How to Play the Silent Hill Games in Order

Silent Hill is one of the finest franchises in survival horror for a reason. It solidified its status as an innovator twice over with its first two releases. While it hasn’t always secured acclaim or even a full release, its legacy and influence are felt everywhere. But playing through games like these that have built their universes can be tricky, so it’s best to consider the proper chronology so that players don’t get lost in the lore and world-building of the games. But to play the Silent Hill games in chronological order can be its reward.

How Do You Play the Silent Hill Story in Chronological Order?

The first thing to note is that it’s going to be troublesome to get your hands on some titles in this order. Silent Hill is going to be a difficult franchise to replay for a while unless you have older hardware and original copies of the game, at least to play the game legally. The games were released mainly in the late PlayStation 1 era, through the PlayStation 2 and Xbox era, with the most recent releases going to Steam, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and the Wii.

Depending on your platform of choice, backward compatibility or Steam should preserve your access to the game, but in many cases, this could cause the titles to become a rarity. But Silent Hill is a special experience, so if you have access, here’s our recommended order:

• Silent Hill: Origins
• Silent Hill
• Silent Hill 2
• Silent Hill 3
• Silent Hill 4
• Silent Hill: Homecoming
• Silent Hill: Downpour

One omission of an otherwise mainline entry is Silent Hill: Shattered Memories. This is partly because not playing this wouldn’t hurt your experience, but also because copies of the game can be prohibitively expensive. Origins you can get for the PS2 and PlayStation Portable along with the original Silent Hill 1 through 4. 2 and 3 are also available via the Silent Hill HD Collection which is still accessible for Xbox players thanks to backward compatibility on Xbox One or Series X|S. Steam only has access to Homecoming, but you can still buy it and Downpour on the Xbox store.

There’s no way around it, purchasing these games to play can be a bit tricky depending on your platform of choice, but the PlayStation line of consoles is the only one with all the games listed available to them. But you’ll be in for an experience that’s at times stress-inducing, at others pulse-pounding, and often intensely thought-provoking.

For those seeking new Silent Hill experiences, the franchise appears to be sparking a renaissance, so be sure to check out all their upcoming titles. Perhaps there’ll also be an opportunity for access to all of the mainline titles once more, in due time, so keep your eyes peeled!