Silent Hill f[a] is a 2025 survival horror game developed by NeoBards Entertainment and published by Konami Digital Entertainment. It is a standalone spinoff of the Silent Hill franchise.[1] Set during the 1960s in the fictional Japanese town of Ebisugaoka, it follows high school student Hinako Shimizu as she navigates the town after it is consumed by fog, while solving puzzles and fighting grotesque monsters to survive.[2]
Silent Hill f was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on September 25, 2025, following an early access release two days prior for customers who pre-ordered the Deluxe Edition.[3] It received generally positive reviews and sold over 1 million copies in the first day after launch, making it the fastest-selling entry of the series.
Plot
High school student Shimizu Hinako[b] lives in the rural Japanese town of Ebisugaoka during the 1960s. She resents her parents as her mother is subservient to her abusive father, while her older sister Junko has left home after getting married. After an argument with her parents, Hinako meets up with her friends Shu, Rinko, and Sakuko, where Shu gives Hinako red capsules to help with her intense tension headaches. A monster wearing a shiromuku appears, engulfing Ebisugaoka in fog and red spider lilies, which kill Sakuko. Hinako escapes but Ebisugaoka has become overrun by monsters. While avenging Sakuko's death, Hinako loses consciousness and awakens in the Dark Shrine, where she encounters a man called Fox Mask. Despite Fox Mask guiding and caring for her, she is continuously warned by a spirit possessing a doll from her childhood not to trust him.
After awakening in Ebisugaoka, which has become almost entirely deserted, Hinako reunites with Shu and Rinko. As the bridge leading out of town is broken, the three plan to escape through a mountain path behind Shu's house. Throughout their journey, Hinako travels back to the Dark Shrine whenever she loses consciousness or sleeps, and continues to follow Fox Mask while there. Fox Mask convinces Hinako to kill Shu, Rinko, and Sakuko to let go of her childhood. Additionally, Hinako participates in three rituals: her right arm is severed and replaced with a fox arm, her back is branded with a hot iron, and the top half of her face is sliced off and replaced with a fox mask. As Hinako prepares to marry Fox Mask, she transforms into the shiromuku.
When Hinako awakens in Ebisugaoka, she eventually reaches Shu's home alone. When her mother phones her to come home, she overhears Shu and Rinko being attacked. When Hinako returns home, she faces multiple memories of her past, including her relationships with her friends and family, as well as her fear of growing up and getting married. In addition, multiple playthroughs of the game reveal that she is in an arranged marriage with Fox Mask's true identity, Kotoyuki from the Tsuneki's clan. Hinako's identities in Ebisugaoka and the Dark Shrine soon converge when her fox self kills her parents as the shiromuku, while her human self seeks revenge. Her fox self seemingly kills her human self under Junko's orders. As Hinako's marriage ceremony begins in the Dark Shrine, her human self awakens and confronts her fox self.
In the "Coming Home to Roost" ending, the only ending available on the first playthrough, Hinako's human self defeats her fox self and rejects the marriage, but she begins panicking and overdosing on the red capsules. It is later revealed that the events of the game were a psychotic episode induced by the red capsules, and Hinako is a woman in her 20s who is on the run for killing several people at her wedding ceremony.
In the "Fox's Wedding" ending, Hinako's human self is destroyed by Fox Mask and Shu tries to stop her wedding to Kotoyuki, confessing to Hinako that he gave her the red capsules to bring her to her senses. Hinako beats Shu in battle, causing him to relent and become friends with Kotoyuki. Hinako marries Kotoyuki at the cost of her freedom.
In the "The Fox Wets its Tail" ending, Hinako's human self defeats her fox self and rejects Kotoyuki, who becomes enraged; Hinako defeats him and returns to Ebisugaoka with Shu. A radio broadcast later reveals the whole town was evacuated due to geysers eruption.
In the "Ebisugaoka in Silence" ending, available after completing at least two endings above, Hinako's human and fox selves reconcile. Kotoyuki's ancestor appears and reveals he was forced to wed Hinako to preserve the fox clan. Both of Hinako's selves defeat Kotoyuki's ancestor and the spirit possessing her doll, freeing Kotoyuki from his ancestor's possession and lifting the curse on the town. Hinako's selves and Kotoyuki annul their marriage, with both of Hinako's identities returning to Ebisugaoka and Kotoyuki moving away. The two promise that they will meet again in the future to restart their relationship.
"The Great Space Invasion!" is a humorous "UFO" ending similar to other Silent Hill games, the art style changing to motion manga.
Development
A screenshot of combat taking place in the game. Hinako Shimizu uses a metal pipe while facing a Kashimashi.
