Silent Hill 2 is being remade, and development sounds promising, but unfortunately (for Xbox users) we've just discovered that it's going to be a PlayStation exclusive on launch.
The Silent Hill 2 remake has already generated a lot of hype. And rightfully so; to borrow a cliché, this is a timeless classic. But the announcement of the game was shortly followed by some tragic news for Xbox users...
Silent Hill 2 Remake Not Coming To Xbox For Now
As first leaked by "Mr Rebs", Silent Hill will be exclusive to PlayStation and PC for the first 12 months. Whether it eventually makes its way to Xbox is still unknown:
Here's our first Silent Hill 2 remake information from @whatifgaming who was contacted by an anonymous source. -Developed by Bloober Team-Over the shoulder camera view -12 month long PlayStation exclusive and also on PC. #SILENTHILL #SilentHill2 #SilentHill2Remake pic.twitter.com/OoN9MSneZ6
— Rebs Gaming (@Mr_Rebs_) October 19, 2022
It's quite clear why PlayStation want exclusivity. The original Silent Hill 2 was a PlayStation exclusive on launch, and they want to perpetuate the belief that this is one of their own legacy IPs. This does an immense amount for their branding, given that PlayStation are increasingly seen as the saviors of story-driven, single-player titles.
By positioning themselves as the company who can bring back franchises like Silent Hill, they alleviate some of the market pressure to continue fighting Xbox for every multiplayer title. And they really have been fighting, just look at their recent attempts to block Xbox's acquisition of Call of Duty. That particular battle in the ongoing console war has become very ugly.
And all the while, PC players can look on with self-satisfied grins, confident in the knowledge that they've been the real winners of this war. While the consoles were so pre-occupied fighting each other, a great many titles have found their way on to PC, and Game Pass has somehow become even more appealing. The irony.
Are you a Silent Hill fan with an Xbox? Would this ever be enough to tempt you to buy a PlayStation? Or does this behavior strike you as anti-consumer?
Why not avoid console all together? Especially with titles like this becoming available: