Silent Hill: The Short Message Physical PS5 1

As I headlined my PS5 review over two years ago, there's a reason why Konami released Silent Hill: The Short Message for free: it's dreadful.

The game, which came before Silent Hill 2 and was shadow-dropped during a livestream, was pretty poor, and the game earned the horror franchise's lowest Metacritic score ever, at 52. At the time, you could at least chalk it up to a couple of hours wasted on a free PS5 download.

Now, though, you could pay actual money for it — $70! — to own a physical copy on PS5.

Silent Hill: The Short Message is getting a physical Deluxe Edition thanks to Limited Run Games, with pre-orders slated to open this Friday, 10th July 2026. The package includes the following:

  • Silent Hill: The Short Message Game — Made exclusively for the deluxe edition, not sold separately
  • Set of Art Cards featuring Maya’s graffiti art and sketches
  • Art Poster
  • Sakara Acrylic Keychain
  • Individually numbered Certificate of Authenticity

There might be a fun novelty to owning The Short Message on a PS5 disc, especially for collection purposes. I wouldn't recommend it, though: this is a two-hour game that's below par throughout.

"Incredibly bland gameplay and some overly frustrating chase sequences make Silent Hill: The Short Message a chore to play much of the time. While there are some intriguing full-motion cutscenes and heavy story details, they're not worth pushing through the dull sequences in between to experience them."

That's what I said at the time of its release, but bear in mind I factored in the free price point. For $70, you'd be better off giving the money to charity. Don't bother with this one!

It's worth noting the digital PS Store version is still available as a free PS5 download; the new physical version isn't enacting a price rise on that edition.

[source limitedrungames.com]