Silent Hill: Townfall's verdict: an 81, great atmosphere, frustrating stealth
Silent Hill: Townfall scored 81 on Metacritic. Critics love its 1996 Scottish setting and dread. The stealth and checkpoints are the problem. The verdict.
Stated by the maker, publisher, or platform holder.
Silent Hill: Townfall launched on 24 September on PS5 and PC, and it's the most different Silent Hill in years: first-person, set in Scotland, and made by a Scottish studio. The verdict is an 81 on Metacritic, with around nine in ten critics recommending it on OpenCritic.
What's confirmed
What it is
You play Simon Ordell, voiced by Jovan Adepo, in St. Amelia, a fictional Scottish coastal town in 1996. It's a first-person survival horror game built around stealth, with a handheld CRT device called the CRTV at the centre of how you read the world, and five different endings.
What critics praised
Atmosphere, almost universally. Reviews single out the fog, the moody coastal landscapes, and a sense of oppressive dread that feels distinct from the series' usual American small town. The first-person view gets credit for making the tension more personal.
The recurring complaint
The stealth. The creature hunting you, the Weight, is the main source of frustration: CBC's review said it "moves too erratically and can sometimes park itself in front of your hiding spot." Metro pointed to "ungenerous checkpoints" that put you back near danger, which turns tension into repeated deaths. That's where the lower scores come from.
Should you buy it
Yes, if you play horror for atmosphere and place, and you liked the idea of Silent Hill somewhere new. St. Amelia is a genuinely new kind of place for the series.
Maybe wait, if stealth sections with harsh checkpoints drive you away from games. It's the most common criticism in the reviews.
It's a busy month for games that got good reviews. For the rest, see our autumn release rundown and our verdict on Control Resonant, which launched the same day.