Silent Hill F producer opens up about the game's shift from a western setting to Japan during Konami Press Start 2025

Silent Hill F took the spotlight during Konami Press Start 2025, a half-hour-long livestream that brought updates on iconic franchises straight from the developers themselves. Alongside new looks at Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and eFootball — where the legendary trio Messi, Suarez, and Neymar hyped up the new season — Konami also gave fans a deeper dive into the psychological roots and artistic direction of Silent Hill F.

Producer Motoi Okamoto and the NeoBards development team opened up about why this game leaves behind its Western roots and fully embraces a chilling Japanese setting. Let's look more into it.

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Konami Press Start 2025: Why Silent Hill F moved to Japan

Bringing back the lost roots of Japanese horror

For Okamoto, during Konami Press Start 2025, the Silent Hill series had lost something as it evolved. As he put it:

“As the series progressed, I felt the essence of Japanese horror had been lost. I began to desire a Silent Hill that was 100% essence Japanese-style horror.”

That led him to seek out a developer team that understood those roots, and that's when he came across NeoBards, a studio with a long-standing history with Japanese publishers and a team that could bridge cultures naturally. He said they could “communicate smoothly,” and that made them an ideal fit.

Okamoto during Konami Press Start 2025 (Image via Konami)

It didn’t hurt that NeoBards was filled with developers who were already longtime fans of Silent Hill and Ryukishi07’s visual novel legacy.

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How NeoBards and Konami built Silent Hill F together

AI Yang and the team during the behind-the-scenes showcase at Konami Press Start 2025 (Image via Konami)

AI Yang, Game Director at NeoBards, highlighted the importance of nailing the atmosphere. This wasn’t just about making things spooky — it was about knowing why Silent Hill feels the way it does, and then figuring out how to evolve that into something new with a Japanese identity. He stated during the Konami Press Start 2025:

“We spent a lot of time iterating and discussing between NeoBards and Konami how to bring the uneasy charm and loneliness of Ebisugaoka to life.”

From shrines and Dagashiya shops (a traditional candy store) to the quiet streets of Kinzan Town’s Kinkotsu area, they built the world around Japanese Showa-era nostalgia. Lead level designer Kaiyu Chang explained they used authentic locations as design anchors, choosing settings that felt both ordinary and off-putting — something that would hit differently for Japanese and Western players alike.

Chang also made it clear that the Otherworld — a series staple — hasn’t been forgotten. It’s being reimagined through a lens that supports Ryukishi07’s narrative and feels unique to Silent Hill F.

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"Beauty in terror" – A key concept behind Silent Hill f

The art direction follows a theme: find the beauty in terror. According to Okamoto, during Konami Press Start 2025, Japanese horror doesn’t just rely on blood and grotesque imagery — it mixes disturbing visuals with elegance.

That contrast is everywhere in Silent Hill F, especially in the character designs. AI Yang summed it up:

“We created our ivisual designs to have a distinct uneasiness to them, but also a horrific charm that would make it so you just couldn’t stop staring.”

They brought on Kera, a designer whose style perfectly matched this twisted beauty, and whose key art captures what the game is all about — things that feel beautiful and wrong at the same time.

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Hinako: An ordinary protagonist in an extraordinary nightmare

Gameplay still from Silent Hill F (Image via Konami)

In keeping with Silent Hill tradition, the game’s protagonist, Hinako, is just an ordinary person. The developers said this was intentional — it grounds the experience in vulnerability. The team also spent a lot of time ensuring the gameplay is “fresh but familiar,” compact and thematically appropriate without getting overly complex.

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Ryukishi07’s story is something Silent Hill has never done before

The story in Silent Hill F comes from Ryukishi07, known for crafting psychological dread in visual novels like Higurashi. For this game, he specifically picked the Showa era for its contrast:

“The Showa era though a half a century ago feels like a different world — one that remains connected to our present and yet preserves customs and superstitions long forgotten in modern life. I hope you that contrast as well.”

AI Yang explained how the team worked closely to adapt Ryukishi07’s storytelling into gameplay, using cutscenes, exploration, and subtle details to keep the tone intact. Grey Hu added that fear was carefully paced, blending classic Silent Hill dread with Ryukishi07’s story through visuals, timing, and atmosphere.

In the end, Silent Hill F is more than a location change. It’s a return to tension-driven horror, grounded in Japan’s rich history of ghost stories and psychological unease. If what was shown at Konami Press Start 2025 is any sign, the game might just be the fresh start this series needed.

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That's all on Silent Hill F during Konami Press Start 2025.