A new Silent Hill 2 remake trailer released during a recent PlayStation State of Play showcase has proved to be very divisive since it aired, with many players voicing dissatisfaction with its focus on combat over psychological horror. Many have also flagged its seeming similarity to the popular Resident Evil 2 remake, and criticised its animations and gameplay.
“That [Quick Time Event] QTE prompt was the scariest thing in the trailer,” one commenter wrote on YouTube.
“I feel like Konami took a look at the RE remakes and said, ‘We could do that for less’,” another wrote.
Now, the game’s developer has spoken out, claiming the trailer does not represent the scope and effort of Bloober Team. According to studio president Piotr Babieno, who reportedly spoke to news channel Inwestorzy.tv in a video that’s seemingly been taken down since posting, the trailer does not well represent the Silent Hill 2 remake.
Read: Silent Hill 2 remake is progressing smoothly, says Bloober Team
“We are not responsible for the marketing side. Our partner [Konami] is entirely responsible for this,” Babieno reportedly said, as surfaced and transcribed by Eurogamer Poland, via Google Translate. “This is neither the spirit of what once was nor what we are creating now.”
“We try to fully reflect this romantic vision of the game that debuted 22 years ago. We think that when players see real gameplay, a real game, they will evaluate it in a completely different way.”
Babieno further stated the developers at Bloober Team are using the full capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 to create a game that lives up to the legacy of the original Silent Hill 2.
At this stage, it’s unclear exactly what happened with the newly-released trailer – but Babieno has reportedly suggested the clips used don’t fully reflect work on the game, and paint a poor picture of what Bloober Team has to offer.
With marketing for the upcoming game expected to ramp up in the coming months, we’re likely to get a better glimpse at what the studio is working on in future – but we’ll have to stay tuned to see whether the next trailer better reflects the Bloober Team vision.