15 Video Game Franchises That Tried Something Wildly Different (And Failed)

Konami's survival horror series Silent Hill is considered among the best in the genre by many. Since its debut in 1999, the series has spawned multiple sequels, each of which has added something new to the mix, while never straying too far from the tried-and-tested survival horror formula. The series always preferred the 'less is more', psychological approach to horror.

In 2012, Konami released Silent Hill: Book of Memories for the PS Vita. Instead of the usual third person survival horror, the game was an isometric action RPG featuring hack and slash combat, randomly generated loot and dungeons, with optional co-op multiplayer and even some light RPG character progression elements.

It was so far away from what the series was known for, many fans felt it was a Silent Hill game in name only. It felt more like a standard action game that had Silent Hill slapped on the cover. There was no tension, no atmosphere, and certainly no psychological horror. You simply fought a bunch of enemies, gaining experience points and looking for better equipment.

Book of Memories was shunned by Silent Hill fans worldwide. Nobody asked for this, and while it was a half-decent dungeon crawler in its own right, it just didn't seem to belong in the franchise whatsoever. Following the game's poor reception, Silent Hill quickly returned to its survival horror strengths, and hasn't looked back since.