Summary
Formed and headed by Keiichiro Toyama–the creator ofSilent Hill,Gravity Rush, andSiren–Bokeh Game Studio has just launched its first release,Slitterhead. A third-person horror-action adventure,Slitterheadtasks players with hunting down the disgusting parasitic entities of the same name that are consuming humans and disguising themselves among them for nefarious and nebulous purposes. On top of this, the player’s avatar is a non-human entity as well, an ethereal being known as a Hyoki that can possess human hosts. Hyoki’s stated objective is to destroy every slitterhead it can find using specially attuned humans called “Rarities” as its weapons against them.
The appearance and art direction of the slitterheads themselves is truly the stuff of nightmares, with appendages wrapped in spikes and teeth bursting out of unnaturally distorted human bodies when the creatures are discovered. There are numerous horror games that feature similarly disturbing otherworldly entities that are uncompromisingly hostile and usually incomprehensible to humanity. And whileSlitterhead’s use of this at first is fairly standard, as might be expected from a project helmed by Toyama, there is more going on beneath the surface beyond this setup. Along with some ofSlitterhead’s other surprises, the way it later portrays what are initially presented as unthinking and unfeeling abominations becomes more nuanced, and this grants the story and characters more depth and introspection.
Spoilers Below.
Many Horror Games Have Monsters That Entirely Lack Human Qualities
There are plenty of horror titles whose main antagonists and/or standard foes are nothing more than ruthlessly relentless, devoid of any recognizable emotions beyond a singular desire to destroy or control humanity. This approach is understandable in order to create the important sense of tension and scary atmosphere necessary foreffective horror games, but it can come with the cost of being mainly one-dimensional, and thus somewhat predictable in a lot of cases.
In most instances, there is no possibility of communicating or reasoning with these kinds ofLovecraftian creatures in games. They usually serve merely as either fodder for players to slay, or are unkillable and must be avoided at all costs. And though this is often intended to be the source of the terror in these works, it tends to be an easy way of not needing to imbue them with any other motives or complicated thoughts beyond. However effective they might otherwise be, the fact that they are so beyond humanity can create a dynamic that feels flat or rote.
Slitterhead’s Hyoki’s investigation eventually reveals a side to the latter that comes as a surprise. There are various sects and divisions of slitterheads, with one in particular giving a reason for Hyoki, and players, to question their previous assumptions about them. During the story, Hyoki and its partners infiltrate a church organization that is fostering both humans and slitterheads, with each fully aware of the other. Hyoki meets a slitterhead who has absorbed the memories and personality of a human named Tommy. “Tommy”, despite being unmistakably and knowingly a slitterhead, displays genuine affection and concern for the human members of the group.
Thus, in certain cases, some ofSlitterhead’s monstershave completely forgotten their true nature, and have taken on their hosts' personalities and memories, essentially becoming them exactly as they were as humans. Others remain aware of themselves, but are still shown coexisting with humanity, choosing to be peaceful against their predatory instincts. Some do end up acting aggressively, but this is due to being forced or manipulated by the more powerful and outright evil slitterheads who are bent on humanity’s destruction.
Slitterheadmakes a point of painting its creatures in a more complex and sympathetic manner. It shows that they can attain a capacity for connecting and interacting with humans in a non-violent way, turning the normal relationship on its head. By going beyond the standard dichotomy often seen in similar titles,Slitterheadcreates a more morally gray areathat makes its antagonists more robust and interesting than if it had strictly adhered to the expected trope.
