Descent into the Otherworld – A Spotlight on the Silent Hill Fandom, #7 The Gentleman
Posted By: Whitney January 9th, 2012 | 12:30 pmHi guys! It’s time for another Descent into the Otherworld where I take a closer look at the Silent Hill fandom to highlight what makes makes others a fan and what the series means to them.
Meet The Gentleman a fan on the Hell Descent/Silent Hill Community forums who not only makes Silent Hill videos but is also contributing to a Silent Hill fan game!
Silent Hill Historical Society: First, when and how did you hear about the Silent Hill series? Would you consider yourself a longtime fan? What’s your favorite game?
The Gentleman: I wouldn’t consider myself a long time fan by any standard, I’ve known of the series for years but I only really became a horror fan when I was about 16 and around christmas last year was the first time I ordered Silent Hill 2 and 3. They both scared the living sh!t out of me. Now I’m on Silent Hill 4, I’m working my through the games now (which is why I was utterly overjoyed to see that the OG Silent Hill was coming back to the EU PSN). So far Silent Hill 2 is my favorite but I found Silent Hill 3 so much scarier.
SHHS: So has the series inspired you in anyway and if so how?
SHHS: You are an art student? That’s cool! What is your focus? Would you want to be involved in the gaming industry?
SHHS: It’s great to hear that another fan is as fond of Shattered Memories story as I am. Considering it was such a departure from the other games in the series do you consider it a real Silent Hill game?
SHHS: Are you an avid video game player? If so what sort of games do you like? Do you have a favorite console?
My favorite game of all time has to be the Half Life series. My very earliest gaming memory was of being terrified to play the first one back when I was about 8 or 9. And when Half Life 2 came around it was an absolutely revolutionary experience for me, not just in the groundbreaking visuals, animations and gameplay but the subtle way of telling a story through environmental detail. I will live to see Episode 3 I gaurantee you that! As for the console it has to be the Playstation 2. So many fond memories throughout my pre-teen and teen years. Also I’ve really been getting into Metal Gear Solid lately.
SHHS: Konami is also releasing a MGS HD collection do you plan on purchasing that collection?
SHHS: How you active are you in the fandom Do you draw pictures, write fanfic, post on forums or have a website? If so, do you have any work you would like to share and what forums do you frequent?
I frequent the Silent Hill Community and Hell Descent forums weekly at the least. Both are awesome places to hang with so many friendly, great folks! I’ve been providing concept art for a fangame project called Silent Hill: Rebirth (though admittedly I’ve been too lazy to draw much lately) and I do a machinima series called Despoiled Heart filmed in Garrys Mod (a sandbox mod for Half Life 2 you can get over steam).
Constructing an original story is really super fun and seeing it playing in a 10-20 minute episode is just great, for a moment not caring how bad it is. The project’s been on abit of a hiatus for a few weeks due to some delays with some of my voice actors. I’d like to quickly shout out to the Silent Hill Community forum for being super supportive and say sorry for being a procastritive bastard. Other than that I’ve drawn comics on my deviantart for Silent Hill and other game series, abit of fanart here and there (my personal favorite is the one of James and Mary in the final boss area). I’ve also done a couple tributes and really (no, really) dumb joke videos.
SHHS: A Fangame sounds pretty amazing, can you tell us a little more about it? What’s the story? Can you share some of your concept art?
Silent Hill Rebirth Production Site: http://silenthilluniverse.weebly.com/—silent-hill-rebirth.html
Silent Hill Rebirth – Concept Art
SHHS: Despoiled Heart sounds pretty awesome as well. I’m a fan of machinima series myself so I will definitely have to check this out! What is the story? Where can other Silent Hill fans watch it online?
SHHS:Haha now you have to tell me which is your favorite joke video you’ve made so far?
SHHS: What’s your thoughts on the upcoming HD collection?
Other than that, I love the idea behind the collection, bringing it to a more current console for a more current generration of gamers I think is a superb idea, and from your write-ups from your Konami visit, the enhanced visuals sound like something to look forward to!
SHHS: What about the movie? Are you a fan or did you find it a major disappointment? What about Revelation that should be out sometime next year?
by oleolah
The Gentleman: I haven’t seen the film so I can’t give an informed opinion on that. As for the sequel, I kinda wish they’d injected abit of Silent Hill 2 into it, there’s actually a great photoshop job which I think demonstrates this, though I can imagine the fandom fallout would be catastrophic.
I’ll definately try and see Revelations when it comes to cinemas, I generally keep an open mind towards these things.
SHHS: What do you think about the future of the series? We have Downpour near release and another game, Book of Memories, on the horizon.
SHHS: In your mind what makes someone a true Silent Hill fan?
I want to give The Gentleman a big thank you for participating in my interview and sharing his story! 🙂
Visit The Gentleman on the web!
- Deviant Art: http://thegentlemansoldier.deviantart.com/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGentlemansShadow
- Silent Hill Rebirth: http://silenthilluniverse.weebly.com/—silent-hill-rebirth.html
So Silent Hill fans, what’s your story? How has the series influenced or inspired you? I would sure love to hear from you. If you have a story to share please contact me at contact@shshatteredmemories.com