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Silent Hill 2 Remake Seemingly Features a Younger Looking James

According to a new screenshot spotted in the Steam backend by SteamDB, Silent Hill 2 remake protagonist James Sunderland may have gotten a new look. The image shows James with a more youthful appearance that’s significantly different from the look we were presented with in the game’s original announcement trailer and images. When the remake was first announced, several players expressed how much older the character looked compared to his 2001 counterpart. It was confirmed in a 2023 IGN interview with producer Motoi Okamoto that James had intentionally been made older. Now, it seems Konami may have reversed this decision. Earlier this month, a North American rating by the ESRB for the Silent Hill 2 remake was spotted online. This could mean that an announcement for the upcoming horror game’s release date is imminent. In a recent interview with Famitsu, Silent Hill series Okamoto revealed that the upcoming game is “in the final stages of development”, and that “you can think of it as the Silent Hill 2 you envisioned”. The game will launch for PS5.

The full ESRB description:

This is a horror adventure game in which players assume the role of a man returning to a mysterious town while being tormented by his past. From a third-person perspective, players explore the town of Silent Hill, interact with characters, and battle humans and creatures (e.g., Pyramid Head, mannequins, monsters). Players use pistols, shotguns, rifles, and knives to kill enemies. Combat is highlighted by realistic gunfire, cries of pain, and blood-splatter effects. Some environments depict large bloodstains and/or intestines/organs on walls, floors, and surrounding bodies. Cutscenes and illustrations depict further instances of violence and/or blood and gore: characters impaled; a character suffocated to death with a pillow; enemies with body parts sewn together. The game contains some suggestive/sexual material: characters pole-dancing in strip-club settings; posters of women in revealing outfits (e.g., bra and thong, deep cleavage); dialogue alluding to sexuality and/or sexual abuse/misconduct (e.g., “Remember that time in the hotel? You said you took everything. But you forgot that videotape we made”; “Don’t touch me…You’re only after one thing…Or you could just force me, like he always did.”). The word “sh*t” appears in the game.

The remake details via Steam:

Having received a letter from his deceased wife, James heads to where they shared so many memories, in the hope of seeing her one more time: Silent Hill. There, by the lake, he finds a woman eerily similar to her…

“My name…is Maria,” the woman smiles. Her face, her voice… She’s just like her.

Experience a master-class in psychological survival horror—lauded as the best in the series—on the latest hardware with chilling visuals and visceral sounds.

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Abdul Saad

Abdul Saad is a seasoned entertainment journalist and critic and has been writing for five years on multiple gaming sites. When he isn't writing or playing the latest JRPG, he can be found coding games of his own or tinkering with something electrical.