Many of us horror fans are giddy about the fact that Silent Hill is making a comeback. However, the loss of P.T. (the SH project that was being developed by Hideo Kojima and Pan's Labyrinth director Guillermo del Toro) will always be a sore point. Not just for fans?, either, as even those involved still feel the pain.

Recently, people on Twitter have acknowledged the nine years that have elapsed since P.T. was released. Many have been reminiscing about what could have been before the game was canceled in 2015. One such person is d?el Toro hi?mself, who reached out to Konami, seemingly in a bid to see if the studio is interested in reviving the dead project.

//twitter.com/RealGDT/status/1690528967802167296

There's not much that's been said by the director other than asking Konami, "What sayeth thou?" This was followed by the phrase "Irrumabo Konamitus" which, when translated from Latin ?to English, says "I will visit Konami."

Don't let your P.T.s be dreams

It sounds like del Toro is very much interested in reviving P.T.

Given that Silent Hill is making a triumphant return, hopes will remain that Kojima's take on the series will one day count itself among the many other upcoming SH games. It's hard to say. Konami pretty much turned its back on the franchise (and on Hideo Kojima) several years ago. Whether the st??udio will ever return to this one particular project cannot be said.

It's also hard to imagine it's been nearly ten years since P.T. dropped on PS4 with nary a word. Its photorealistic visuals, Kojima-esque puzzles, and terrifying atmosphere made it stand out. The fact that it was eventually revealed to be a teaser for the now-defunct Silent Hills was even more thrilling.

Such a shame ??it never came to be. Perhaps del Toro's words will open up a new dialogue of possibilities. Ah, to dream.

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The best canceled games that failed to reach the finish line

The gaming industry is brutal. You need the right budget, a talented team, and a realistic working schedule to finish a project. These "best canceled video games" failed at le?ast one of those three aspects.

Sometimes, fans get a metaphorical punch to the face when a game they're?? looking forward to gets shut down. Let's look at 10 games that had potential (or were exciting to hear ??about, at least!).

10. BioShock on Vita

[caption id="attachment_372601" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via 2K Games[/caption]

When series director Ken Levine announced BioShock on Vita on the PlaySta?tion E3 2011 stage,  I was intrigued.

How could you place the intensity of Rapture into a portable game? According to Levine himself on Twitter, it was supposed to be a "Final Fantasy Tactics style thing set in pre-fall Rapture." The unique genre mixed in with BioShock's groundbreaking storytelling and setting would have be?en amazing. Hopefully, one day, 2K revitalizes the idea because I'm intrigued. It's one of the best canceled games based on it??s concept.

9. Pirates of the Caribbean: Armada of the Damned

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How hasn't an open-world Pirates of the Caribbean game been released yet?! It would be a slam dunk, and Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag proved that it can work.

Armada of the Damned was actually going to give us this dream game before it was canceled. The combat looked clunky, but exploring the seas on a ship like the Black Pearl or the Interceptor would have been sensational for fans of the property. We did get a Pirates of the Caribbean expansion in Sea of Thieves, but it would be cool if a developer like Rare or Ubisoft went the extra m??ile with this Disney p?roperty.

8. Scalebound

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The Xbox One was a rough era for Microsoft. Like Fable Legends (which could also be on this list), Scalebound was canceled. This particular game was something special. It offered an action-RPG experience that included dragon-focused combat from Nier Automata developer Platinum Games. Scalebound looked spectacular but struggled with its frame rate, potentially leading to the game's cancellation. It would be cool if the project gets rebooted by Microsoft because its?? subscription service Xbox Game Pass is lacking new triple-A titles.

This is one of the best examples of a canceled video ga??me that should return on stronger hardware.

7. Telltale's Stranger Things

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Telltale gets too much flak. Its games feature impactful narratives and memorable decision-making. Telltale's Stranger Things adaptation was going to be a step up from the traditional formula and get ?the studio to the next level.

It was developed in the Unity engine, upgrading the graphics and fixing the stiff animations in prior games. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time to develop Telltale's Stranger Things before the studio closed down (before reopening again). The staff thought at the time, "We are going to do what people want to see and hopefully [the game] will be groundbreaking and different enough for the studio that reignites interest," according to Executive Assistant Paul Mastroianni in a Noclip documentary.

