Silent Hill: Downpour aims to be like Silent Hill 2

January 5, 2012

Silent Hill: Downpour missed its initial release time last year when November came and went without the horror title even popping out to say hello – but we’re not complaining, because it would have probably drowned with all the big titles released around November, anyway.

But the new release date looms ever nearer, with an anticipated March launch – and as is usually the case, the lucky buggers over at the EU PlayStation blog got a chance to sit down and play through the early stages in a developer-guided preview.

They got to speak to Downpour producer, Devin Shatsky (stop giggling), and the resulting interview spelled out some great news for Silent Hill fans – and revealed some interesting new directions the series will be taking in the next big release.

First off, according to Shatsky, Downpour is definitely going the route of Silent Hill 2 – tying the world and enemies in to the protagonist, Murphy’s, own background – so that means you won’t be seeing sexy evil nurses, or Pyramid head skulking about.

“That could be seen as a mistake of Homecoming,” said Shatsky, “the developers paid fan service by introducing monsters from previous games, but it didn’t really make sense. The core fans called us out on that, and rightfully so.”

The goal is to aim for realism – so weak weapons will break; you’ll be limited to how much you can carry; the weather will change (and influence the monsters that come out to play); and, thank the heavens, you’ll be encouraged to explore, rather than be met by door after locked door.

In fact, Shatsky points out that by exploring, you might uncover side-quests which will benefit you or expand your knowledge about Silent Hill lore. Sandbox-esque Silent Hill? Well, if nothing else, it’s a first for the series.

“The health system has also seen quite a few changes. There’s no HUD; all that information is tied directly to the character, so he’ll limp, bleed, his clothing will develop holes…we tried to focus as much on realism as possible.”

Silent Hill: Downpour is heading for its late March release on PS3 and Xbox 360 – and before that, you can catch up on the best of the series with Silent Hill HD Collection in February.

Any Silent Hill that veers away from Homecoming’s route, is moving in the right direction – colour me excited.