Hideo Kojima’s OD Silent Hill Reference Explained

Hideo Kojima’s next game, outside of Death Stranding 2, OD, was revealed during The Game Awards, and most people loved the look of it. Keen-eyed fans have already dissected the trailer, and upon finding what they believe is a Silent Hill reference, they’re more intrigued than ever.

Death Stranding was Hideo Kojima’s first independent game from his studio Kojima Productions. It came years after his mysterious departure from Konami, which many speculate had something to do with P.T., the incredible playable teaser for Silent Hills, the reboot to the Silent Hill franchise that never got to see the light of day. Now, fans have rekindled their hope because of an obscure Silent Hill reference in the teaser trailer for OD.

Related: All Silent Hill Games, Ranked Worst to Best

What is the Silent Hill Reference in the OD Teaser Trailer?

The Silent Hill reference in the OD teaser trailer is a series of letters that appear in specific frames while German actor Udo Kier, is speaking. The letters “A,T,A,M,I,” appear in his mouth. This is the name of a Japanese town known for hot springs and steep hills. The location is also said to have inspired Silent Hill and was mentioned on the PlayStation Store page listing for P.T. while it was live. Finally, written in Japanese, the name of this place roughly translates to quiet or silent hill or plateau.

A deeper look at the OD Trailer:

Firstly, they're all reading what's called a "vocal pangram" and it has no real meaning, because its only function is that you pronounce all the sounds in the English language so that they register all the muscles of your mouth inside the engine.… pic.twitter.com/ut4D8UNlYX

— Will | Horror Game Central 👁️ (@ResiEvilCentral) December 11, 2023

Fans across various platforms slowly compiled all of this information in the days following The Game Awards 2023. We discovered it where most other people did, in a post on Twitter from Will of Resident Evil Central that compiles most of the details into one place.

Most fans are being very careful to manage their expectations. Hideo Kojima is no longer with Konami, the owner of the Silent Hill IP. There’s almost no way that he could be working on a Silent Hill game again. Not unless Konami and he have buried the hatchet and agreed to work together, or Kojima has managed to get the work via a shell company somehow.

Is OD a Silent Hill Game?

There’s no way to know if OD is a Silent Hill game at the time of writing. However, there are a few facts we know that make it pretty clear that OD is not a Silent Hill game. First, as we’ve already mentioned, Konami owns the Silent Hill IP, and Hideo Kojima no longer works for the company.

Second, reading between the lines, Kojima pulled quite a big stunt at Konami by diverting resources to P.T. and launching it without the company’s knowledge. Even if Konami were looking to make a Silent Hills-style game, it’s unlikely it would work with Kojima again, given their tumultuous history.

Third, we know of several Silent Hill games already in the works, such as Ascension, Townfall, and the Silent Hill 2 Remake. These games were revealed with the franchise name to build excitement for them and show Konami is actively looking to bring the series back to life. It wouldn’t make sense for it hide another Silent Hill game with vague teasers as some people believe is happening with OD.

Of course, there’s no way to know if OD is part of the Silent Hill franchise or not for sure until it has been released. The game’s premise is all about overdosing on fear, which certainly fits with the ideas presented in Silent Hill and could make for an incredibly interesting venture into the digital effects of the town. We’ll just have to wait and see.