Slitterhead: Release date, gameplay, and everything we know about the Silent Hill creator's new horror game (2024)

The Slitterhead release date is almost here, and pre-orders are now live, folks! In case you didn't know already, Slitterhead is one of those upcoming horror games that piqued our interest immediately. Led by Keiichiro Toyama and announced back in 2021, the grisly scare 'em up marks the first game from Bokeh Game Studio, and with a smattering of Silent Hill alums behind the wheel, it's looking suitably grotesque in the best way possible.

We now know that Slitterhead is slated to launch on November 8. The initial Slitterhead reveal trailer crawled wickedly onto our screens some three years ago, and it's still enough to give you the shivers. It shows a city being overwhelmed by hideously grotesque parasites, taking control of their hosts in a manner that belongs in only the most brutal of Japanese horror flicks. A more recent glimpse gave us a look at how combat will function in this terrifying adventure, seemingly balancing action elements with magical properties to create something truly unique.

In fact, after seeing some more of its gameplay during the recent Tokyo Game Show broadcast, Slitterhead is one of the top new games of 2024 to look out for. So, here's a breakdown of Slitterhead's storyline and gameplay mechanics, as well as some insight into how legendary Team Silent composer Akira Yamaoka (who's scored some of the best horror games of all time) came to sign up for Slitterhead.

Slitterhead release date

A leaked trailer reveals that Slitterhead will launch on November 8, 2024, on PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC platforms [via Gematsu]. This release date was later confirmed and is now set in stone. So, get your wallets ready because we only have a few more weeks of waiting ahead of us.

Pre-orders for the game are also live right now on the Microsoft Store and PlayStation Store, with two editions for fans to choose from. The Standard edition costs $49.99/£47.99, while the Deluxe edition (which will give you three days of early access starting November 5) costs $59.99/£59.99.

Slitterhead trailer

The Slitterhead trailer that aired at the Game Awards teases a little of what we can expect from Bokeh Game Studio’s first project, and leads with Keiichiro Toyama’s horror credentials. A caption reads: “In 1999, Keiichiro Toyama chose horror as the genre for his first directorial work. Silent Hill was released to the world. In 2020, he went independent and founded Bokeh Game Studio. And he came back to face a new challenge in horror.”

With that, this new challenge in horror depicts grotesque, shapeshifting monsters, the dismemberment of bewildered civilians and police officers alike, and a ninja-aping, motorcycle helmet-wearing, sword-wielding chap who goes to town on the ethereal beings, who may or may not be the game’s protagonist.

Published on July 6, 2023, this dev diary explores the QA process behind the scenes at Bokeh Studio, before teasing a small section of early in-development combat. Unfolding in un-rendered testing rooms, the playable character can be seen battling shambling humanoids whose heads have been overtaken by parasites. The player uses a mix of red magic, Vega-like claws, swords, and what looks like a sawn-off shotgun at one point to take down their aggressors - one of which takes the form of a giant, multi-tendrilled monster. Toward's the gameplay footage's end, there's a playable dog. Which is cool.

Slitterhead story and gameplay

During the Tokyo Game Show we got a detailed look at Slitterhead’s gameplay, with Keiichiro Toyama himself explaining various mechanics in the upcoming title and his creative influences. You can watch the clip shown during the showcase for yourself above, but we have also summed up all the details down below for you as well.

In terms of Slitterhead’s story, the game is set during the early ‘90s in a fictional town in East Asia called Kowlong. Chaos ensues when mysterious creatures appear and start hunting humans. It’s up to the people in the city to fight back, which leads us to the coolest gameplay reveal in Slitterhead, the “Possession system.” The main character in Slitterhead is a spiritual lifeform without a physical body. So, as you can probably guess, you’ll have to jump into the bodies of the city’s residents in order to act against the evil stalking its streets.

You’ll be able to change from one host to another, this means you can travel through the city at lightning speed as well as leaving bodies behind as you prioritize your own survival. This new mechanic will force you to change your conventional movement patterns to match the game’s speed and take down tanky enemies in new, creative ways.

In terms of the monsters and vibe of Slitterhead, the trailer also gave us a feel of how quickly things move and can potentially turn to shit in-game as well. In the trailer, we see a man seemingly caught off guard by a woman overcome by parasites, and are later shown police scrambling around the streets reacting to a pretty gruesome active crime scene.

Keiichiro Toyama has confirmed that there is a Slitterhead called Yakushi, which mimics humans. We also got a glimpse at this feature during the end of the trailer which shows an older woman standing on a veranda who’s clearly been infected by the parasites we’ve seen earlier. In a flash, her creature-like head – scales, tentacle tongue and all – retracts, folding neatly back into place, to reform her otherwise normal human face.

If you love The Thing (aka one of the best horror movies of all time), you’ll know how this mimic ability is a paranoia inducer and will likely be taking players by surprise constantly. You’ll be eyeing everyone with suspicion and will likely be getting a few jump scares in no time.

Slitterhead development

Keiichiro Toyama is the head of Bokeh Game Studio and the creative director of Slitterhead. Besides creating Silent Hill in the late 1990s, he is also responsible for the Forbidden Siren series of horror games – the last of which, Siren: Blood Curse, landed in 2008 – having spent the last several years working on the Sony-exclusive action-adventure series Gravity Rush. In 2020, the veteran developer established Bokeh Game Studio, with Slitterhead marking its first project. Team Silent composer Akira Yamaoka is also scoring the project and thinks that you’ll like the finished product.

Check out the very best survival horror games ever, from Resident Evil 2 to Alien: Isolation. Or, if you want to revisit a classic, read our ranking of the best Silent Hill games.

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