Hitchcock-inspired The Silence now presenting on iOS and Android

Written by Pascal Tekaia — September 8, 2014 at 12:40

Many correlations can be drawn between the mediums of film and interactive entertainment, with works of one genre often influencing those of the other. Now, independent developer Dale Penlington is drawing inspiration from some of filmmaking’s elite directors for a new series of games. The first of these, entitled The Silence, draws right from the top of the pile, aiming to emulate the trademark feel of the Master of Suspense himself, Alfred Hitchcock.

In The Silence, the main character finds himself waking in a dark and dingy motel room, alone and with a bruise on his head, with no memory of who he is or how he came to be there. Further exploration yields a shocking revelation: everyone else has vanished, and he is all alone... Alone, save for the sound of crows carrying on the breeze.

To discover the protagonist's identity and solve the mysterious disappearances, players will navigate from left to right, in side-scroller fashion, advancing through a monochrome, silhouetted world by picking up inventory items, interacting with objects, and solving traditional adventure game puzzles to progress. With a look and soundtrack matching those of Hitchcock’s own black-and-white masterpieces, The Silence incorporates nods to the director’s works throughout the adventure, the two most immediately obvious ones being the creepy motel setting and the ominous cawing of the crows right from the very beginning.

Best of all, for mobile gamers there’s no need to wait, as The Silence is already available on the Google Store for Android and the App Store for  iPhones and iPads, with a PC version perhaps coming in the future.