The Detrimental Impact of Silent Hill: Ascension's Community Choice Model on Fan Perception

Article Key Points

The monetization practices of Silent Hill: Ascension have caused a stir, with criticism aimed at a $19.99 "Founder's Pack" and cosmetic items that fall short in comparison to previous installments.

The game's community-driven approach, in which story progression is decided through popular voting, overlooks alternative options and restricts the overall storytelling experience. The inclusion of branching storylines and alternate choices in Silent Hill: Ascension prompts speculation regarding the actual divergence of the narrative and the extent of discarded content.

Silent Hill: Ascension has recently sparked controversy due to its monetization practices. Fans were disappointed with the inclusion of a $19.99 "Founder's Pack" and some questionable cosmetic items, such as a rainbow sticker with the phrase "It's Trauma!", which felt out of place compared to the iconic entries of the Silent Hill series. In addition to these microtransactions, the game's community choice model presents a larger problem: the story only progresses based on what receives the most votes, leaving out alternative options.

The currency in Silent Hill: Ascension is called "Influence Points," which players can use to vote for different choices in the story. These points can be earned through daily goals, such as logging in or contributing to a decision, completing puzzles (though some are limited to season pass holders), or by making real-world purchases. While this system creates a "pay-to-win" issue, as those with more points have more influence over the story, the overall community choice mechanic has even deeper implications for the storytelling experience.

Silent Hill: Ascension's Community Choice Model is Clever in Theory, But Lacking in Execution

Replayability Is An Attribute That Silent Hill: Ascension Can't Capitalize On

In theory, the concept behind Silent Hill: Ascension's community choices is clever, as the story progresses based on the most popular choices. However, this branching narrative structure fails to truly shine. Unlike other titles such as Supermassive Games' The Dark Pictures Anthology, which emphasizes replayability and the ability to make different decisions, Ascension's alternate choices are essentially lost if they are not chosen by the audience. Only the dialogue and actions that receive the most votes are broadcasted.

This concept raises the question of how much Silent Hill: Ascension's story varies based on its choice structure. The app includes tags that indicate the level of impact each choice will have on the narrative. "Gold" signifies a moderate effect, while "Platinum" is described as having a significant impact. Considering the emphasis on branching narratives and the ripple effect of choices seen in games like Until Dawn, it is expected that selecting certain choices over others will inevitably alter the course of future cutscenes. However, under Ascension's model, this would result in a significant amount of content being discarded, as the audience is not exposed to the other potential storylines.

How Much Can Silent Hill: Ascension Branch?

Branching narratives in games often incorporate various effects to create the illusion of significant choices, ensuring that the stories remain manageable. However, this does not diminish the amount of effort and resources invested in optional dialogues and character actions. For instance, it is hard to imagine the team behind Silent Hill: Ascension's creating multiple FMVs for alternate routes that may never be seen by the audience. This is how the game's community choice experience is structured. The team likely focused more on fleshing out choices that were anticipated to be favored (with the "Redemption" choices leading the way thus far), but they had to account for any possibility due to the unpredictable nature of voting.

Silent Hill: Ascension's plot and tone appear to be quite intricate, featuring a wide range of characters. Two separate casts navigate themes of death and complicity, but it is unclear if, and when, their stories will intersect. Unfortunately, another consequence of Ascension's monetization is that characters possess a "hope system" which supposedly increases their chances of survival. However, some of the mini-games designed to raise hope are only accessible through the game's season pass, as are the majority of the puzzles that help players earn more IP. Thus far, Silent Hill: Ascension's structure feels limiting not only from a monetization perspective but also in terms of its storytelling. While the concept is innovative, it does not fully capture the allure of a branching experience.

Silent Hill 2 is a survival horror video game developed and published by Konami. It was released on September 24, 2001, for multiple platforms including PC, PS2, PS3, Xbox (Original), and Xbox 360. The game falls under the genre of survival horror and is rated M for Mature 17+ by the ESRB due to its depiction of blood and gore and violence. On average, it takes approximately 8 hours to complete the game.

Editor's P/S

Silent Hill: Ascension's monetization practices have left fans disappointed and frustrated. The inclusion of a $19.99 "Founder's Pack" and cosmetic items that fall short in comparison to previous installments has been met with criticism. Additionally, the game's community-driven approach, in which story progression is decided through popular voting, overlooks alternative options and restricts the overall storytelling experience.

The community choice model also raises concerns about the replayability of Silent Hill: Ascension. Unlike other games with branching narratives, such as Supermassive Games' The Dark Pictures Anthology, Ascension's alternate choices are essentially lost if they are not chosen by the audience. This means that players who want to see all of the game's content will have to play through it multiple times, which can become tedious.