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[Wollan]

Seems timely to put up an appreciation thread for one of the legends in the industry with his latest & very original game Gravity Rush 2 receiving Good reviews.

Keiichirō Toyama (外山 圭一郎 Toyama Keiichirō?), born August 17, 1978 (age 38), is a video game designer, best known as the creator of the survival horror video games Silent Hill (1999) and Siren series.[1]
He was studying art as a student and joined Konami in 1994[2] as a graphic artist. He was the graphic designer and character designer of Snatcher and International Track & Field, after that he created the Silent Hill series. The game was successful and produced various sequels, but Toyama left Team Silent in 1999 after the first game was launched[2] to join SCE Japan Studio afterwards to work on the Siren series. He directed the video games Siren (2003) and its sequel Forbidden Siren 2 (2006).[3] In 2008, Toyama released Siren: Blood Curse, a reimagining of the original Siren game. Toyama then worked on the PlayStation Vita game Gravity Rush, released in 2012.[4] Toyama's next game Gravity Rush 2 will be released on January 19, 2017 in Japan.[5]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keiichiro_Toyama
There's a handful of champion game directors working at SIE including Neil Druckmann, Bruce Straley, Mathijs de Jonge, Kazunori Yamauchi & seemingly Hideo Kojima these days and Cory Barlog. Keiichiro Toyama should stand tall and proud with the rest.

Keiichirō Toyama directed the original Silent Hill at the age of 20...
This was his first game as director and that is to me near unbelievable. I consider it to be the very best videogame created of all time, definitely within its genre. Essays can be written about this game but to highlight some standout features:
One of the more powerful openings of all time, the convoluted yet deeply rewarding story and deep replayability with multiple endings, the fully open polygonal world running on the aging PS1 when other titles utilized pre-rendered backdrops, a deep focus on dread and no hand holding in contrast to jump scares and instant gratification, the ingenious camera that seems to have a life of its own, turning our expectations of a game soundtrack on its head and kickstarting the heaps of horror games inspired by Twin Peaks & Jacob's Ladder. Silent Hill is the magnum opus of horror games, more ambitious and with a larger scale than any of its sequels.

His portfolio as director also includes:

Siren / Forbidden Siren:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siren_(video_game)

Siren 2 / Forbidden Siren 2:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Siren_2

Siren Blood Curse / Siren New Translation:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siren:_Blood_Curse
Siren Blood Curse is likely my favorite PS3 game behind Demon's Souls.
This was surprise announced mere three months ahead of rolling out gradually as 12 part episodic game to great reviews. Each episode mimicked Lost a bit with them ending in a teaser for what's coming up 'In the next episode of Siren...'. The game had probably the best example of a multicultural language barrier within a game as its Japanese and American protagonists had bigger issues communicating and this leading to interesting situations. This game is highly deserving of a remaster.

Gravity Rush / Gravity Daze:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_Rush

Gravity Rush 2 / Gravity Daze 2:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_Rush_2

Trivia:
Two of his games has received movie treatments and both are one of the the better game adaptions out there:

Apparently he is jumping right into his next game project as of this moment. His studio has been doing PSVR experiments... any bets on a Siren Game with a VR take on the series well known sight-jacking mechanism?

 

[LastMinuteHero]

I'm ready for siren vr toyama

 

[DriftingSpirit]

Bless this man.

 

[Dusk Golem]

I love the guy, I think he's an underspoken genius in video games. Being the director and original concepter of Silent Hill 1, the whole Forbidden Siren franchise, and the recent Gravity Rush games.

Being a horror fan I do hope he goes back to horror, but it sounds like he may after Gravity Rush 2. He mentioned he wants to do another horror game, and had been looking into VR possibilities for a horror game. If Siren or something else, I don't care.



Also here's a Google Translate link to a recent interview he did with Fatal Frame series creator as they talk about horror games and their take on them (was posted a couple months ago).

 

[Strangelove77]

I love Silent Hill and Gravity Rush, but I've never played a Siren game. How does the first hold up? It's on PS4 as a PS2 classic.

