In the midst of perpetualSilent Hillcontroversies and rumors, there has not been much hope for fans to cling to in terms of a modern spiritual successor, let alone a renewal or reprisal of Team Silent and Konami’s survival-horror property.Blue Box Game Studios’ ownSilent Hillconspiracies, for example, were rampant and discredited the developer. But it seems that a recent rumor of aSilent Hill 2remake from Bloober Team is being taken seriously with credible sources to back it up.
Bloober Teamis known popularly forObserverandLayers of Fear, as well as its recentBlair Witchadaptation and timed Xbox-exclusiveThe Medium. Interestingly, whileSilent Hillrumors have shuffled around with Bloober’s name in the mix,Bloober revealed that it had turned down an opportunity to develop aSawgame, among other popular Lionsgate IPs, to instead develop itsBlair Witchgame, stating that it saw more potential in theBlair WitchIP. Even though Bloober turned downSaw, the grisly psychological-horror franchise should still be offered to another developer.
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Saw Could Use a Redemption in Games
Sawis an interesting property to explore because of its unique glimpses at psychological-horror, such as looking introspectively at oneself to take accountability for one’s actions. This isnot unlikeSilent Hill’s own psychological torments, butSawoften loses its respective audiences when Jigsaw and Amanda’s elaborate torture-traps become unsurprisingly inescapable, thus losing the significance of John Kramer’s vengeance, and when each subsequent film is more gratuitously gory and nonsensical than the last.
There are, however, beats of pure survival-horror that can be derived fromSaw’s earlier entries, such as the reprehensible decisions characters make and how characters interact with others when they are placed in these particularly gruesome circumstances. Interestingly, Konami publishedSaw: The Video Gameand its sequel,Saw 2: Flesh and Blood, to reviews that ranged from mixed to poor.
Each game’s story was received fine, but general gameplay was an issue cited with fans, particularly its combat and repetitive puzzles. Because of these games’ poor receptions, it is not surprising that a new, modern take onSawhasn’t been attempted lately. That does not mean that it is an untouchable franchise; there is a chance that a contemporary AAA developer couldproduce a favorable survival-horror experience out ofSaw. If so, there are many options that Lionsgate could consider.
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Other AAA and Indie Devs That Could Pull Off a Saw Game
It appears thatSawmay be more or less up for grabs now that it has been officially passed on, and there are multiple AAA and independent horror game developers that could honor the license well.Bloober Teammay have done a fine job with it also, but a few other developers may be able to apply layers of cinematic storytelling or action to it that Bloober may not have.
One example of a no-brainer developer to take the helm of a newSawgame is Supermassive Games.Supermassive is known chiefly forUntil Dawn, which centers around a group of teenagers at a remote cabin in the winter. Supernatural events are woven into Indigenous myth, but there is also a distinct nod to home invasion thrillers with a masked serial killer.
Supermassive has gone on to developThe Dark Pictures AnthologyandThe Quarry, which also follow its niche gameplay composed of sparse QTEs and dialogue choices between cutscenes. Supermassive would perhaps be too preoccupied with its anthological series to tackleSawright away, but an emphasis on split-second decision-making and QTEs with a star-studded cast would matchSaw’s own formula perfectly.
Further, ifSawneeded more emphasis on gameplay and player engagement, Lionsgate could look to Frictional Games, known for several pulse-pounding horror titles such asSomaand theseminal survival-horror seriesAmnesia, which includesThe Dark Descent,A Machine for Pigs, andRebirth. These games all involve a lot of exploration through simple yet beautiful environments, with the occasional jump-scare or sequence of pure dread as a creature patrols the area. The player is generally unable to fight back, and the protagonist’s sanity may be tested and affect gameplay as well.
Red Barrels, famous for the indie darlingOutlast, could potentially show an aptitude for other gameplay mechanics that players have not seen yet outside of sprinting away from assailants and hiding for prolonged periods inside abundant cabinets and lockers.The Outlast Trials,a prequel to the first twoOutlasttitles, is set to release sometime this year still and boasts a psychological-horror experience with four-player co-op, which could be a fantastic blueprint for a multiplayerSawtitle with puzzles to solve and choices for each player to make.
Saw and the Future of Survival Horror
Survival-horror has never been a dead genre, relatively speaking. There have been and always will be games that push horror with new mechanics and motifs, whether it emphasizes combat or not.
One of the most fascinating parts of contemporary next-gen platforms is the fidelity with which games can immerse players into unsettling environments, or the technical performance with which controller haptics and other technological advancements can amplify tension. This will be exciting to see with some of the few horror games slated to release sometime in the near future. For instance,The Chant’s psychedelic horrormay shine on next-gen.
Moreover,Alan Wake 2has transitioned from action-adventure to survival-horrorexplicitly, which will be remarkable to see on next-gen as well, considering how much lighting effects will be involved in rainy tourist streets and backwoods.Sawwould need a drastic change to the gameplay players have seen from it in Konami’s installments in order to make it favorable.
This is likely why Bloober was offered the IP, because Bloober games commonly take a first-person-perspective and walk players through eerie environments. These games have less of an emphasis on involved gameplay, and more of an emphasis on immersion and frights.
Meanwhile,Bloober may well be underway on aSilent Hill 2remake, though that has yet to be confirmed. Other developers such as Supermassive Games, Frictional Games, or Red Barrels would be able to implement elements of action or other cinematic storytelling mechanics, and it would be neat to see these developers add a unique flavor to survival horror and theSawIP.
