Content Warning: The following article contains mentions of themes some readers may find distressing, including those of self-harm and suicide.
Silent Hill: The Short Message has surpassed one million downloads, publisher Konami has announced.
In a post on the Japanese Silent Hill X/Twitter account, Konami celebrated the milestone for the free-to-play Silent Hill spin-off. Confirmation The Short Message surpassed "over one million downloads" arrived in artwork depicting the creepy post-it notes appearing in the game.
The Short Message was revealed and released during Sony's first PlayStation State of Play presentation of 2024 on January 31 and takes players to modern day Germany. Taking on the role of Anita, players explore a typically spooky house called The Villa from a first-person perspective, in what Konami described as an "experimental" taste of the wider Silent Hill franchise.
『SILENT HILL: The Short Message』
— SILENT HILL (@silenthill_jp) February 6, 2024
100万ダウンロードを突破しました。
プレイいただいた皆さまありがとうございます。
公式サイト：https://t.co/nbv0zTpl5P#SILENTHILL #SHTSM pic.twitter.com/aQKTTPURhU
Despite receiving a surprise release during the PlayStation showcase, The Short Message's existence wasn't very well hidden. Myriad leaks gave fans a good idea of the plot, gameplay, and visuals, including one from the Australian ratings board which confirmed what it described as "an exploration-based psychological horror game".
Also outlined in the ratings board description, The Short Message includes "strong suicide themes" and "horror violence", though we won't disclose those scenes here for the sake of sensitivity and spoilers.
The Short Message's themes also bring to mind images leaked in May 2022 that were allegedly from a Silent Hill game. Though they were quickly taken down, the images showed a young woman and a single house being viewed from a first-person perspective, which is now confirmed to be The Short Message.
Suicide: If you are having suicidal thoughts, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline in the U.S. is available 24 hours a day at 1-800-273-8255. A list of international suicide hotlines can be found here.
