Konami Partners with Bloober Team Amid Silent Hill Rumors
Konami has confirmed a partnership with development studio Bloober Team, the horror-focused minds behind The Medium, Blair Witch, and Observer. The deal has revived rumors that Bloober will take up the Silent Hill mantle.
Bloober Team's announcement of the deal says the two companies will exchange know-how and develop content together, and Konami's statement on the deal says Bloober will "produce games from existing and new IPs."
Konami and Bloober Team announce a strategic partnership deal
— Nibel (@Nibellion) June 30, 2021
"As part of the agreement, the partners declared cooperation in the development of contents and the exchange of know-how."https://t.co/i2MtNV5LqG pic.twitter.com/b18ai5INMJ
Silent Hill is of course among Konami's existing IP, and although the franchise has been dormant since 2014's PT was cancelled, recent rumors have suggested Konami is looking for other studios to revive the series.
In January 2020, a leaker called Aesthetic Gamer — who had previously leaked accurate information about Capcom projects — said Konami had reached out to several studios for Silent Hill pitches. One game was said to be an episodic game in the style of Until Dawn, while the other was described as a soft reboot of the franchise. The horror-focused Rely on Horror reported it had heard from its own source that at least one Silent Hill project was in development, adding fuel to the speculative fire.
Konami confirmed was had been "considering ways to provide the next title," but gave no further details at the time.
In February of this year, Silent Hill composer Akira Yamaoka said in an interview that he was working on a projecting which was "the one you're hoping to hear about." Fans and reporters alike believed he was referring to Silent Hill, and the interview was quickly removed from YouTube.
Yamaoka worked with Bloober on 2020's The Medium, forming an important connection between the studio and both Silent Hill and Konami. Although nothing's been confirmed, speculation holds Bloober successfully pitched Konami on a Silent Hill game, and this partnership may be a sign that things are moving forward.
(1/9) To do a little Silent Hill rumor breakdown of the, "Story so Far", here's a condensed version:
— AestheticGamer aka Dusk Golem (@AestheticGamer1) June 30, 2021
1. In the summer of 2018 (& officially first tweeted about it in January 2020), I had heard from two sources, one who is 100% trustworthy, & I insist this is 100% true, Konami
Finally, Bloober Team CEO Piotr Babieno told GamesIndustry.biz he and the team had been working on an existing horror IP from "a very famous gaming publisher," for over a year in February.
"It is a historic day for me and the culmination of several years of our work," Babieno said in the announcement of the partnership. "The fact that such a renowned company as KONAMI has decided to strategically cooperate with the Bloober Team means that we also joined the world leaders in gaming and became an equal partner for the leading players in this market."