E3: Konami shows Silent Hill 5

By Robert Purchese Published 12 July, 2007

First shots arrive, details.

Konami has finally taken the spooky wraps off next-generation chiller Silent Hill V.

The game is on show at E3 this week, and is accompanied by the very first trailer and screenshots to be released.

Silent Hill V follows war veteran Alex Shepherd on his way home from active duty, following the disappearance of his younger brother Joshua. At first, all clues point towards the mother-is-your-brother community of Shepherd's Glen, but soon Alex finds himself on the mist-shrouded streets of Silent Hill. Now that's just careless.

Everything this time around will be bigger and better, as you might expect. Combat is more in-depth, offering you more moves to battle the nightmarish creatures in the creepy village, and you're promised more control than ever over the main man. Puzzles are more complex, too, and it goes without saying that it will have a hugely atmospheric ambience - with famed composer Akira Yamaoka scribing the score.

But it isn't original developer Team Silent making the game this time around. Instead it's being created by Team Collective, responsible for Marc Ecko, Buffy, and an upcoming Dirty Harry game to name a few. Which leaves us pondering exactly what Team Silent is up to at the moment.

"With gritty graphics and sound combining to create a haunting atmosphere and all-new visceral gameplay elements, Silent Hill V shows the level to which next-generation hardware can enhance the player's overall gaming experience," said Brian Christian, product development chief at Konami.

We'll be bringing you our thoughts of the game this week. In the meantime you can pop over to Eurogamer TV for the trailer and into our Silent Hill V gallery for the screenshots.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (45) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • manic_mouse #1 5 years ago

    Silent Hill: Ruined.

    Thanks Konami.

    EDIT: To clarify, EG have omitted some very important information from this article. It isn't being developed by Team Silent. It's being farmed out to the developers of Getting it Up.
    Edited by 2 at 12/07/07 @ 11:17

  • Tomo #2 5 years ago

    Huh? I can't find the trailer on EGTV?

  • Steroyd #3 5 years ago

    No links in the article for shame EG.

    No wonder there no links it doesn't exist.
    /typical Silent Hill creepiness.

    WTF aren't they American?

    /Scariness jumps out the window.... Helloooooooooooo action.
    Edited by 2 at 12/07/07 @ 11:19

  • psychokitten #4 5 years ago

    Indeed, you left out the biggest news, EG!

  • menage #5 5 years ago

    "Everything this time around will be bigger and better,"

    More guns and boobs then:p

  • woodnotes #6 5 years ago

    So, what are Team Silent up to? Something better?

  • Zuiyo #7 5 years ago

    Yeah, and where is Gradius VI for the PS3? Been two years waitin', bro!

  • Steroyd #8 5 years ago

    EG now has the phantom teaser, and it tells diddly squat.

    <a href=http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=79603&g t;Phantom Screenshot</a>

    I'll reserve judgment until i see these pics in motions
    Edited by 1 at 12/07/07 @ 11:42

  • pinchofsalt #9 5 years ago


    Jeez, not The Collective... you may as well have give it Eurocom.

  • RedboX #10 5 years ago

    Well at least there might be a skateboard sublevel... "Pop some bitchin Grinds down Silent Hill"....

  • dudefella #11 5 years ago

    ITT: we judge games no one has played

  • Blerk #12 5 years ago

    US developed ftl. And the shots look rubbish too. I think I might piss on this barbecue.

  • SniperWolf #13 5 years ago

    RE5 > planet earth and everything on it

  • Chaote-Imagicka #14 5 years ago

    Oh fuck. Wasn't Silent Hill 4 bad enough?

  • dudefella #15 5 years ago

    well go cry about it. At least give them a fucking chance, huh? Whiny fanboy cunts, if everything isn't 100% like you expect it you cry anyway. Cry, cry, cry. I bet if they hadn't said it was by another team no one would have brought up those 2 (probably very early build) screenshots. Fall in a well and die

  • killyourtv #16 5 years ago

    cant believe team silent arent working on this. you can't just pass of a game to a completely different development team and expect the feel of it to stay the same. disgrace.
    Edited by 1 at 12/07/07 @ 12:28

  • manic_mouse #17 5 years ago

    "well go cry about it. At least give them a fucking chance, huh? Whiny fanboy cunts, if everything isn't 100% like you expect it you cry anyway. Cry, cry, cry. I bet if they hadn't said it was by another team no one would have brought up those 2 (probably very early build) screenshots. Fall in a well and die"

    The developer is what makes the game. End of. This is taking a well loved franchise, with a strong fan-base, away from the talented developers that made it what it is and handing it to an unproven, western developer with a poor track-record. What do you expect fans to do, jump for joy? How about giving Metal Gear Solid to 3DO?

