We’ve only seen very little of Silent Hill f in the grand scheme of things, and already it looks to be one of the scariest games in the series. It’s the first game in the series to be rated 18+ in Japan, and the ESRB description for the game mentions “faces ripped apart,” “a character burned alive inside a cage,” and “entrails and sinew displayed on serving platters.” The game is seemingly so horrific that Konami felt the need to include a disclaimer on the game’s store page saying, “If you feel uncomfortable at any point while playing, please take a break from playing or speak to someone you trust.”
Well, the next bit of evidence in favor of ‘Silent Hill f is going to be super scary’ has just dropped. The Australian government has released its own rating for the upcoming horror game, that being ‘RC,’ which is ‘Refused Classification. This means that without changes to the game’s content, it won’t be released in Australia.
While the Australian government website typically gives a reason for something being refused classification, the section for that simply says, “For further information regarding the reason for this decision, please contact us.” GamesRadar+ has contacted the ratings board and will provide an update should we get a response.
However, with the horrific details listed in the ESRB description and the Steam Page, saying the game features depictions of “gender discrimination, child abuse, bullying, drug-induced hallucinations, torture, and graphic violence,” it’s probably one or many of those that are the reason for Australia’s decision. The only Silent Hill game banned in Australia previously was 2008’s Silent Hill: Homecoming, which ended up being approved for release in a censored state the following year.
Video game bans still happen shockingly frequently in Australia; most recently, the upcoming fighter Hunter x Hunter Nen x Impact was banned ahead of its launch later this year.
