the Devil; it really has no name.

Anyway, Alessa in the film universe is never clearly shown as having any sort of "special power" as she is in the games. Although it is not completely clear whether Alessa Gillespie's (Age 14) powers were derived from the god inside her, Alessa (Age 10) gained the power to change the world from an otherworldly being, manifeasted as Dark Alessa. The being has powers and an agenda of its own, but for Alessa (Age 40) all that she wants is revenge. The being (Dark Alessa) combined with Alessa to create the otherworld of Silent Hill (both the Smokey and Alternate worlds). Also as a by-product, by combining together, Alessa gave birth to Sharon. Dark Alessa (also known as the "Dark One") sent this incarnation of Alessa into the "real world" to spare her from the terror that they would enact upon the "church of Silent Hill."

In the film, the cult has grown beyond a few individuals and actually has a church available to them. The first game had the cult performing their ceremonies in basements of buildings and in secret places beyond the view of the public. The film cult seems to actually practice out in public, thus, I label them the "church." Because most of the "church" was sent to the otherworld in the last burning, I don't know what has happened to church in the present-day, real world. (I suspect that because of Officer Thomas Gucci, all, if any, would be driven underground.)

It could be argued that the manifeastation of Dark Alessa is the god, because it refers to itself as having many names and coming upon hearing Alessa's cries. However, that is never really made clear or even present. You can decide.

What are Alessa's final motives post-SH1 in the games?

Alessa (in the Incubator's form) dies at the end of SH1, she reincarnates herself (Alessa and Cheryl) as a baby, which she places in the care of Harry Mason. Harry then returns to his life in Portland to begin with Cheryl again. Because of an attack on him in his home several years later by a "religious fanatic," he entered into hiding by moving to another city and changing his name. And in the process, he changes his daughter's name as well. It seems that Heather whole-heartedly accepted Harry's decision at the time.

So, Heather/Cheryl/Alessa continues to live a (somewhat) normal existence, living at home, going to the mall, doing chores around the house for some extra money from her father, etc. She has forgotten about her past and chooses not to think about it. Despite her previous incarnations and the presence of the god inside her, Heather has no manifeastation of "special powers." At least, until Claudia comes around.

I know that you might be thinking that this in no way answers your question, but that's because you're asking the wrong question. The power that Alessa has and the power that exists in the town are two different things. The power of the land on which the town was built has pre-existed long before Alessa was even born. Alessa's powers extend only to making manifeastations of her thoughts, using her "special power" or the god inside her as a source of that power, whichever you believe. The town is inhabited by a power inate to itself. The early native americans that resided in the area held the place as sacred, believing that spirits inhabited the land, which may be the origin of that power. Also, these were not simply spirits of dead people, but spirits of all things: rocks, trees, water, etc.

After the colonization of the area by Europeans, the land was built upon and this is the first appearance of the town. The town that was built was eventually lost (literally, "went missing") and a second town was built in its place many years later. The second town was named "Silent Hill" and was originally settled on the south side of the lake (where South Vale currently resides). South Vale's history then centers around the events of the Civil War era, being that Brookhaven was the prominent hospital and that the Tocula Prison Camp was used for P.O.W.s of the Civil War.

Around the beginning of the 20th century, the mines were openned on the north side of the lake and as jobs were available, most of the residents moved to the north, closer to the mountains. This is where "Old Silent Hill" is located. This area became a prominent location and where most of the town settled. After the mines closed, however, the residents turned toward tourism for economic growth and began building a resort area near the north shore of the lake. The resort area was named "Paleville" and the stretch of town that connects Old Silent Hill to the resort is called "New Silent Hill" (includes Central Silent Hill), which will be featured in greater detail in the upcoming "Silent Hill 0rigins."

So, from north to south, here's the geography of Silent Hill:

Wiltse Mines -------------> X

Old Silent Hill --------> X

New Silent Hill ----> X

Paleville ---> X

X <----------Brahams

Lake Toluca ----------> X

South Vale ------> X

Observation Deck -----------------------> X

Pleasant River -----------------------------------------------> X

North Ashefield and South Ashfield ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------> X

Okay, so the power that inhabits the land includes the area around Lake Toluca, between the mountains on the north and the swamps on the south. The power of the town itself is what causes events that occur in later chronological games. However, I must mention that the power of the town has become greatly distorted from what it originally was.

Why does she seem to be spending her time helping out dudes like James?

Because of the answer I made above, I'll assume that your question is then, "why does the town seem to be spending time helping out dudes like James?" People like James, Michael and Travis are attracted to the town because it draws upon people who have a great guilt upon their conscience. The town draws out that guilt to "feed upon" (Note: this is not the correct term to use, but is closest in concept). Whether having that guilt brought up to the surface of the individual is benefitial for them is irrelevant to the town or the story in general. The idea is that the town uses its power to intice individuals to venerate the spirits that inhabit the land. (i.e. James sees manifeastations of his inner desires and experiences shifts in time and space to relive a traumatic event that then encourages him to perform the Crimson Ceremony.)

