Silent Hills reportedly canned [Update: it's official]

Following an apparent falling out between Kojima Productions and publisher Konami last month, the future of Silent Hills has been called into question. Announced last year via the PS4-exclusive playable teaser P.T., it was hotly tipped to be the rejuvenation the Silent Hill series desperately needs, especially in light of Hideo Kojima's involvement and the strength of the teaser.

While there was never any guarantee the game would release for PC, hopes were high following PC editions of both Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes and the forthcoming Metal Gear Solid: Phantom Pain. But hopes that Silent Hills will release at all have been dashed, following comments from a recent San Fransisco Film Society event. According to a Tweet by journalist Matt Hackney, Silent Hills collaborator and director Guillermo del Toro confirmed the game has been canned.

"It's not gonna happen and that breaks my greasy heart," del Toro reportedly said.

The Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus, who was confirmed to appear in the game, later drove the final nail in the coffin with his own Tweet.

"Super bummed about this was really looking forward to it," Reedus tweeted. "Hopefully it'll come back around. Sorry everyone." He also tweeted a pizza emoji.

Following reports of a falling out between Kojima and Konami last month, the two released a joint statement which, while promising the ongoing production of The Phantom Pain, all but confirmed the relationship was drawing to a close.

Meanwhile, Konami has announced that P.T. will be pulled from the PlayStation Store come April 29.

Update: Konami has confirmed to Kotaku that the Silent Hills project has been cancelled. Here is the statement:

"Konami is committed to new Silent Hill titles, however the embryonic ‘Silent Hills’ project developed with Guillermo del Toro and featuring the likeness of Norman Reedus will not be continued.

"In terms of Kojima and Del Toro being involved, discussions on future Silent Hill projects are currently underway, and please stay tuned for further announcements."

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.