    Even if it is a good game (which it almost certainly wont be) it still wont be a true Silent Hill.

    And there's no need for the language, because the only person coming off immature and whiny is you.
    Edited by 1 at 12/07/07 @ 12:31

  • Hugundo #18 5 years ago

    @dudefella

    Did you actually play Marc Ecko?
    It was painful.

  • penhalion #19 5 years ago

    I've got to agree with the general sentiment here. The screenshots scream some kind of splinter cell wanna be. No gritty lighting issues. No torch clipped to collar or pocket etc. etc. Just plain old too shiny visulas.

    Konami really shouldn't make this if there is any indication that it will not live up to silent hill 1 and 2 (forget 3 and 4 that were shite).

    Developers need to understand that just because the next gen graphics cards can handle high dynamic range, doesn't make it suitable for all types of games!

  • richardiox #20 5 years ago

    Nice to see this is coming to the 360 too.

  • Skeletor #21 5 years ago

    "Which leaves us pondering exactly what Team Silent is up to at the moment."

    Probably working on a DS version...that's where the real money is;-)

    I don't know, this sounds a little bit like Silent Hill turned into Hostel with lots of Resident Evil 4 style action. First the Silent Hill lightgun shooter for japanese arcades and now this...

  • space_ace #22 5 years ago

    i'm also puzzled by the shots, but 5ilent h!ll is a system seller for me whatever happens
    Edited by 1 at 13/07/07 @ 15:54

  • Wayne #23 5 years ago

    I didn't think this was PS3 exclusive.
    What happened to the 360 release?

  • VMerken #24 5 years ago

    I liked Silent Hill 4 as much as the other three parts. The Room starting out as a comfort zone, then slowly turning into a nightmare was done well enough for me to forgive the location re-visits in the second half of the game. There are some really creepy scenes in there if you care to search for them. The melee-dominated combat system wasn't as great, though.

    But yeah, it's hard to beat the original. And um, "trailer"? Teaser, more likely.
    Edited by 1 at 12/07/07 @ 14:03

  • Gurgeh #25 5 years ago

    "I didn't think this was PS3 exclusive.
    What happened to the 360 release?"

    SH5 isnt a PS3 exclusive.

  • Hunam #26 5 years ago

    :( its abit odd that team silent is farming my fav gaming series out. I was really looking forward to what they do with next gen. Im sceptical at the moment as the a third party doing a full number game.

  • zuljin #27 5 years ago

    @manic_mouse
    "The developer is what makes the game. End of."

    I beg to differ with this. I don't think a sequel made by the same developer will necessarily have the same feel, and I don't think a sequel by different developer could not recreate that feel.

    I think more important is the reasons behind making a sequel. I think purely for money, then this could turn out badly. But if Team Silent take on the project because they think it could make an awesome game, then lets reserve judgement for later.

    I always find people taking about heritage in a developer quite strange. People like Gabe Newell, John Romero, Will Wright, etc are quite rare. I think most developers probably completely change teams in around ten years, so to say "developer x is amazing/crap because of game y" is slightly meaningless.

  • Bulbatron #28 5 years ago

    I don't pretend to actually know what I'm talking about here, but you have to wonder whether Team Silent were perhaps getting bored with the Silent Hill series. I heard that Silent Hill 4 - The Room started life as a different game, but then it was later turned into a Silent Hill game. So perhaps this is why Silent Hill 5 has been given to another developer - because Team Silent were no longer interested.

    I don't know this of course, I'm just speculating. I hope Silent Hill 5 turns out to be good. I can't help being a little sceptical, but I'll certainly reserve judgement until we have more to go on. I'm glad it's coming out on the Xbox 360.

  • Bigglesworth #29 5 years ago

    Seems the only thing left to Silent Hill these days is Akira Yamaoka. It doesn't even look like SH any more - graphics are far too crisp and clean. I pray those shots were from the 360.

  • Scimarad #30 5 years ago

    Oh, bollocks...

    /puts on the "will probably be crap" pile

  • IAmBatman #31 5 years ago

    > because Team Silent were no longer interested

    It's hard for a team that doesn't exist any more to work on anything together.

  • Waldo #32 5 years ago

    It can't be any worse than the movie.

  • Spong #33 5 years ago

    @ Wlado
    Careful! You're treading on VERY thin ice.

    ---

    @ IAmBatman
    Where are you getting your information from?

    ---

    I'm a massive massive MASSIVE Silent Hill fan, and this latest development is, well...unnerving to say the least.

    I've already been through a year of "Will Silent Hill 0rigins be crap?" on various SH forums and, just as my fears over that seem to be waylaid, Team Silent do it again with SH5.

    Do you not realise what you're doing to those who love you Team Silent? Do you really not care about us or the series any more? And who the fuck is Team Collective? Some fucking nobody-developer (I've NEVER heard of them) who has no idea of what made the previous SH games so "special". I don't care how much Team Silent may or may not have had the last word over content.

    Shitting fuck it, this really IS gonna be Silent Hill 0rigins all over again. I'd better renew my prescription, I'm a mess already.

    I have a sense that Silent Hill 5 is gonna be the last incarnation of the series that we'll see. At least for a long time.
    Edited by 2 at 12/07/07 @ 17:43

  • IAmBatman #34 5 years ago

    > Where are you getting your information from?

    A guy who worked on a Silent Hill game.

    Where are you getting your information that Team Silent still exist as a whole from?

  • Spong #35 5 years ago

    @ IAmBatman

    Oh, okay. I do apologise.

    /throws off veil of sarcasm

    What the hell are you talking about!? "A guy who worked on a Silent Hill game"? At least you're specific in your sources. You need to wake up and smell what you're shovelling. Team Silent are very much alive and kicking. All right, I'll conceded that perhaps individual team members have changed (which happens in any development team), but the collective still remains.

  • BMXer #36 5 years ago

    @Spong

    Silent Hill is a load of old rubbish!

    /Runs


  • Spong #37 5 years ago

    @ BMXer

    Right, that's it. You're dead.

    If only I knew where you lived...

  • BMXer #38 5 years ago

    Who do you think you are?

    That triangle face or whatever its called.

    Nah only jocking Silent Hill just isnt my bag. I do know you love the series and I respect that. Best of luck for Silent Hill 5 being anygood oh and by the way your gonna need a 360 ;)

  • Spong #39 5 years ago

    BMXer wrote:
    ...by the way your gonna need a 360...

    Bastard. Don't remind me.
    Edited by 1 at 12/07/07 @ 19:01

  • firefly #40 5 years ago

    I'm not familiar enough with the Silent Hill games to pass judgment on the change of creative forces but it seems to me that whatever the medium whenever an intellectual property changes hands the quality takes a nosedive. Take, for instance, the last three seasons of The West Wing after Aaron Sorkin left. Or imagine if there was an 8th Harry Potter book written by somebody else.

    True in any games development team people come and go, even in Japan where the corporate culture is firmly rooted in company loyalty. But what remains is the culture of the team and their shared identity. Say a few people left the team after the first game, well the majority still remained and the newcomers learnt from them. By the time the third game came around a few more people had probably left but their replacements had two generations of team members to learn from. Even if not a single person on the current Team Silent worked on the first game they still learned first hand from the people who did. The feel might be different (as if it should be if the games are to evolve) but the heritage remains. Team Collective are an outside developer making a game based on their own design philosophies, they may seek to ape the style of the other games but they have no links to them or understanding of the philosophies of their creation. In essence what they are creating is more Silent Hill fanfic than a legitimate installment in the series. That's not to say it will be a fundamentally bad game but I think they should work on creating their own IP rather than hijacking an existing one.

  • Spong #41 5 years ago

    @ firefly

    Hats off to you, sir. A valid point, and eloquently made.

    Though I'd say your general opinion about the game nosediving is purely in the realms of speculation. Who knows, it's perfectly plausible that Team Collective could pull it out of the bag. I think the initial fears that fans like myself have mainly stem from the differences in aesthetics there'll no doubt be between 5 and it's predecessors (emphasised by the fact a new team has "hijacked" it). But that's the typical knee-jerk reaction we were going to have.
    The general consensus amongst the fans is that, in terms of the story, everything's fairly a-okay. The possible links (mainly between SH5 and SH2) have started to surface and the Silent Hill forums are pages deep in wonderful speculation. Which, in a mad kind of way, means I'm enjoying the game already!

    At the end of the day though, we've just got to run with it and see what actually transpires.

  • IAmBatman #42 5 years ago

    If I was specific then I'd lose the anonymaty that lets me keep posting. Believe what you want to believe.

    > but the collective still remains.

    So what are they working on? I mean, since you're so "in the know" about them.

  • Spong #43 5 years ago

    @ IAmBatman

    Oh, you're still here?

    >So what are they working on?

    A cure for cancer? How the hell am I supposed to know? I'm not Mr Konami. They're working on overseeing SH Origins and SH 5, there, that good enough for you?
    The burden of proof doesn't lie with me anyway - YOU'RE the one claiming they no longer exist. Provide me with a link to some material stating as such and I'll shut up.

  • IAmBatman #44 5 years ago

    > They're working on overseeing SH Origins and SH 5
    No, they aren't.

    Denial - the first stage of grief.

  • Spong #45 5 years ago

    @ IAmBatman

    This is getting sooo tedious.

    If you want to carry this on, for God's sake take it to the PMs. We're just cluttering the place up.