Slitterhead will span “multiple genres” and appeal to “players who don’t usually play horror games”, says developer

Slitterhead developer, Bokeh, has shared more details about its upcoming action-horror game.

Responding to questions posed by fans via social media, the team – consisting of CEO and creator Keiichiro Toyama, game director and CTO Junya Okura, plus COO and producer Kazunobu Sato – offered some tantalising teases about the new title, including the hope that it will appeal to “players who don’t usually play horror games”.

“The game doesn’t fully enter the horror genre. It spans over multiple genres where horror is expressed. From there, I wanted to widen the player base who could access the game, including players who don’t usually play horror games,” Toyama said, as transcribed by PC Gamer.

“I wanted a game that could be enjoyed for its action, yet whose concept doesn’t solely revolve around killing enemies. It conflicts the mind, making the players reluctant to enter certain fights. I want to achieve both action and drama with this game.”

That said, it won’t be entirely without it’s surprises – even in the “slower parts”.

“There is a terror aspect that I want to include even if the game lays more towards action,” Okura added. “There are some slow and fast moments as well. I’d like to include some horror elements in the slower parts, balancing with the frenzy action moments.”

And for all the Silent Hill fans, Toyama may not have plans to revisit that kind of game just yet – but he does want to revisit psychological horror “someday”.

“I want someday to do something with some classic psychological horror themes like I did with Silent Hill,” Toyama said. “However, I’d rather do that when working with really limited resources, such as budget or having to focus on one individual. Right now, we have staff with the ability to work on action. I want to leverage their skills to go in another direction. Still, I also want to make something more personal someday.”

You can watch the Q&A session above, and English subtitles are provided (as well as Arabic, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, and Russian).

Keiichiro Toyama – the creator and director of Silent Hill, Siren, Gravity Rush, and more – unveiled his latest horror project, Slitterhead, back in December. It’s the work of Toyama’s new studio, Bokeh, which he founded after departing SCE Japan Studio at the tail-end of 2020.

Bokeh, which is also home to several other SCE Japan Studio alumni – including Gravity Rush lead designer Junya Okura and Kazunobu Sato – confirmed its first project would see Toyama return to his horror roots back in February 2021.