XV:  THE DEVIL

Creatures

Is the true nature of the grotesque creatures that are produced by the 
otherworld really what one expects it to be?

The reason why creatures exist differs subtly in each work of the series.
While the subject in Silent Hill was Alessa's hatred, the delusions 
of James, who suffered from feelings of guilt, were manifested in Silent 
Hill 2.  As there were also creatures acting under Claudia's instruction 
that appeared in Silent Hill 3, it can be inferred that there was also a 
variation in their existence.  Could these creatures truly be monsters, 
as one expects?  Let's explore their true nature.

IMAGE:  Heather swings her pipe at a "double head"
Could the creatures that appear in the game be illusions that Heather sees?

Creator's Commentary:  Concerning the true nature of creatures, I think 
various explanations are possible.  Even now I get lots of questions about 
the true nature of creatures.  Although I don't intend to suggest the correct 
interpretation here, what Vincent says in the library room-- "Monsters...?  
They look like monsters to you?"-- is something that was provided as an 
answer to this question. 

-Hiroyuki Owaku

IMAGE:  Vincent in the library
Vincent points out that Heather takes pleasure in defeating the creatures.

SECTION TWO:  Making of Creatures
(note: the three images here are hand-drawn sketches)

IMAGE:  a horizontally positioned figure with something strange on its back
Many creatures that appear to be completely integrated with matter have 
appeared in the series.

IMAGE:  something long and thin extends from the creature's finger
Although its silhouette is human, the creature has an organ that shouldn't be 
there.

IMAGE:  the "pendulum" creature
A rough sketch of the pendulum.  Although there are traces of the human form,
it is entirely changed into a thing with ambiguous implications.

Creator's Commentary:  In older drawings, the demons are depicted as 
monsters with horns and fangs.  This is because the target at that time was 
the fear inspired by wild animals.  And so in order to express the scariness 
of the demons in a way that was modernistic, another motif was necessary.  
Fundamentally, human beings harbor a fear of others, and in particular, a 
fear of that which is impossible to comprehend.  Therefore, the human form 
was made into a motif and many creatures that are as if dissimilated into 
living things with ambiguous implications came to be designed.

-Masahiro Ito

SECTION THREE:  The rumors from four years ago were true!!  A disclosure of the 
whole story of the phantom creature

In the first game, there was actually a child-type creature that was discarded.
When Silent Hill first went on sale, rumors about this became a topic of 
conversation among some fans.  Accordingly, if one checks the preview images 
of Silent Hill that were presented to the public at E3 of 1994, sure enough,
there is a creature that doesn't appear in the game.

The truth is that the "mumbler" that appears in the elementary school was 
pronounced "no good" as many as three times by the Ethics Committee, which
was something that gradually gained quite a bit of notoriety.  Let's introduce
the whole story of the design changes that stretch from the phantom creature 
to the mumbler.

IMAGE:  a strange, short child-like figure in the school's courtyard
The child-type creature that was rumored by some to exist was real after all!

code name
CHILD #1

IMAGE:  Harry fires his gun at the creature advancing towards him
This is one of the images that was presented to the public at E3.  It also
appeared in a magazine as an image from midway through the development process.

IMAGE:  Harry takes aim at a small creature across the room
The child-type creature that appears in the classroom is extremely shocking.

CHILD #1'
(larval stalker)

IMAGE:  a small humanoid shadow
The fact that it was made into a shadow-like being that is unable to attack
got the approval of the Ethics Committee.

code name
CHILD #2

IMAGE:  an eyeless, tan-skinned figure
#2 was created as a nopperabou-like humanoid monster that is not wearing 
clothes.

(note:  In Japanese folklore, a nopperabou is a ghost without a face.)

code name
CHILD #2'

IMAGE:  a similar creature but with gray skin
Compared to child #2, this humanoid creature is somewhat larger.  The head
was modified.

CHILD #2"
(stalker)

IMAGE:  the stalker attacks Harry
As for the stalker that appears in "nowhere," child #2" was made into a 
silhouette.

code name
CHILD #3

IMAGE:  a green-skinned, inhuman-looking creature carrying a weapon
A creature that was designed anew.  It appears in the North American edition
of the game.

CHILD #4
(mumbler)

IMAGE:  a faceless creature with large claws
Because the humanoid silhouette was abandoned and hook-like claws were added,
permission for the domestic release was finally obtained.

Creator's Commentary:  Could it be that the three times the same creature was 
determined to be "no good" set a record for the highest number of times this 
happened in the history of the CESA Ethics Committee?  It seems that the point 
of fighting and killing a creature with a child-like form became quite a 
problem.  Silent Hill's preview images are included in the "Lost Memories:
The Art and Music of Silent Hill" DVD.

-Hiroyuki Owaku




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