 

[Luminaire]

Truly great.

Now put Blood Curse on sale you bastard.

 

[Defuser]

A Siren VR would be fucking dope. First person sightjack as a shibito would make anybody shit their pants.

 

[Sayers]

Apparently he is jumping right into his next game project as of this moment. His studio has been doing PSVR experiments... any bets on a Siren Game with a VR take on the series well known sight-jacking mechanism?

Gravity Rush 3 please!

 

[LastMinuteHero]

Truly great.

Now put Blood Curse on sale you bastard.

Thought it's been on sale a few times already?

 

[mollipen]

The man brought my my favorite game of all time (Silent Hill) and a game that I adore that might be in my top 10 of all time (Gravity Rush). I owe him more than I can say in terms of being a gamer and a fan of games.

 

[Napalm_Frank]

Whatever he decides to do next, I'll be there.

 

[Randomizer]

Joined Konami at 16 and released Slient Hill aged only 20. Crazy that he was given such a big role at that young of an age. Talented dude for sure and still relatively young too. Have always wanted to give the Siren series another try after not liking the first game very much.

 

[GamingPheasant]

The PS2 Siren series were among the hardest games I've ever played. PS3 Siren were easier in comparison.

First Silent Hill is the first time I've had a hard time playing with the lights off.

 

[makingmusic476]

I wonder if he'll be returning to Siren now that Silent Hills is dead.

 

[Spiral Insanity]

I adore his work. He is a master. Let him make another Siren, Sony. (If he wants)

 

[Dusk Golem]

I love Silent Hill and Gravity Rush, but I've never played a Siren game. How does the first hold up? It's on PS4 as a PS2 classic.

Joined Konami at 16 and released Slient Hill aged only 21. Crazy that he was given such a big role at that young of an age. Talented dude for sure and still relatively young too. Have always wanted to give the Siren series another try after not liking the first game very much.

Siren 1 has its fans and appeals, but know Siren 2 & Blood Curse I think are infinitely better games than the original Siren. Siren 2 especially.

Siren: Blood Curse is kind of like a dumbed down 'Hollywood' version of Siren 1, but I actually think it's better for it. I beat the original Siren last year finally, and though I liked it and beating it is one of my proud accomplishments, it's a hard game to recommend. I got about 90% of the collectibles and my playtime was between 50-60 hours, there was a lot of having to retry stages, and the game is basically like a weird puzzle game where you have to figure out what the game wants you to do. Siren 1 kind of works where there's little leeway to progress outside of doing what the game wants you to do, and is really challenging. There comes a point where you sort of begin to get in the 'groove' of the game and it becomes fun to work through it, but it definitely has frustration attached to it.

In comparison, the second game and Blood Curse are not only far more playable, but I'd even say creepier and better executed and paced. Some will prefer Siren 1's cryptic ways, but I think having you have to literally figure the game out inside and out to progress does detract from its scariness and atmosphere potential.

Siren 2 in particular does some really interesting things though, I think Siren 2 is too underspoken. It never released in America, only Europe and Japan, but I think it's the best entry in the franchise.

 

[SolidSnakex]

A very interesting point about why he ended up leaving Konami

"I felt like I had taken the director job a little too quickly," he said, "and I lost some of my confidence in the process. We had a lot of talented people on the staff, like [creature designer] Masahiro Ito, [cutscene director] Takayoshi Sato and [musician and later series producer] Akira Yamaoka, and to some extent, I felt like my design work was more getting in the way of their talents than anything else. So I moved to SCE with the intention of re-learning my job from the ground up."

http://www.polygon.com/2013/10/30/5...-discusses-how-he-joined-the-game-biz-and-why

 

[AuthenticM]

He should make a new Siren game for VR; his idea of P.T.

 

[jetsetnickradio]

Truly great.

Now put Blood Curse on sale you bastard.

In the US it goes on sale pretty much every October.

You can also buy Asian copies of the game in English.

Tbh I'm too much of a wuss to play horror games, but I love Gravity Rush.

 

[Figboy79]

Right on.