6. Silent Hills

[caption id="attachment_372562" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot via Gam??eZone's YouTube Channel[/c??aption]

P.T. is genuinely spooky. While playing it, I never knew what to expect around every corner, and its gameplay approach was intriguing. Once you finished the engaging demo, a trailer revealing Silent Hills played, showing future Death Stranding star Norman Reedus walking into the mysterious town. Silent Hills was highly anticipated due to its intense demo but was sadly shut down by Konami in 2015.

You can't even download P.T. anymore, and it's infuriating. Hopefully, the Silent Hill 2 remake brings new life to the horror series.

5. Star Wars 1313

[caption id="attachment_372563" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Scre??enshot by Star Wars' YouTube Channel[/caption]

Playing as a bounty hunter in the Star Wars universe sounds exciting to me, so I was thrilled to see the announcement trailer for Star Wars 1313. Little did I know that Disney would cancel the LucasArts project after it purchased the studio behind the sci-fi franchise. It's one of the biggest disappointments as it mixed the shooting platformer gameplay of the Uncharted series with the Hollywood blockbuster universe of Star Wars. The visuals that were shown off are a??lso impressive for 2013, with detailed character models ?and environmental design.

It's a shame this was dropped amid the Disney buyout. Maybe the right studio could bring it back??; I'm looking at you, Respawn! Bring back one of ??the coolest-looking canceled video games ever.

4. Visceral Games' Star Wars title

[caption id="attachment_372572" align="alignnone" width="1200"] S?creenshot via EA Star Wars' YouTube?? Channel[/caption]

Unfortunately, another Uncharted-like Star Wars game was canceled. What makes it worse is Amy Hennig, the creative director of the original Uncharted trilogy, was behind the production of the Visceral Games title before the studio closed down.

The early in-game footage looked impressive and seemed to be set in Tatooine with a huge Star Destroyer in the background. While we did get the excellent Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, it would have been amazing to get another interactive Star Wars story from the galaxy, far far away.

3. Agent

//youtu.be/I4nxFUmSaOU

The lauded developer of the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption series, Rockstar Games, was working on a PlayStation exclusive called Agent. Not much was shared about it, but Sony was happy to announce the project during E3 2009. Then PlayStation boss Jack Tretton said it would have ta??ken "a player across the shadowy world of espionage and assassins in the darkest hours of the late 1970s." The project sounded promising, but we heard very little since its mysterious announcement.

It has been abandoned since, and the URL of the original website is defunct. Perhaps with the power of the PS5, Rockstar's ambition to make an espionage game may return, but right now, all signs point to GTA 6 being its next project. Regardless, Agent is?? one of the best canceled video games,?? due to its promising concept and the studio behind it.

2. Final Fantasy Versus XIII

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Final Fantasy XV is just okay, but Final Fantasy Versus XIII looked amazing. While the 15th entry has the same protagonists, it did not follow the story or Kingdom Hearts-like battle system in the above trailer. ?Its combat system let you switch between characters, take out mini-bosses roaming around the world, and had blockbuster-like action within key gameplay moments.

It looked exciting and not as restrictive as Final Fantasy XV, a game that took director Tetsuya Nomura's characters and placed them in a different direction. However, the ending of Kingdom Hearts III Remind and Yozora bears an eerie resemblance to Versus XIII's camera an?gles in the trailers and its interpretation of Noctis.

1. Banjo-Threeie

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This one is so strange on multiple levels.

We hoped for a polished Banjo-Kazooie sequel on Xbox systems, and it was finally teased at E3 2006. The first trailer shows Jiggies, the Honeycombs, and all kinds of collectibles you'd expect. However, what we actually got was Nuts & Bolts, a mediocre vehicle construction game. What made this even worse is how the introduction of Nuts & Bolts made fun of the fanbase. You control a version of the duo chasing after a straight line of golden collectibles??. "Gamers today don't want all this," one of the characters says. "They just want to shoot things." It was a real jab at the fans of the original two N64 classics.

The annoying thing is that Xbox still hasn't provided us a Banjo-Threeie or even a remake of the first two after Crash and Spyro had their comebacks. They have shown their popularity through their delightful inclusion in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Come on, Xbox, hire a talented studio, and give the f?an??s what they want.

