While considered by many to be a misstep in theSilent Hillfranchise, recently unearthed concept art of scrapped monster designs for the interactive experienceSilent Hill: Ascensionhas stirred up conversations about what could have been with the peculiar offering.Silent Hill: Ascensionwas branded as an immersive video game experience, though its actual presentation and content were more akin to a television series with various outcomes determined by audience voting. The project was panned by critics and viewers for diverting too wildly from the iconic survival horror formula of theSilent Hillfranchise, but recent creature artwork has reignited discussions on what could have been done differently withSilent Hill: Ascension.
One of the biggestcontroversies ofSilent Hill: Ascensionwas its pricing model with microtransactions, coupled with the narrative branching structure only offering fixed outcomes because of the community voting system. WhileSilent Hill: Ascensionadvertised itself as a choice-based experience, the decisions of how the story progressed were decided by majority vote, leaving many viewers to lament the fact that the story paths they wanted to see would never be shown. As such,Ascensionfaced backlash and was met with poor ratings. However,Silent Hillfans have now shown an unexpected interest in previously unknown details about the project.
In a Redditpostby user Bi0_B1lly, various creature concept art forSilent Hill: Ascensionshowcases a variety of monster designs that never made the final cut into the interactive experience. The designs include grotesque mutated creatures with intestine-like tendrils, deformed organs, peeling skin, and vampiric wings. Community members voiced their enthusiasm for the delightfully horrific monsters, with many saddened to know that the beasts never got their time in the spotlight withSilent Hill: Ascension. Many pointed out similarities between the concept art andiconicSilent Hillcreatures, and several comments agreed thatAscensionmay have been better received, to a degree, had these designs been in the final product.
Silent Hill f Could Take Inspiration from Silent Hill: Ascension’s Concept Art
One key point of discussion that arose in response to the uncoveredSilent Hill: Ascensionconcept art was whether the upcomingSilent Hill fcould perhaps include similar creature designs. TheSilent Hill frelease datetrailer included snippets of protagonist Hinako facing off against mutated monsters with bloody deformities reminiscent of those inAscension. There has been no official confirmation of any possible connection between theAscensionconcept art andSilent Hill f’s enemies, but some players are hopeful that the horrors awaiting inSilent Hill fwill have the same disturbing appearance as the unused monsters ofSilent Hill: Ascension.
Audience hype forSilent Hill f’s story and settingcontinues to rise, prompting many players to look back at previous releases in the beloved survival horror series. In spite ofSilent Hill: Ascensionfalling below fan expectations, the title’s concept art has found a following of its own and has surprisingly reminded fans why they fell in love with theSilent Hillfranchise.