The town sends out its power to call people in the surrounding area and has to an extent called people from other states, as people have been called to Silent Hill from as far as Ashfield. Please note that this does not imply that the town is conscious of this or that the land itself has a will of its own. The will of the town is determined by the people and spirits on the land. The greater the desire, the more strongly the town reacts to the individual or wish.

Is Rose dead or is she currently conscripted into servitude under what her daughter has become? It could lead into the SH1 cult, or something.

Rose is simply acting as Sharon's mother. She loves her child and will protect her from any harm. Rose has not left the Misty world of Silent Hill, because the "Dark One" hasn't opened the door to allow her through. Whether this means that Rose is simply in another dimension than the real world waiting for the "door" to be opened for her to pass or that she has died and is stuck in some sort of limbo is not for sure. Whether Sharon, now posessed by the being of Dark Alessa, can perform the same powers as Alessa (Age 40) is not known either.

[Poiso]

Cool, thanks. So what's to indicate that the SH1 Alessa has been reborn into Heather other than that the SH3 cult seems to be convinced of that? If I'm not mistaken, SH1 ends with Alessa staying back on the far side of that portal after tossing Heather to you, not exactly dying or disappearing.

[ifirit]

Cool, thanks. So what's to indicate that the SH1 Alessa has been reborn into Heather other than that the SH3 cult seems to be convinced of that? If I'm not mistaken, SH1 ends with Alessa staying back on the far side of that portal after tossing Heather to you, not exactly dying or disappearing.

Heather, the reincarnation, specifically says,

After the god was killed, the girl reappeared. She was holding a baby in her arms. Before she died, she gave the baby to my father.

Can't argue against a clear-cut statement like that.

[Bigfoot]

I really wanna play SH games again. I only have a PS1 though anda Jap PS2. It'd be cool if they came out with an anniversary collection or something on PC.

[Poiso]

Cool, thanks. So what's to indicate that the SH1 Alessa has been reborn into Heather other than that the SH3 cult seems to be convinced of that? If I'm not mistaken, SH1 ends with Alessa staying back on the far side of that portal after tossing Heather to you, not exactly dying or disappearing.

Heather, the reincarnation, specifically says,

After the god was killed, the girl reappeared. She was holding a baby in her arms. Before she died, she gave the baby to my father.

Can't argue against a clear-cut statement like that.

Fair nuff!

[Avoli]

I really wanna play SH games again. I only have a PS1 though anda Jap PS2. It'd be cool if they came out with an anniversary collection or something on PC.

Oh but they sort of did. Too bad its Europe only as far as I know right now. Oddly enough, it's also ONLY the PS2 games, no SH1. That blows.

Note the link says Europe...bah...

[ifirit]

I assumed that the Silent Hill Collection and the Silent Hill Complete Set were the same item and just browsed over them. (They also seemed like old news since other forum members here already made light of the European version.) However, looking back, I've realized that no news had been made about the Silent Hill Complete Set (Japanese Version). So,...

*Ahem*

The Silent Hill Collection / Complete Set Update:

The Silent Hill Complete Set Released in Japan:

Konami Digital Entertainment released the Silent Hill Complete Set on July 6, 2006 in Japan. This collection contained the Japanese versions of Silent Hill (PS), Silent Hill 2: Director's Cut (PS2), Silent Hill 3 (PS2), and Silent Hill 4: The Room (PS2). The games were all individually packaged and placed inside a solid black box. As a bonus for those who ordered online, they also received 5 collector's cards (one for each game and a fifth for the film) in addition to a poster for Silent Hill. Originally, Konami had promised to include a special projection light keychain with online orders, but that the release retracted it in place of the movie poster. The Silent Hill Complete Set was printed in limited quantity (not sure why exactly, because all the versions of these games are the budget releases) and many sellers have already sold out, including importers. So, the only place to get one on the internet is through EBay. (But, I've already checked and no copies are available right now.)

The main differences between the Silent Hill Complete Set (Japan) and the Silent Hill Collection (Europe & Australia), aside from formatting, are that the copy of Silent Hill 2 in the European version is simply the first release of the game (not the director's cut), Silent Hill (PS) is not included with the set, and all three PS2 titles are set inside a single box. The European version's only unique feature is a special advertisement for the Silent Hill Experience included with the manuals.

"The Silent Hill Complete Set" retails in Japan at 8,200 yen (~55 EUR, ~70 USD), while the selling price is 7,380 yen (~49 EUR, ~64 USD) online at KonamiStyle.jp. "The Silent Hill Collection" retails on KonamiStyle.se for 529 SEK, Swedish Kronor, (~57 EUR, ~74 USD). Other online retail prices may vary.