I've enjoyed every single one of his games that I've played, and I got Gravity Rush 2 pre-ordered, and am replaying the PS4 Remaster the past few days (I already beat the Vita version, but the remaster is damn nice). Super excited for GR2. I'm tempted to play Siren Blood Curse, because I can't remember if I beat it before my PS3 croaked on me. The first one was so hard and terrifying, that I never finished that one on PS2. I may dive into that one and give it another go. Siren, for me, was one of the scariest games I had ever played, and I didn't know it was from the director of Silent Hill until a little bit after playing it ages ago. I should have known. The "Sight Jacking" feature is fucking horrifying. Toyama and his team have such a great eye for atmosphere and building a world that feels believable, but is also really compelling and interesting. Silent Hill is probably one of my favorite video game locations, and Hekkesville is oozing character and history. I'm hoping that being on the PS4 allows the team to really expand on the concepts of GR1.

 

[Unknown?]

They made a siren movie?! Is it in English or only Japanese?

 

[How About No]

I've been waiting for a new Siren for a long time

 

[Squire]

He's an auteur. I'm not really a Silent Hill or Siren guy, but I love Gravity Rush to death. It's one of the few modern games I feel can't be described with buzzwords or names of familiar franchises. It's so genuinely unique.

Pleasant surprise to learn he's under 40, too.

 

[Luminaire]

Thought it's been on sale a few times already?

It has but I always miss it.

In the US it goes on sale pretty much every October.

You can also buy Asian copies of the game in English.

Tbh I'm too much of a wuss to play horror games, but I love Gravity Rush.

But then I'd have to pay shipping and give up complaining online and shouting into the ether at a developer who will never hear me.

As for GR, as much as I love it, I only got about halfway into the Vita version and quit because it was uncomfortable, but I started up the PS4 one and have had a much better time. I plan to knock it out this week.

Spoiler

Overcome your fear! I believe!

 

[wapplew]

Live action Gravity Rush movie when?

 

[Kanann]

Siren 1 has its fans and appeals, but know Siren 2 & Blood Curse I think are infinitely better games than the original Siren. Siren 2 especially.

Siren: Blood Curse is kind of like a dumbed down 'Hollywood' version of Siren 1, but I actually think it's better for it. I beat the original Siren last year finally, and though I liked it and beating it is one of my proud accomplishments, it's a hard game to recommend. I got about 90% of the collectibles and my playtime was between 50-60 hours, there was a lot of having to retry stages, and the game is basically like a weird puzzle game where you have to figure out what the game wants you to do. Siren 1 kind of works where there's little leeway to progress outside of doing what the game wants you to do, and is really challenging. There comes a point where you sort of begin to get in the 'groove' of the game and it becomes fun to work through it, but it definitely has frustration attached to it.

In comparison, the second game and Blood Curse are not only far more playable, but I'd even say creepier and better executed and paced. Some will prefer Siren 1's cryptic ways, but I think having you have to literally figure the game out inside and out to progress does detract from its scariness and atmosphere potential.

Siren 2 in particular does some really interesting things though, I think Siren 2 is too underspoken. It never released in America, only Europe and Japan, but I think it's the best entry in the franchise.

Agreed, Siren 2 kick ass.

 

[Plumpbiscuit]

They made a siren movie?! Is it in English or only Japanese?

The movie is in Japanese and has quite a famous actor who I love named Naoki Tanaka, who is very well-known as being one of the hosts in Gaki no Tsukai. The movie didn't do great, but not awful either and from what I've seen the average person doesn't feel like it does the game justice. On the other hand I really love the movie. The isolated island, an ancient curse, some surprisingly good acting and arcs mix together to make an entertaining b-movie with spices of the Siren games. Granted, the movie doesn't follow the games' style or is dark and gritty, there's actually some comedy in the movie, but it adds traction to the oppression of the atmosphere and works pretty well imo. Also, did I mention Tanaka is awesome? I was hooked on the movie the moment I recognised him!

