Silent Hill: The Short Message developer Hexadrive has a new horror game, Niraya of ■■

Silent Hill: The Short Message developer Hexadrive is developing a new horror game, Niraya of ■■.

I have no idea if that “■■” is permanent or just obscuring the final word until we get closer to release, but an announcement teaser – which boasts the dubious honor of having one of the most disturbing cinematic openings I’ve ever seen – indicates that it’s currently slated for Q4 2025, so it may be a while before we know more.

The teaser begins with a report explaining how “a large number of bodies”, including children, were discovered in a temple. At the same time, a huge hand with incredibly long fingers caresses the face of a dead child. So that’s cool.

Next, we get a bit of gameplay, which has a very retro/PS1 presentation that vaguely recalls the Fatal Frame games. It’s a significant departure from the hyper-realistic graphics of The Short Message.

“Niraya of ■■ is a Japanese horror game inspired by Buddhist beliefs,” the Steam description explains.

“The game focuses on a unique system where players “avoid” attacks from various monsters. This, combined with the fear of exploring strange environments and solving puzzles, is one of the game’s main appeals.

“In this game, the protagonist is thrown into a mysterious realm unknown to the modern world and must attempt to escape. Players will guide the protagonist through unknown areas, solving hidden puzzles to progress. However, as mentioned earlier, the exploration is filled with terrifying experiences, including strange phenomena and sudden monster attacks.”

For now, it looks like the horror game is only coming to PC via Steam, though of course there’s still plenty of time for that to change.

“I suspect that anyone who can relate to Anita’s fictional experiences from a real-life perspective will have one of two polarizing responses to Silent Hill: The Short Message: profound outrage or profound admiration,” I wrote in my review of Silent Hill: The Short Message, giving it three stars out of five.

“For me, who can unfortunately relate to some of the darker themes expressed in The Short Message, it’s the latter that works for me. Despite its ungainly style and high school drama-like framing, Anita’s story, while sometimes clumsy, is powerful, thoughtful, and, perhaps most importantly, hopeful.

“No, this may not be the Silent Hill game many of us expected; it may not even be the Silent Hill game some people want. But even with that infuriating chase sequence, I’m very happy that it exists.”

In related Silent Hill news, the original creators of Silent Hill 2 “didn’t want to do the same thing again” when it came to the Silent Hill 2 remake, leading the remake’s developer Bloober Team to push back on some of their more outlandish suggestions.