Silent Hill f was built around the Japanese horror concept of "find[ing] the terror in beauty", suggesting that "when something becomes too immensely beautiful and perfect, it becomes deeply unsettling".[5]Konami enlisted writer Ryukishi07, known for his visual novel Higurashi When They Cry, as they believed they needed someone who could "really understand the essence of Japanese horror".[6] Even though the game was conceived as a standalone story, the developers included references to previous Silent Hill games.[7]
While the series originally blended Japanese and Western horror elements, Konami felt it had become overly westernized, diminishing its Japanese influence. Consequently, the team decided to create Silent Hill f as a "100% Japanese horror", emphasizing its Japanese "essence", which they regarded as central to the series despite the story usually taking place in the United States.[8][9] Shifting the setting from the titular town to Japan posed a challenge, as the developers aimed to maintain the series' core themes of "portraying characters' struggles with the evil within themselves—sin, discontent, frustration, and conflict".[8][10]
The game's primary setting of Ebisugaoka was inspired by the Kanayama area of Gero, Gifu.[11][12] Ryukishi07 suggested Kanayama after comparing various locations, saying that its "extremely unique townscape" reflected the passage of time and the way its structures had evolved alongside residents' lifestyles. The team visited Kanayama to photograph modern sites and used reference materials to authentically recreate the 1960s setting.[8] Ryukishi07 noted that female characters in the previous Silent Hill games endured significant suffering. With Silent Hill f, he sought to create a protagonist, Hinako Shimizu, who actively makes her own choices rather than being "pulled along by the story".[13] Hinako is portrayed by Konatsu Kato in Japanese[14] and Suzie Yeung in English.[15]
To further highlight the creative process behind the project, Konami and NeoBards released a behind-the-scenes featurette during the Konami Press Start stream, offering insights from key staff such as director Al Yang and senior producer Albert Lee on the game's themes, visual design, and development challenges.[16][17] The video emphasized NeoBards' focus on blending traditional Japanese horror aesthetics with modern game design, as well as their collaboration with Ryukishi07 and artist kera to realize the world of Silent Hill f.[18][19]
Artist Kera aimed for a visual style distinct from the "blood-smeared, rusting scenery" of previous installments while retaining a sense of familiarity. She remarked that the most challenging aspect was monster creations,[11] as the team wanted to combine Ryukishi07's vision with Kera's design, creating monsters that would "really infiltrate players' psyches".[10][8]
Akira Yamaoka and Kensuke Inage composed the music for the game's Fog World and Otherworld, respectively.[20] Additionally, composers Dai and Xaki, who previously collaborated with Ryukishi07, contributed to the project.[8][21] Yamaoka focused on infusing the music with the series' Japanese "essence", reflecting his own cultural identity "as much as possible in my own way".[8] Inage stated that he "blend[ed] ancient Japanese court music with ambient echoes", using various techniques to convey "agony, internal conflict, fear, and other emotions".[11] The developers also traveled to Kanayama to record its soundscape.[8]
In August 2025, Silent Hill f was featured in an extended hands-on preview event for media in Tokyo, where journalists from major media outlets such as IGN, Polygon and GameSpot were invited to play approximately five hours of the game.[22][23][24] This marked the first in-depth public showcase of the title’s gameplay, atmosphere, and narrative structure.
At the event, representatives from the game's Taiwan-based developer, NeoBards Entertainment, including director Al Yang and producer Albert Lee, provided context on the design direction. Yang emphasized the team's goal of introducing "a different kind of action emphasis" compared to previous entries in the series, aiming for a balance between traditional psychological horror and more tactile, strategic combat.[25] He also noted that the game avoids relying on ranged weapons entirely, instead centering gameplay around close-quarters encounters.[26]
Writer Ryukishi07, known for his work on the Higurashi and Umineko visual novel series, commented that Silent Hill f explores themes meant to provoke discomfort rooted in emotional and personal trauma. Silent Hill series producer Motoi Okamoto spoke briefly about the game's art direction, one of the core pillars of the new entry, stating that the team set out to merge grotesque horror with natural beauty to deliver a powerful tonal contrast. The team also spoke briefly about the visual inspirations behind the game’s protagonist and creature design, describing the aesthetic as a fusion of delicate beauty and rot.[26]
The hands-on reports noted the game's distinct tone and mechanics, with IGN describing it as "a horror game that gets everything right" and Polygon highlighting the tension of resource scarcity and player choice.[22][23]
Release
In February 2021, it was reported that Konami was planning to revive the Silent Hill franchise with multiple third-party studios developing new games.[27]Silent Hill f was officially announced during a livestream in October 2022, alongside other titles.[28] Its reveal trailer debuted at another livestream in March 2025.[29] Konami announced a special edition, which includes cosmetics and digital items such as an artbook and soundtrack. Pre-ordering either the base version or special edition grants bonus cosmetics and in-game items. Additionally, the special edition offers early access to the game two days before its official release.[30] The game was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on September 25, 2025.[31][32]
On March 14, 2025, the game was given a "Refused Classification" rating by the International Age Rating Coalition (IARC) Global Rating Tool, which does not allow it to be sold in Australia.[33] The IARC did not provide a clear reason for the ban.[34] The Australian Classification Board would later clarify that Silent Hill f had not been given a "Refused Classification" rating by the organization and the game's entry on Australia's National Classification Database was removed.[34][35][36] An MA 15+ rating was given on March 25, 2025.[37]
It was announced that a novelization of the game will be released in October 2025.[38]
On October 7, 2025, the PC version of Silent Hill f was released DRM-free on GOG.com, as part of the platform's 17th anniversary.[39]
Silent Hill f received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[40][41][42]OpenCritic determined that 87% of critics recommended the game.[43]
Online game critic Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw praised the game's atmosphere and sense of horror but criticized its story, combat, and requirement to replay the campaign, unfavorably comparing it to Nier: Automata for its more diverse approach to multiple playthroughs.[61]
↑ Wells, Cory (September 22, 2025). "Review: Silent Hill f". Hardcore Gamer. Archived from the original on September 22, 2025. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
1 2 Ogilvie, Tristan (September 22, 2025). "Silent Hill f Review". IGN. Archived from the original on September 22, 2025. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
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