Vikki Blake
Guest
Silent Hill and Slitterhead creator Keiichiro Toyama is working on a brand new game.
Talking to Famitsu at an exhibition celebrating Slitterhead's wild concept art, Toyama discussed the horror game's reception, what it's like to run his own studio, and hinted that he's already working on another unannounced project.
While Toyama stressed the studio wasn't overly concerned about making a commercial game, he did acknowledge Bokeh Studios had expected the game to sell better, despite it becoming a cult classic. He also suggested that there was a little confusion about whether Slitterhead was a horror or action game, which muddied the message, but was proud of the work Bokeh developers did to make Slitterhead such an unusual game.
"As for how long we’ll be able to continue, it becomes a difficult topic, especially if we take my age into consideration," Toyama admitted, as translated by Automaton. "However, I believe that moving forward, I also have to pass the baton to the next generation. As a studio, we’re still midway to reaching our goal."
As for what his next game will be?
“I can’t reveal the exact details, but we have started working on our next title. In the beginning, we wanted this to be a studio where we could do many different things, like implementing the ideas of younger generations and even working on more light-hearted projects," he said, admitting that even though Bokeh's indie status allows it to try creative ideas, it's a long way from being able to do whatever it wants.
"Once again, we have to pour in all our efforts as a studio and prove that we are up to the task. We are currently working towards that goal. However, we’re still in the beginning phase, so I believe we’ll be able to reveal more details [about the new game] somewhere in the future."
Interestingly, Toyama did stress that he did not conclude Slitterhead with "a sequel in mind," suggesting his next game will not be Slitterhead 2, although it's possible we'll get one in the future.
We thought Slitterhead was mediocre, securing a 5 in IGN's review: "Like a bloody blade worn down by a few too many battles, Slitterhead grows increasingly dull over time and ultimately just doesn’t cut it."
As for the Silent Hill franchise itself? Well, Silent Hill f is next. While the series' J-horror roots have shriveled with each release, Silent Hill f looking to change all that, complete with a firmer emphasis on combat. Watch IGN’s Nick Limon, Matt Kim, and John Davison talk about what this Japanaese-based Silent Hill means for the future of the franchise.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.