"The Silent Hill Complete Set" includes:

"Silent Hill (PSOne Books)" (Konami Ultimate Selection edition)

"Silent Hill 2: コナミ殿堂セレクション" (Director's Cut / Konami Ultimate Selection edition)

"Silent Hill 3 コナミ殿堂セレクション" (Konami Ultimate Selection edition)

"Silent Hill 4: The Room コナミ・ザ・ベスト" (Konami The Best edition)

KonamiStyle Special Post Cards (Online Orders only)

KonamiStyle Silent Hill poster (Online Orders only)

Konami Digital Entertainment - News - 映画「SILENT HILL」の原作ゲームソフトなど、「サイレントヒルコンプリートセット」を販売開始 (News Announcement)

KonamiStyle.jp - Silent Hill (Home Page)

KonamiStyle.jp - The Silent Hill Complete Set (Order Page) (Out-of-Print / Out-of-Stock)

PlayAsia.com - Silent Hill Complete Set (Out-of-Print / Out-of-Stock)

Zone-of-Gamers - Image Gallery - Silent Hill Collections

KonamiStyle.se - Silent Hill Collection (Out-of-Print / Available)

Amazon.co.uk - Silent Hill Collection (Out-of-Print / Out-of-Stock)

Silent Hill Film Update (Japan):

Online Retailers Taking Pre-Orders for Silent Hill Premium and Ultimate Box Editions:

A large number of japanese online retailers have begun taking pre-orders for the first printing of Silent Hill in Japan. Dubbed "Silent Hill Premium Edition," this will be the first printing of the film on a 2-disc DVD set. (Yes, that's right a two disc set.) The first disc will apparently contain the feature film plus the bonus documentary "Path of Darkness: Making Silent Hill." The second disc will contain a game-to-film comparison video created by the Konami development team.

In addition to the two DVDs, Sony also plans to include a Blu-Ray version of the film with the limited printing of the "Silent Hill Ultimate Box" package. The Blu-Ray disc will contain all the features of both DVDs. A custom case and booklet will also be available with the limited edition set and while available for the "Premium Edition."

The "Silent Hill Premium Edition" will retail at 5,800 yen (49.99 USD), while the "Silent Hill Ultimate Box" edition will retail at 8,800 yen (~76 USD), although pre-order prices range from 5,177 yen for SHPE and 6,930 yen for the SHUB. Both special versions of the film will be available on November 22, 2006. You can find more information by tracking the collections by their catalogue numbers:

Silent Hill Premium Edition: PCBE-52444

Silent Hill Ultimate Box: PCBE-52450

CDJapan - Silent Hill Premium Edition

CDJapan - Silent Hill Ultimate Box

YesAsia.com - Silent Hill Premium Edition

YesAsia.com - Silent Hill Ultimate Box

(Usually, I post other links as well, here, but decided against it since I've listed the catalogue numbers already and since no other sites list this information in English.)

Silent Hill 1 Update:

Silent Hill Original Soundtracks Available for iTunes/i-revo:

Konami has officially released the original game soundtracks for the first three titles of the Silent Hill series for download. The soundtracks are available for purchase through the iTunes Music Store of Japan (AAC format) or the i-revo MUSIC ICE (WMA format). You can download the "Silent Hill OST" for 1,500 yen (~ 15 USD) and the "Silent Hill 2 OST" or "Silent Hill 3 OST" for 1,800 yen (~18 USD) (much cheaper than the cost of the original OSTs at release).

Although, many fan sites have offered downloadable versions of the Silent Hill soundtracks in past, the discretion has always been that you needed to own the CD to download the files. With the first three CDs now out-of-print and only available from online auction sites (expensive) or third-party printers (being essentially bootlegs), it's very difficult to obtain the original soundtracks as CDs. However, now that the soundtracks are officially available for purchase on an online music store, fans can obtain high quality audio files of this great music without the hassle of first obtaining the hard-to-find CDs. ('Cause I know that noone has ever downloaded the music illegally. )

Konami Digital Entertainment - Music Downloads (iTunes Music Store)

Konami Digital Entertainment - Music Downloads (i-revo MUSIC ICE)

Silent Hill: The Novel

With the popularity of the Silent Hill series at it's height right now, it's no surprise that Konami has gone so far as to novelize the first game. Considering that the "Silent Hill Play Novel" is essentially the same thing (although so much more since it includes "Cybil's Scenario"), creating a novel of the first game seems trivial. However, because Konami is trying to make the series accessible for more people, the novel acts as a way to experience the game for people who have been too afraid of horror games to play them or simply for those who like the story but not the gameplay.

This adaptation of the game was written by Sadamu Yamashita and features new illustrations by Masahiro Ito (the series monster designer, Warning: Link Contains Non-Work-Safe Material), who, by the way, explains on his website what Silent Hill Cage of Cradle actually is: a multimedia comic featuring Lisa Garland before the events of SH1. (Awesome!) Masahiro Ito also states that it may be coming out in paperback form in 2007. (Sweet.) Anyway, back to the novel.

The book is printed in paperback with a glossy sleeve and and a smaller glossy sleeve advertising, ironically, "Silent Hill Cage of Cradle." The novel is written in Japanese (obviously) in a traditional japanese format, meaning that the sentences are written vertically (start at the top and read straight down) from right to left. Throughout the novel, black-and-white concept and CG images from the game are interlaced, sparingly, with the pages to give an illustration of what is going on at that point in the story. The coolest part of the book is that there are 8 full-page drawings featuring reinterpretations of the monsters from SH1. There are 4 full color images and 4 black-and-white images. The full color drawings include: the hanged body that appears throughout the game, a group of Clawfingers (aka "Mumblers" aka "Child #4") emerging from the dark, the Incubus and the scene of the Incubator giving the child to Harry. The novel's black-and-white drawings include: Cheryl (anime style), the Split Head (aka "Lizard"), the Puppet Nurse (aka "Alchemilla Nurse") and Lisa's transformation in Nowhere.

