In addition to getting generally great reviews from critics, Bloober Team’s remake of Silent Hill 2 also went on to sell over 2 million copies across PlayStation 5 and PC. Based on that success, Konami is now letting the Polish horror studio work on a brand-new game based on one of the Japanese publisher’s existing franchises.
“Our collaboration with Konami has been incredibly fruitful, and the success of Silent Hill 2 speaks for itself,” Bloober Team CEO Piotr Babieno said in a press release on Tuesday. “By sharing knowledge and experience, we have been able to create high-quality production together [sic]. Of course, we can’t reveal too many details at this time, but we are confident that fans will be just as excited about our collaboration as we are. We can’t wait to share something truly special with players when the time is right.”
But what franchise will the studio adapt into a new sequel or spin-off? Konami’s catalog runs deep and includes some of the most storied names in gaming. While a new Silent Hill would be the obvious choice, one of those is already in development. Silent Hill f, the eighth game in the survival horror series, is currently in production at NeoBards Entertainment.
Castlevania is another potential option. A new entry in the gothic action franchise is rumored to be in development which, if real, would seemingly predate the deal announced today. It would also be a genre stretch for Bloober given Castlevania’s traditional emphasis on weighty combat and platforming.
Then there’s Metal Gear, which is hard to imagine continuing under any studio, including Konami’s own internal teams, following the publisher’s fallout with franchise creator and director Hideo Kojima. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater producer Noriaki Okamura said last year that he sees developers on that remake’s team who might be able to lead the franchise in the future, but it’s not clear if that’s actually the plan at some point.
What else does Konami have in its IP vault? There’s the classic run-and-gun series Contra which could be infused with survival horror elements and adapted more to Bloober Team’s existing over-the-shoulder and third-person exploration strengths. Also, uh, Bomberman? And who wouldn’t love to see the fantasy RPG series Suikoden resurrected or even, better yet, the gory strategy RPG Vandal Hearts? That would be my personal pick.
Whatever license Bloober Team is picking up, it’s now established enough street cred thanks to the Silent Hill 2 remake that fans won’t be so quick to dismiss it this time around. Well, unless the studio is working on a new Frogger game.
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