As for the topic at hand, Keiichiro Toyama is a great game designer and knows how to portray the horror in horror. He has a unique style, this dark, foreboding and gritty style that you can see across SH1 and both Siren games. I feel Toyama is the Shinji Mikami of his time when he was at Konami doing horror games and he definitely underappreciated.

There is a short documentary about him released a few months ago on YouTube if anybody is interested (10 minutes long). There, he talks about SH1, Siren, the success of GR1 and what inspired him to make it.

Whilst Silent Hill is my favourite horror series of all time for many reasons, I still do think both Siren games are among the 'scariest' games of all time. They aren't first-person jump-at-camera during scripted moments like, or rely on cheap jumpscares, loud noises and grabbing the player's throat where you wiggle some stick to break free, but both games are the opposite to all this. The games are hard, you will die alot, there is little hand holding and the scares come from how atmospheric the games are without scripted jumpscares. It's interesting they used real actors for the character models and plastered them on the faces, this somehow adds to the creepiness factor. The games aren't perfect though, there's some framerate issues, the voice acting is really bad and you could argue the nature of the game's hardcore difficulty and quest system works against the enjoyment and frustration aspect, which I understand, but if horror games were too easy then where does the tension come from outside of scripted jumpscares? Also the PS3 remake (Siren: Blood Curse) did improve on the original game but fell short in others. Still, I like that there's lots of characters to play as.

I dunno, I think this guy is great and I wish him all the success, but his GR rush games don't click with me. I just don't see the appeal in running and jumping around when the games don't even have voice acting or proper cutscenes, it looks cheap and lazy.

Hopefully one day he'll return back to doing what he did best.

 

[vegohead]

Siren 1 has its fans and appeals, but know Siren 2 & Blood Curse I think are infinitely better games than the original Siren. Siren 2 especially.

Siren: Blood Curse is kind of like a dumbed down 'Hollywood' version of Siren 1, but I actually think it's better for it. I beat the original Siren last year finally, and though I liked it and beating it is one of my proud accomplishments, it's a hard game to recommend. I got about 90% of the collectibles and my playtime was between 50-60 hours, there was a lot of having to retry stages, and the game is basically like a weird puzzle game where you have to figure out what the game wants you to do. Siren 1 kind of works where there's little leeway to progress outside of doing what the game wants you to do, and is really challenging. There comes a point where you sort of begin to get in the 'groove' of the game and it becomes fun to work through it, but it definitely has frustration attached to it.

In comparison, the second game and Blood Curse are not only far more playable, but I'd even say creepier and better executed and paced. Some will prefer Siren 1's cryptic ways, but I think having you have to literally figure the game out inside and out to progress does detract from its scariness and atmosphere potential.

Siren 2 in particular does some really interesting things though, I think Siren 2 is too underspoken. It never released in America, only Europe and Japan, but I think it's the best entry in the franchise.

I love the siren games so much. I actully imported a PAL OG PS3 to play Siren 2. I was originally playing it emulated through PCSX2 with a physical copy until I got to the end of the game and ran into a game breaking bug. (screw those random number locks!)

I'd say the original Siren was the most memorable with the second game being close. The remake was fine but it removed so much tension.

 

[Skeeter49]

Hope we get a new horror IP next from him.

 

[duckroll]

You know, I appreciate this guy but I can't really say I ever liked any of his games much. Silent Hill was amazing conceptually, but it's a pretty janky game. PS1 + heavy fog effects = lol. Siren is a terrible game for me because it's a mix of everything I can't stand. Clumsy escort stuff, classic Japanese horror film settings and scares, etc. I love reading about the story of Siren on Wikipedia or whatever, but the game is just not for me. I downloaded the demo for Gravity Rush on Vita and I love the art and gyro action control concept, but... it just... didn't really feel that fun to play? I dunno.

 

[Big Nikus]

Some people I worked with ten years ago made a 45mn documentary about him for a french tv channel. It was really good but it's not on Youtube apparently. I may have a DVD stored somewhere, I'll have to look for it.

There's this 10 mn video that's really cool : https://youtu.be/Ki46xPJjZy8
toco toco is a great channel, the show airs on the french channel managed by the dude who made the aforementioned 45mn doc. Akira Yamaoka even composed an opening for one of the shows.