The novel retails at 933 yen (~9 USD) and has the ISBN number: 4-86155-815-8. If you'd like to view a sample of the book including the full-color illustrations, you can see it here.

Konami Digital Entertainment - コナミノベルス「サイレントヒル」

Amazon.co.jp - コナミノベルス「サイレントヒル」 (新書)

Yahoo.co.jp - コナミノベルス「サイレントヒル」 (新書)

Alternatively, there is a novelization of Silent Hill (film version) available as well. It's written by Paula Edgewood. If you want you can track that book by it's ISBN number: 4-04352-208-8.

Konami TV News Update:

Official Konami Press Videos of Previously Released Silent Hill Material:

Going back and looking up information on Konami's website, I began searching the video news archives for information on Silent Hill, particularly SH0 and SH5. To my surprise, Konami's TV News network has covered a large portion of this year's news on Silent Hill, no doubt thanks to the film release this year and the increased publicity. Unfortunately, all of the news is only available in Japanese. Anyway, here's a look at what they covered.

- Silent Hill Film Premiere at Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, California (with Akira Yamaoka) / ifirit post

Embedded Stream (Broadband)

Direct Stream (Broadband)

Embedded Stream (Dial-up)

Direct Stream (Dial-up)

- Silent Hill Film Screening to Konami Executives in Tokyo, Japan (with Akira Yamaoka)

Embedded Stream (Broadband)

Direct Stream (Broadband)

Embedded Stream (Dial-up)

Direct Stream (Dial-up)

- Akira Yamaoka at the Chicago Premiere of PLAY! A Video Game Symphony / ifirit post #1 / ifirit post #2

Embedded Stream (Broadband)

Direct Stream (Broadband)

Embedded Stream (Dial-up)

Direct Stream (Dial-up)

- Akira Yamaoka at the Opening of Silent Hill Shocking House / ifirit post

Direct Stream (Broadband)

Direct Stream (Dial-up)

Konami sure does love Akira Yamaoka, essentially making him the face of the Silent Hill series, despite the fact that this is really an ensemble effort between the writers (Hiroyuki Owaku, Suguru Murakoshi), designers (Masahiro Ito, Sato Takayoshi, Minako Asano), programmers (Akihiro Imamura, Norihito Hatakeda, Hidehisa Harada) and directors (Keiichiro Toyama, Masashi Tsuboyama, Kazuhide Nakazawa & Suguru Murakoshi), as well as all others involved.

[StarZander]

Here's a nice little bump. For all of you who have enjoyed Knickknacks Silent Hill 2 Chibi comic, here is the first part of its flashversion. More will come soon.

http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/334798

[ifirit]

Silent Hill Rumor Control:

SH5 To Appear At Tokyo Game Show 2006 (Autumn)?:

According to many internet sources, a rumor has been spreading about the appearance of a game demo for Silent Hill 5 at this year's Tokyo Game Show. Granted, it's been more than 2 years since Konami executives have made mention of a Silent Hill game for the next generation of consoles, too little information has appeared about the game and the list of games scheduled to appear at TGS 2006 have had some inconsistency in listing SH5 as a hosted item. Even further to this rumor, SH5 is listed on these lists as a PlayStation 3 title, something that Konami has yet to confirm. Although, their history and placement of business contacts in the past have dealt primarily with Sony and their line of PlayStation products, Konami has always remained independent from the "Big 3" and garnered deals that best suited both the companies they deal with and themselves. Still, many people believe the Silent Hill franchise will remain under the PlayStation name. Still, Konami has a way of surprising people, so you never know.

Silent Hill 5 Teaser?:

A video has appeared on YouTube (again) claiming to be a video from the upcoming Silent Hill 5. Not much information is given, as the caption only reads "SH5_Test" and the poster has no other videos alotted to his/her profile. The poster boombooooom is listed as a person of 30 years of age living in Japan. Considering how Silent Hill 0rigins was leaked two weeks before it appeared at E3 2006, there is a possibility that this is a true teaser.

However, by watching the video, you can see that it is mostly editted stock photage of an abandoned building, spliced between some distorted CG images. At the end, the official PlayStation 3 logo appears. While the images are professionally done and the video as a whole seems viable, I do not believe that this is a teaser for Silent Hill 5. Mostly because the mood and music of the video are laced by Japanese tones and sentiments. (It feels more like a video for Siren/Forbidden Siren than one for Silent Hill.) Likely, this is a project for the PlayStation 3 conceived by another company as a horror game under a different title. While, I'm excited about the possibility of seeing imagery from a Silent Hill game on PlayStation 3 technology, this does not seem to be it, at least not something that would take 2 years to make.

Silent Hill 5 Trailer?:

Please don't be fooled by this trailer on YouTube. It's completely fan-created by some fans in Spain and has nothing to do with the next game in the series. But, I'm disclaiming it now in the case that someone may confuse this as something real. (It's obviously not.)