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'Giving update about my own company'

After P.T., a lot of people were excited for the Hideo Kojima/Guillermo del Toro/Norman Reedus joint Silent Hills, right up until the point it was canceled. Scratch that; people were still excited about the idea, including Norman Reedus himself. A recent late night tweet from Kojima is only stoking those fires.

"Reunion with Norman Reedus. Giving update about my own company." Yes, Kojima and Reedus were in ??the same place at the same time, with p??hotographic evidence. No, that does not necessarily mean anything will come from it. Temper your expectations. Do not get hyped. I repeat: do not get hyped.

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No dick-tit monsters for us

In a real Sliding Doors, "what could have been" kind of moment, Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima apparently once asked Cliff Bleszinski if he would work with him on Silent Hills.

The timeline on when this offer was extended is unclear, but presumably this was long before Konami decided to slit Silent Hills' throat and kick its corpse into a mass grave with Castlevania and Metal Gear. Cliffy says he was flattered but declined the offer, saying he A) didn't want to move to L.A (ouch!), B) wants to work on new IPs, and C) "woulda f**ked up SH."

@Danjitsu I don't like LA, I love new IP, and I woulda ?fucked up S??H

— Cliff Bleszinski (@therealcliffyb) February 12, 2016

Have to respect a guy for knowing his strengths and weaknesses. I'm not sure how many people would have turned down an offer to work with Kojima. Can you imagine if he had though? That?? would have been a line-up of Kojima, Guillermo Del Toro, Junji Ito, and Bleszinski, I can't even picture what kind of Frankenstein of a game those minds would have cooked up together, but I know I sure as hell would have played? it.

Cliff Bleszinski [Twitter via GameSpot]

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'HOLY BALLS'

If you're still salty over the cancellation of Silent Hills, you are not alone.

Norman Reedus - who's likeness was used in the (terrifying) Silent Hills interactive teaser P.T. -- is still "super bummed" about the whole thing, but recently told IGN he "[has] fai?th" that he, producer Hideo Kojima and horror legend Guillermo del Toro "can do something else".

"The internet buzz about [Silent Hills] happening was so huge. I've never seen anything like it; petitions with a hundred thousand peopl?e that signed it, petitions to please make it happen, that's crazy. That's a crazy fanbase for not just that video game but also those people making that video game, and for me to jump on that truck with them, I was like, 'Holy balls. It has to happen. You need to do this.'"

"We did some of that photography with a thousand cameras pointing at you in a million different directions," he said, when asked just how far the project had gone before it was pulled. "We did so??me things with them that might be – I don't know if it's on the cutting room floor. It might be in someone's hard drive somewhere. We did some stuff for it, but we never got into the full story stuff. We were about to and that water balloon burst."

"Hopefully, they'll come to some sort of agreement and that happens, or we do something very similar that's different. I don't know. I have faith that we're going to ?do something though because it just seems like it was one of those things that needs to happen. It's like destiny, it needs to happen."

"There were so many ideas and cool future happenings that were thrown around. I just can't s?ee us not picking this up somewhere."

Insert your sad/angry/indifferent comments about Silent Hills' cancellation below!

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I'd love to go to karaoke with del Toro

Silent Hills being cancelled was bad enough for some, but I reckon th?e constant dribble of information about what could’ve been seeping out in the months follo??wing it has to be even worse.

Now here’s a little bit more of that dribble for you, because Guillermo del Toro has gone into more detail about how manga artist Junji Ito, Kojima, and he worked together on the cancelled game in an interview w?ith IGN.

There’s a lot of talk about karaoke and of how shy Ito was, and del Toro shows a true understanding of what makes Ito's work so good. It's really fascinating to listen to, even if Silent Hills isn't happeni??ng, purely because of his understanding of the horror manga genre. 

Then del Toro also gave? some hints about wh?at he and Ito had in mind with the way the horror in the game would've gone. He said they wanted to:

[Use] the next generation console in a way that would really surprise people. We said ‘let’s really freak out people, let’s really cause a panic with Silent Hills. Let’s go for it: full-blown s??ocial madness.

What?? that means is anyone’s guess. Considering Kojima was involved, it makes sense if they were going for some Psycho Mantis levels of meta-fuckery using the consoles themselves, and maybe even using the social aspects of the platforms? With someone like Junji Ito on board, it can get more difficult to predict what would’ve come of this other than it would've been very, very exciting.

