Silent Hill f Gameplay Preview – A Look Into 1960s Life In Japan and the Horrors of Abuse and Gender Expectations

Hinako’s Bullying at Home and Outside

For this Silent Hill game, Hinako is our newest protagonist of the series, a Japanese high schooler from the fictional town of Ebisugaoka. She is a very normal girl who has had an unfortunate life from dealing with abuse from her father to extensive bullying from her classmates at school. This ties into Hinako’s mental state at the start of the game, her very sad life becoming the motivator for the choices she will make, the further you get into the game.

It’s a smart way to show how normal humans can be represented in horror games if their inside matched their outside. I find it interesting how the game shows how monstrous humans can treat others, and how that is equated in a Silent Hillesque form. The devs play on the conservatism in Japan, and how this conservatism controlled large groups of people during the 1960s.

How Gender Plays a Role in Hinako’s Abuse

Though the devs have not addressed the kinds of themes that I found during the first couple of hours of the game, Silent Hill f is heavy with themes of gender expectations during the mid-20th century and how present it was in instances of abuse, especially towards women. Women then and now, though not as open and often, were oppressed by these expectations. It played a crucial role in the way women behaved in society and how women viewed themselves and others, especially in Japan, where conservatism is rampant and widespread.

We see these instances from the abuse Hinako and her sister Junko endure from their father, to the odd persecution Hinako endures from classmates. I gather that Hinako is viewed as different from everyone else, behaving out of the ordinary, according to the status quo of life in this village, and is constantly compared to her much more obedient older sister, which adds to the abuse she experiences. People, especially in Hinako’s life, can be very mean, and this narrative adds to the psychological horror of the game.

Silent Hill f’s Visual and Internal Nightmare

Apart from the unspoken themes of horror of Silent Hill f, the visual displays of the game are extraordinary beyond measure. The visual representation of the horrendous people in Hinako’s life is smart in its design and carries weight in its intention. The intention is not only to scare the hell out of people, but to evoke strong emotions that make players think why these monsters look and act the way they do. It’s visionary, and something that Japanese creators are really good at, if we look at anime as an example.

Silent Hill f is set to release in just a few weeks on September 25. It will be available on all platforms. I know players are worried that the addition of a complex combat system in a Silent Hill game will take away its essence; however, given what I have seen and the depth of the story of this Silent Hill game, there isn’t much that players have to worry about. Players have to give this game a chance to shine and scare the pants off people, which I have no doubt it will.