[Furin]

I dont think its an SH5 teaser. Konami dont tend to hide the characters away like that, also the music wasnt very Akira and the "coming soon" text at the end looks pretty poor. xD

Also, I love that SH2:CE

[CIaude]

So... There are some Silent Hill Origins trailers featuring gameplay on IGN http://media.psp.ign.com/media/826/826999/vids_1.html

I think it actually looks pretty good. They got the flashlight right, so it's already got an advantage over SH4. Regarding the camera angle, I can't really say. It worked for Resident Evil 4, why shouldn't it work for Silent Hill?

[Razumen]

So... There are some Silent Hill Origins trailers featuring gameplay on IGN http://media.psp.ign.com/media/826/826999/vids_1.html

I think it actually looks pretty good. They got the flashlight right, so it's already got an advantage over SH4. Regarding the camera angle, I can't really say. It worked for Resident Evil 4, why shouldn't it work for Silent Hill?

I rather liked the third person camera in the SH games, it allowed them to do some neat stuff with the camera angles while still doing a good job in keeping what you needed to see on the screen. As far as the comparison to RE, well that series has always been more based on action, so the behind the shoulder camera move really helped it a lot. As for Silent Hill, I think they should either stick to their classic third person style, or (some may hate me for this) move completely to first person for real immersion into the environments.

[Aetherius]

I think that the story would be restricted by a first person view point. It helps to be able to see the character in their entirety to relate to them as someone involved in the story. The story is limited by replacing the personality of the main character with the players'.

[ifirit]

Silent Hill 0rigins Update:

New Trailer (Official #3) Released at Tokyo Game Show 2006 (Plus New Music!):

A new trailer for Silent Hill 0rigins has been released for the Tokyo Game Show to attract potential buyers and distributors. The now third official trailer to be released by Konami Digital Entertainment features a design similar to that used for The Silent Hill Experience trailer, featuring a similar camera shift and swing between screens from the in-game action. It appears that Climax Studios, developer in charge of gameplay design for SH0, has embraced the more violent, action-oriented style that was it initially teetering on. The use of very quick actions and purely brutal carnage create a disturbing atmosphere of its own, suggesting that the game will exploit the brutal flairs that have only been subtly applied in previous titles. While this aspect does deter most fans because of the similance to other "all-gore, no scare" stylings of many horror genre pieces, it appears that Konami is maintaining the sense of subtlety by keeping the images at a distance while layering other images in the foreground (particularly the the meat hooks). This blend of the liminal and subliminal is trademark for the series and shows no sign of being lost through the involvement of a third party. Let's hope that the finished product gives us a new experience in terror and maintains its self-proclaimed title of "Master of Horror-Adventure."

Speaking about the use of liminal and subliminal stylings, the new music featured in the trailer (composed by Akira Yamaoka with vocals performed by Mary Elizabeth McGlynn) has an especially tender approach suggesting that there is a deliberate attempt to place the player at a distance from the particularly bloody and violent way that the gameplay is appearing onscreen. If one is to then couple this sense of visualization with the story, you may draw connections between the time Travis was institutionalized and the concept of forming a disassociation from people and society. I wonder how that will play out in the story. Anyway, check out this trailer, the awesome reinterpretation of the main Silent Hill theme, "Silent Hill," and everyone give a big welcome to Furin, webmaster for Silent Hill Origins, who has generously offered the trailer for download and who has recently become an affliate of Silent Hill Media.

Konami Digital Entertainment - Tokyo Game Show 2006 Konami Special Site

Konami Digital Entertainment - Silent Hill 0rigins Tokyo Game Show 2006 Trailer (Direct Stream / Broadband)

Konami Digital Entertainment - Silent Hill 0rigins Tokyo Game Show 2006 Trailer (Direct Stream / Dial-up)

Silent Hill Origins - Silent Hill 0rigins Tokyo Game Show 2006 Trailer (Furin's Mirror)

YouTube.com - Silent Hill 0rigins Tokyo Game Show 2006 Trailer

Major gaming sites and other Silent Hill Fan sites have yet to post this trailer on their sites, but when they do, I'll post the links here.

EDIT: Almost forgot to post the lyrics to the music from the trailer, which is currently rumored to be titled "Hope."

...emptiness, dead eyes,

and lost what you've found.

Maybe there on the edge

is your hope

but you don't look down.

Why?

There you go,

saying nothing.

Is my mind unclear

or could it be

maybe something

has a hold of me?

??? [unknown word]

The last lyric in the song is some word ending in an "i" sound, like "die" or "fly." All I know is that it rhymes with the preceeding "why."

EDIT 2:

The official Japanese trailer has been placed on GameTrailers.com in various formats. Visit the page to download the trailer.

GameTrailers.com - Silent Hill 0rigins (Japanese Trailer) (.mov file / 7.9MB)

GameTrailers.com - Silent Hill 0rigins (Japanese Trailer) (.wmv file / 9.0MB)

GameTrailers.com - Silent Hill 0rigins (Japanese Trailer) (.mp4 file / 5.8MB)

[Nulion]

ifirit, I have to ask...Where was that reinterpretation of the main Silent Hill theme? I can't find it for some odd reason.