Unfortunately, when asked about whether he was working with Kojima on anything new following Silent Hills (as everyone ever is hoping he does), del Toro seemed less enthusiastic. It mirrors his previous sentiments that he is done with games:

W?hatever it is, work or not, I consider Kojima a master, and I have the good fortune of having some sort of friendship and relationship. For me, the interest is with interacting with like-minded people, whether it’s on Twitter or in real life. The fact he can show me stuff he’s working on and I can show him stuff I’m working on… it’s enough.

Silent Hills really feels like del Toro’s white whale. Hopefu??lly he will rise up and do a Kickstarter or something somewhere down the line, but for now it seems like all we’ll be getting are the tiny little morsels he throws to us.

The post Guillermo del Toro talks about working wit??h Ju??nji Ito and Kojima on Silent Hills appeared first on Destructoid.

Push the truck and get a Mew!

[Update: Xbox boss Phil Spencer has ??confirmed that this? rumor isn't true. My history of being?? right at all times about all things continues.]

There is a rumor getting posted on basically every gaming website saying Microsoft is buying Silent Hills f??rom Konami for billions of dollars, and it sounds like complete bullshit.

An anonymous source has told Rooster Teeth's The Know that Microsoft is hoping to have the game as an Xbox One exclusive. They also state the game is 80 percent complete and would release in Marc??h of next year.

Microsoft bought Mojang and Minecraft for 2.5 billion dollars, a series that has sold 14 million copies just on consoles, and who knows how many millions on mobile and PC. In comparison the Silent Hill series has only sold a measly 8.65 million copies. Minecraft has tons of merchandise that basically prints money for Microsoft, so it makes sense to shell out that kind of money for it, but it certainly doesn't make sense for Silent Hill. Plus the rumor is just for Silent Hills, not neces?sarily the whole IP. Microsoft would have to be off its rocker crazy to drop that kind of change on the series, let alone one game. 

I'd love to eat my words on this one, but I'm certain Silent Hills is staying dead.

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He's 'been in touch' with Kojima

Director Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth) is sad about his second big video game project, Silent Hills, falling by the wayside. Konami recently canceled the del Toro x Kojima joint, presumably a victim of Konami's break with Kojima and gen?eral badness.

"The collaboration between Kojima and myself, the meetings, and the friendship that was developing was beautiful," del Toro told IGN. "We had an agreement on where to go. We had an agreement on how we were going to? ??push the new platforms. We were having a blast."

He explained how the goal was to, "take the technology and make it as cutting-edge as we could in creating terror in the house. The idea was very, very atmosphere-drenc??hed."

"But what made Silent Hill so great was th??at you had the atmosphere but then you [sic] a pay-off with a very active, very intense series of moments. We wanted to do some stuff that I’m pretty sure – just in case it ever comes back, which honestly I would love for somebody to change their mind and we can d??o it – but in case it comes back there was some stuff that was very new, and I wouldn’t want to spoil it.

Konami has already committed to continuing Silent Hill without the Kojima/del Toro/Reedus trifecta.

And while del Toro retains optimism about Silent Hills happening somehow, when asked if he'd continue trying to make a game, he said, "Well, you know, I’ve tried twice and I don’t know if I’ll ever come back to the form. In one instance, the company went down, and in the second, the completely unexpected happened, which was Ko?jima and Konami separating. It’s kind ??of left me reeling."

Maybe Kojima can take to Kickstarter post Metal Gear Solid V with a newly named spooky horror game, Quiet Canyons. "Hideo and I have been in touch," del Toro said. "And he knows he would be the only guy I would follow to the ends of the earth on anything. I th?ink if anything can be rescued, I will be more ?than happy."

Guillermo Del Toro Laments What Silent Hi??lls Could've Been [IGN]

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For free

P.T. was one of the most entertaining games I played in 2014. Even though it was just a demo, the "playable teaser" for Silent Hills was a perfect horror exp?erience, nailing a lot of elements that current horror games completely miss.

Sadly, it appears as if the fully realized game was not meant to be, as Konami has canceled it, and the demo is leaving the PSN for good tomorrow. That means you have very little time to actually pick it ?up, so do what you need t?o do.

P.T. [PSN]

The post PSA: This is your last day to download P.T., the playable teaser for S?ile??nt Hills appeared first on Destructoid.

