Silent Hill 2 Dev Unveils Evolutionary Approach in Remake

Bloober Team's successful Silent Hill 2 Remake has launched them into a new phase, proving their capabilities and setting the stage for future projects. This article explores their next endeavor and their ambitions moving forward.

Bloober Team's Continued Rise

Building on Success

The overwhelmingly positive reception of the Silent Hill 2 Remake from both players and critics has solidified Bloober Team's position in the horror game landscape. Despite significant changes from the original, the remake exceeded expectations, effectively silencing many initial doubters. However, the team acknowledges past skepticism and aims to prove their success wasn't a fluke.

At the Xbox Partner Preview on October 16th, Bloober Team unveiled their next horror title, Cronos: The New Dawn. Conscious of avoiding being defined solely by their Silent Hill work, Game Designer Wojciech Piejko emphasized their intention to create something distinct. In a Gamespot interview, he confirmed that Cronos development began in 2021, shortly after The Medium's release.

Director Jacek Zieba described Cronos: The New Dawn as their "second punch" in a two-hit combo, with the Silent Hill 2 Remake being the "first." He highlighted the initial doubts surrounding their involvement with the Silent Hill franchise, given their lack of prior experience with survival horror.

Zieba stated, "Nobody believed we could deliver, and we delivered. That was a huge honor, working with Silent Hill and Konami. As horror creators, we love Silent Hill, as do most horror fans." He acknowledged the pressure and the team's public request for fan patience during development.

Ultimately, Bloober Team delivered, achieving an 86 Metacritic score. Piejko commented, "They made the impossible possible, and it was a bumpy road due to online negativity. The pressure was immense, but they delivered, a truly amazing moment for the company."

Bloober Team 3.0: A New Era

Piejko positioned Cronos: The New Dawn as a testament to their ability to create compelling original IPs. The game features a time-traveling protagonist, "The Traveler," navigating the past and future to save individuals and alter a dystopian future ravaged by pandemic and mutants.

Leveraging their Silent Hill 2 Remake experience, Bloober Team aims to evolve beyond their earlier titles like Layers of Fear and Observer, which had less extensive gameplay. Zieba noted, "The foundation for Cronos, established in pre-production, benefited greatly from the Silent Hill team's expertise."

The Silent Hill 2 Remake marks a pivotal moment, representing "Bloober Team 3.0." Encouraged by the positive response to the Cronos reveal trailer and the success of the Silent Hill 2 Remake, Piejko expressed optimism about their evolving reputation.

Zieba's vision is for Bloober Team to be recognized as a leading horror developer, having found their niche. He stated, "We want to find our niche, and we think we found it; now let's evolve with it. This evolution happens organically, as seen with Layers of Fear in 2016; the team felt they'd evolved from previous work."

Piejko added, "We have a team that loves horror. Switching genres wouldn't be easy, and we don't want to."