*Thank you* though for the trailers, as I hadn't seen these anywhere else...And damn, I am loving the music. Yamaoka just doesn't seem to let us down, does he?

I'll admit though, I didn't like the song in the TGS trailer as much as I did the last official trailer, the one that showed the first samples of gameplay. Gotta be one of the better SH songs in recent years, for sure!

[Razumen]

I think that the story would be restricted by a first person view point. It helps to be able to see the character in their entirety to relate to them as someone involved in the story. The story is limited by replacing the personality of the main character with the players'.

Yes, because watching Henry/Heather/James bludgeon that misshapen monster to death for the 532nd time really helps us to empathise with them and further the plot.

I know for a fact that a first person view would affect me a lot more than the current third person one, for instance in games with large, lifelike spiders, I get really creeped out when I have to fight them in first person, just because they seem that much closer to you. Considering the main appeal of the SH games is to creep people out, a first person perspective seems like a obvious choice to me.

And it's not like you couldn't still have cutscenes and the like, nor does the character you play as has to suddenly become a mute. I'm also sure that any of the previous silent hill games could be played from the first person (with control changes and the like of course) and not only would they not be lessened by it, but it would actually enhance the experience. (Graphics-wise notwithstanding)

[Furin]

everyone give a big welcome to Furin, webmaster for Silent Hill Origins, who has generously offered the trailer for download and who has recently become an affliate of Silent Hill Media.

Aww thanks alot, Ifrit. Good thread you're keeping up here.

I love the music in the new trailer. although the trailer shows nothing new other than a closeup shot of that lying figure type thing for one second it was still a cool trailer. ;p The only thing i am disliking at the moment is the way he runs. :/ but then i guess its because he's carrying a sledgehammer.

Where was that reinterpretation of the main Silent Hill theme? I can't find it for some odd reason.

Do you mean the music at the end of the TGS trailer when the origins logo appears? I believe thats unique, for origins.

I like the new camera angle, although it is a really bad rip off of RE4 XD But i understand how the PSP has a small screen and the old style camera angle would be annoying. :/

[Nulion]

Oh yes, welcome Furin

And thank you, although...I just don't hear the Silent Hill theme in that music at the end. I must be the only one too, haha, since I've looked up the trailer elsewhere and heard comments about the SH theme there...but I still don't hear it, unless it's being played backwards. It probably is a unique song though.

And very nice job on the site by the way...You had the only copy of the SH:0 trailer 2 song I could find (For free) on the net, and the rest of the site is just packed with info

[Furin]

Thanks, and thats quite alright, thats what the sites for.

I think the music at the end is, as you said, the theme played backwards or something so when people say the "silent Hill" theme i think they mean the new mix of it.

[Aetherius]

calling it a "new mix" is pretty misleading.

It's really only about 3 seconds (if that) of distorted theme over the bassline from the original. Not even really worth calling it a 'mix'

[Furin]

Well its obviously the old Silent Hill theme which has been changed, i didnt know what else to call it. O_o

Edit: You can download the MP3 of that trailer song here.

[ifirit]

Silent Hill 1 Update:

"Making of Silent Hill" Featurette Rediscovered and Translated:

While searching around the net, I came across an SH website called Night's Hell Hole, a freesite based on lots of media for Silent Hill, most of which is obtained personally by the webmaster. While searching through the site, I found some rather curious information on a video showing an interview with director Keiichiro Toyama about the first Silent Hill game. While the video turned out to be a commercial promoting the game in Japan prior to it's release in 1999, it contains some behind the scenes footage, featuring Takayoshi Sato and Masahiro Ito, showing how the characters were designed for the game.

The interview itself is fairly dated, as it refers to groundbreaking techniques and effects that are not only in common practice these days, but have been surpassed. Still, you have to appreciate the amount of thought that went into the design of the game and how the creators wanted to create a truly open-world style for a horror game. This becomes increasingly important if one then considers that Keiichiro Toyama went on to create Siren (Forbidden Siren) and Siren 2 (Forbidden Siren 2), which are truly open-world horror games. In addition, seeing Takayoshi Sato explain in his own words what is important in character design helps in understanding how his style is so unique and interesting. So, for all intents and purposes, this is a "making of" documentary, which means that every game in the series has now had a "Making Of..." film to accompany the game.

In spite of this product that just seemingly comes out of nowhere, one has to show one's appreciation for all the hard work that actually went into translating the feature into English as is documented on the site and in the thread where this project began. The process to get the feature to appear with English subtitles wasn't directly from the original Japanese. In fact, the dialogue was originally transcribed and translated into Chinese and then translated into English. Although this may raise doubts about the accuracy of the translation, it remains very clear and coherent. However, if you feel that the translation is lacking in any way, please feel free to inform the translators on the Memory of Alessa forums.

The Silent Hill feature is currently available off of Night's Hell Hole, though the file is actually located on FileFront's servers. However, it's best that if you cannot read any of the subtitles, you use the directed site as a reference. The video is encoded in DivX and requires that you have a DivX player or DivX codec for your video player. I'm also providing a link to the YouTube page for those who are unable (or too lazy) to install a DivX program. (Please note that the quality of the YouTube video is much lower than the DivX file, so you may have some trouble reading the subtitles.)