'Konami said they wouldn't let a 'team like us' handle the Silent Hill property'

As the Internet continues to blink with incredulity at Konami's decision to spike one of the most exciting E3 teasers of all time, Silent Hills, here's another head-scratcher of a decision ma??de by the Japanese developer?/publisher. 

Renegade Kid's Dementium: The Ward had originally been pitched as a Silent Hill DS game -- and Konami turned it down.

"Little known fact: We pitched 'The Ward' to Konami in 2007 as something that could have become a Silent Hill DS game," co-founded Jools Watsham said yesterday on Twitter.

When questioned by followers about Konami's response had been, he added: "They said they wouldn't let a "team like us" handle the Silent Hill property."

Watsham expanded further on this with an interview with IGN. 

"Our goal was always to release The Ward as an original game, but we were also open to the idea of turning it into a licensed horror game and approached Konami to see if they wanted to work together to mold it into a Silent Hill game for the Nintendo DS."

"They were kind enough to meet with us, but the meeting only lasted a few minutes and ended with their [representative] saying they wouldn't let a team like us handle the Silent Hill license."

Dementium: The Ward was eventually released on the DS in 2007 as an all-new IP, spawning several successors and now a remake for the?? 3DS.&nbs?p;

It doesn't stop there, however. Renegade Kid approached Konami again, this time with the bones of Dementium II presented from the third-person perspective. And yet agai??n, Konami passed.

(Image credit: IGN)

"Konami's response that time wasn't dismissive? like the first time," Watsham said. "?They simply didn't want to venture into the DS space with a horror title at that time."

I know: hindsight's 20/20. I just wanted to write this article so I can keep the words -- and the dream -- Silent Hills alive i??n my mind for a few more short, painful moments. Sob. 

(Although I'll be honest: I always thought the name Silent Hills was fecking terrible.)

The post Dementiu?m: The Ward could? have been a Silent Hill game appeared first on Destructoid.

It breaks his 'greasy heart'

[Update: this has been confirmed by Norman Reedus, who was supposed to appear in the game.]

Looks like the pending delisting of P.T. was a bad omen after all. According to a quote procured by photojournalist Matt Hackney at a recent Q&A event, famed writer-director Guillermo del Toro has confirmed that Silent Hills is "...not gonna happen and that breaks my greasy heart." He went on to say some unrelated things like he "actually hope[s] to destroy some (SF buildings) in Pacific Rim 2. In this draft, we get medieval on S.F." and "If you get herpes for love, I'm with you man!"

If P.T. ends up being the only piece of the Silent Hills puzzle to survive the loss of Kojima, then that's a pretty nice note to go out on. It's hard to imagine how Konami could save face after this one. Outside of reuniting Team Silent for an all new game, just about any future Silent Hill announcement they may pull together from here will likely feel like a downgrade compared to the Kojima/Reedus/del Toro project they once promised. 

Guillermo De?l Toro on Silent Hills: “It&rsq?uo;s not gonna happen” [Rely on Horror]

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There was a Playable Teaser here, it's gone now

It's time to “shit your pants,” get off the pot, and download P.T. if you? haven't already. Because come April 29, its going to disappear from the PlayStation Store?.

 P.T. may only be considered a demo or teaser, but damn if it isn't one of the spookiest games I've ever played. It's also one of the most talked about. P.T.'s mysterious origins (before the link to Silent Hill was discovered), enigmatic mechanics, and troubling symbolism provoked a wide of range speculation and guessing from successfully teased fans. Lore videos and discussions about the demo's meaning are still coming out months after its release. Now that P.T. won't be r??eadily accessible, I'm sure its ??creepy urban legend stock will only go up.

What this means for the future of Silent Hills is uncertain. With the apparent falling out between Kojima Productions and Konami, this delisting could spell bad news for the project. It could be some byzantine bureaucratic decision, or it could be yet more trickery to hype this ??project. It's hard to make a prediction when the situation is as foggy as downtown Silent Hill.

The post You only have a few d??ays left to ??be spooked by P.T. appeared first on Destructoid.

That face

Check out these Japanese ladies playing the P.T. "interactive trailer" that was released this week at gamesc??om. I think they're all hilar??ious but I love the face the one lady makes at 0:46. She's like, oh sh*t. Then, oh SH*T.

And then there's the one lady later on that gives no f*cks at all.?? She's also great.

The post These Japanese ladies playing P.T. are the best appeared first on Destructoid.