Night's Hell Hole - Translated Media

FileFront - Silent Hill Feature (.divx file / 10.5 MB)

Memory of Alessa - SH1 - Feature! (Translation Discussion Thread)

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The Silent Hill Experience Update:

Creating the Experience - The Silent Hill Experience "Making Of" Featurette:

Well, it seems that we have another Silent Hill documentary film to add to the collection, this time for The Silent Hill Experience. This video was originally released as an extra disc featured with the DVD release of Silent Hill on August 22, 2006 from Best Buy retailers in the US. (Alternatively, Circuit City stores offered a Silent Hill comic with their purchases of the DVD, which turned out to be just IDW's Silent Hill: Among the Damned. Not the best offer, but the better of the comics released.) The special disc, which retailed at $19.99, appeared in only participating Best Buy stores and was marked on the front with a special yellow sticker. The disc itself was wrapped in a paper and cellophane envelope placed inside the film's DVD case. In addition to containing the featurette "Creating the Experience," the disc also contained two trailers for The Silent Hill Experience and the first official trailer for Silent Hill 0rigins.

The DVD featurette on the Silent Hill Experience basically explains what the UMD disc is and why it was brought to the PSP UMD format as opposed to DVD format. (Ironic.) Anyway, it turns out that the creators for the Silent Hill Experience were no other than William Oertel and his team. [cue organ music] He explains in greater detail how the experience of the Silent Hill franchise is important and how it allows North American audiences to view material that would have otherwise been lost. He also explains a little bit more behind the original comic featured on the UMD, "The Hunger."

For those who have not played the UMD, "The Hunger" is an original comic created by Oertel's team as a precursor to the other comics and to reveal a little more about the origins of Silent Hill. (Odd, that sounds really familiar...) In the featurette, William Oertel explains the art design behind the comic and how it changes from the beginning to end. This featurette really makes you want to pick up the UMD to see what exactly is on the disc (or just to watch it over again).

Check it out if you haven't already. If you can still find the special disc on sale at your local Best Buy store, I suggest that you get it before it costs $100+ on ebay. If not, you can view "Creating the Experience" from your friendly-neighborhood Silent Hill Media. (Please note that bandwidth has been exceeded for the month, but will be restored at the beginning of October, except for those who joined the Silent Hill Media Club, who have unlimited access to all the files and more.) However, I'm made the video available by mirroring it on MegaUpload.

Silent Hill Media - The Silent Hill Experience Page (.wmv file / 24.4 MB)

Creating the Experience [MegaUpload Mirror] (.wmv file / 24.4 MB)

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Silent Hill Comics Update:

Silent Hill Cage of Cradle Preview Images Available:

Recently, Konami Digital Entertainment featured the digital comic, Silent Hill Cage of Cradle, on their weekly promotional website. The site featured three selected pages from the comic featured in black and white. Although, Masahiro Ito has not said much about it in English, there seems to be quite a bit of discussion on it in Japanese on his BBS channel. All that he has revealed is that it is written by Hiroyuki Owaku and will feature Lisa Garland, Alessa Gillespie, Dahlia Gillespie and a fourth, male character. From the images I obtained, it appears that the male character is featured on the pages.

Unfortunately, due to an unexpected system crash at home, I've only got the second page available for viewing. Also, Konami has since taken down the images and replaced them with this week's flavor, so unless you've also downloaded the pages, this is the best I can offer. Yet, there is some good news, a few japanese sites have managed to get some other exclusive images from the digital comic. Check out the sites below to get a sample.

Konami Digital Entertainment - Converting Games to Manga to Distribute on Mobile Phones (Japanese Page)

Konami Digital Entertainment - Converting Games to Manga to Distribute on Mobile Phones (English Page)

Konami Digital Entertainment - Converting Games to Manga to Distribute on Mobile Phones (Streaming Video Announcement / Japanese)

GPara.com - 『ランブルローズ』『幻想水滸伝』がケータイ漫画に！ / Image

Famitsu.com - ゲーム、映画に続いて『サイレントヒル』が漫画化！ (Contains 4 new images)

Cage of Cradle - Preview Page 02 (ifirit's Mirror)

I did manage to find a translation for the images featured on the weekly promotional page for the comic on Silent Hill Heaven's Forums, provided by "Burning Man."

EDIT: Konami Digital Entertainment Mobile has released an official preview of the Silent Hill Digital Manga/Comic on their main page. The pages shown in this preview differ from the initial weekly promotion that they listed before. These pages will likely not be previewed for very long so grab them while you can.

Konami Digital Entertainment Mobile - Silent Hill Cage of Cradle Preview

IDW's Angela In Ashes Character Design Leaked:

In addition to finding images for Silent Hill's Cage of Cradle, I've also obtained the exclusive character designs for IDW's Angela In Ashes, announced for next year. For those who may not be aware, Angela In Ashes is a comic that will feature Angela Orosco's version of the story from Silent Hill 2. For many fans, this is stepping into dangerous territory, as Silent Hill 2 is the most covetted story of the series and IDW hasn't exactly shown that they can handle the material from the games well. In spite of that, IDW still holds the licencing agreement for the US rights to the graphical novels, so they can do whatever they want, especially considering that none of the core members of Team Silent are even supervising the project. (Man, I wish Konami and ComX would get their Silent Hill Comic deal finalized and published.)

Anyway, according to a member of the Silent Hill Heaven's forums, Oliver Dark, he/she managed to obtain an image from the artist of the character design for Angela. Although originally he/she posted some of the artist's original works, claiming that they were for Angela In Ashes, and after the artist agreed to allow the image to stay online, we were treated to the exclusive character design. Enjoy.

Silent Hill Heaven Forums - "Angela In Ashes" new comic from IDW / Post to Image

Angela Character Design (ifirit's Mirror)

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In other news, I have joined the team at Silent Hill: Origins and will be posting information about the Silent Hill series there in the future. Although, I will not be abandoning this thread, this move does benefit the community, because it now allows me to sort and filter topics by type. This, in turn, benefits you guys because, you'll now be able to easily search for posted information about the series that has been previously found here. Over the next few weeks, I will be logging in all the information and links I've posted over the years (has it been years already?) on Furin's website. I'll also be providing Silent Hill: Origins with material that has since been pulled from other sites and will archive some of the rarest information around. I guess William Oertel was right, "it's never been a better time to be a Silent Hill fan."

[ifirit]

A rescue from the heart of darkness.

Silent Hill Fan Projects Update:

Silent Hill Oneiro Mini-series Completed:

Unfortunately, not much has been happening in the official Silent Hill scene, so I'm taking this time to highlight a recently completed fan project that I found to be very well made. So, we turn our focus onto Silent Hill Oniero, a live-action mini-series creating an original story around the Silent Hill videogames. The project originated on MySpace as part of the director's (Tim Connery) blog, but later moved to YouTube, due to file size issues. The team has been releasing the episodes one at a time over the course of this year. What makes the mini-series worth mentioning is that unlike many live-action fan films, which tend to be very amatuer, this project has a similance of professionalism. Everything is taken into consideration from set locations and props, from the narrative and flow, to the cinematography and filming perspective. The level of attention to detail is so prevelent in the episodes that it is often overlooked due to its non-invasiveness. This alone is a sign of a creative mind.

The mini-series itself is character-driven as are most of the games, with this chapter focusing on our protagonist, Edward Bauer. Edward was heading to Silent Hill in order to join a therapy support group, but wakes up in the Paleville area on the shores of Lake Toluca. However, after a chance meeting with Trevor Brachman, things begin to take the traditional (and somewhat cliche') turn for the worst as strange things start to appear. The word oneiro itself is derived from greek and means "dream." The title is fitting for this mini-series as the character has an inherent fear of nightmares and will often avoid sleeping for extended periods of time or sometimes altogether just to avoid dreaming. (Additional movies, books and music use the word oneiro in their titles, but I've found no particular significance with this project.)

As for characters, our protagonist, Edward, is your average sloppy-joe, who doesn't really mind being by himself, which could account for his lack of social graces. He doesn't usually raise objections and generally tends to go-with-the-flow of things. As such, after waking up in Silent Hill without reason or purpose, rather than searching for signs of life or a way out, he takes a smoke break. As such, you really won't see him raising too many eyebrows at the occasional dead body or out-of-place object. Yet, despite of this, Edward's saving grace is that he manages to maintain his focus on the bigger picture at hand. He questions the reasons for the current state of things and helps to focus the audience's attention on what's important in the midst of his series of mundane tasks and actions.

One really has to appreciate the effort that went into creating the narrative of this story, because not only does it remain faithful to the general writing style of the game series, but it also incorporates many of the major characteristics of the franchise. What I found great were the incorporations of the games' HUI into the live-action elements, giving it a familiar feel and allowing a progression in the narrative without relying on vocal dialogue. I'm most particularly pleased with the use of an actual loop in the story, which so many fan projects tend to overlook. Plus, there's even a toilet reference. Definitely check this one out.

Silent Hill Oneiro:

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

/ Director's Commentary

(Good Ending)

(Normal Ending)

(Bad Ending)

I managed to rip and convert the flash files into .mpg format. Unfortunately, in order to maintain the visual clarity and screen size,the files required a large amount of memory, so expect large files and long download times. If you can find, create or help me make reduced-sized files, please do so.

Silent Hill Oneiro - Trailer + Parts 1-3 + Puzzle [MegaUpload Mirror] (.zip file / .mpg format / 227 MB)

Silent Hill Oneiro - Parts 4 - 6 [MegaUpload Mirror] (.zip file / .mpg format / 219 MB)

Silent Hill Oneiro - Endings 1-3 [MegaUpload Mirror] (.zip file / .mpg format / 49.3 MB)

Crew and Cast:

Directed by Tim Connery

Written by Tim Connery & Raleigh Moon

Music by Akira Yamaoka; Encomiast

Edward Bauer............. Raleigh Moon

Trevor Brachman......... Sean Hulburt

Steven....................... Tim Connery

The Second Foci......... Ian Scheideberg

The Third Foci............. Tina Heer

Basement Monster...... Drew Bissell

Dead Body In Park...... Chris Metcalf