 

[LotusHD]

Whatever he decides to do next, I'll be there.

This. Provided one of the most unique, memorable games I've ever played. It's the least I can do lol

 

[ShroudOfFate]

I recently played through the Fatal Frame games with some friends and I'm still kind of in the mood for a JP horror game. How does Siren hold up?

 

[Erigu]

Some people I worked with ten years ago made a 45mn documentary about him for a french tv channel. It was really good but it's not on Youtube apparently.

Pocket Shami?

 

[UrbanRats]

Best in the biz.
Well, except for when it comes to raw gameplay, but thats ok.

 

[Plumpbiscuit]

I recently played through the Fatal Frame games with some friends and I'm still kind of in the mood for a JP horror game. How does Siren hold up?

The first thing you'll want to know is the controls and the game's difficulty, these appear to be the make or break factor when it comes to getting into the Siren games. The controls are stiff, awkward and unconventional. The game utilises tank controls to move the characters and there's some detection issues when the player collides with a solid wall, it makes it a little hard to smoothly move around a corner if you're hugging a wall or moving through a doorway. If you're okay with spending some time getting use to early PS2 controls, there ya go. For the difficulty... the first game is brutally hard and unforgiving, the lack of checkpoints can make the game infuriating especially if you're the kind of person who doesn't like backtracking or just want to play the game for its story. It isn't impossible-hard, but if you take your time, be patient, learn enemies patterns with the 'sight jack' feature and willing to put up with harsh consequences for death, then two of the biggest castigation's done.

Also it isn't your typical horror game... the game uses a mission/day system where you can choose what "quest" you want to do and the game will skip to that timeline, so in this sense, the story isn't linear a---b---c---d it's more like b---c---a---d. The combat is clunky and it's more of a who can get the first swing in typically wins the fight ordeal, although this game is more about avoiding the shibito rather than taking on every fight.

So yeah, if you're willing to overlook a love it or hate it control system, hard difficulty with backtracking and a non-linear story you're in for a treat. There's multiple characters to play as, a really daunting, haunting, dark, foreboding atmosphere to sink your teeth into and some great organic scares. There's lots of exploration, puzzles to solve and stealthy movement. You'll die in just a couple or so hits so there's high tension.

 

[Fady K]

I love this guy very much, good on you for creating this thread Wollan

I love the guy, I think he's an underspoken genius in video games. Being the director and original concepter of Silent Hill 1, the whole Forbidden Siren franchise, and the recent Gravity Rush games.

Being a horror fan I do hope he goes back to horror, but it sounds like he may after Gravity Rush 2. He mentioned he wants to do another horror game, and had been looking into VR possibilities for a horror game. If Siren or something else, I don't care.



Also here's a Google Translate link to a recent interview he did with Fatal Frame series creator as they talk about horror games and their take on them (was posted a couple months ago).

I need that Toro shirt of his!!! I heard he has begun working on his next game already and it would be a dream if it was Siren-related. I really, really love the Siren series and was very fond of the PS3 game as well.

https://minusworld0.files.wordpress.com/2016/09/tocotoco01.jpg[/IMG]
There is a short documentary about him released a few months ago on YouTube if anybody is interested (10 minutes long). There, he talks about SH1, Siren, the success of GR1 and what inspired him to make it.
.

Thanks for sharing this documentary Plumpbiscuit, much appreciated

 

[Plumpbiscuit]

There's a video reviewing Forbidden Siren on YouTube made by NitroRad. It's actually pretty cool and he goes into some of the background of how both games were made. This quote from that video struck me, and goes to why I love the guy so much:

"Toyama was told that it [Siren] might have sold better if the game were easier. Toyama said that the high difficulty and confusing nature of the first game was something he planned all along. He didn't want it to be a game you could just sit and complete by playing it normally, he wanted information regarding progressing through the game to be seen spread online, being a collective effort to try and solve the game."

Yeah, it does sound like P.T in that the developers made the game so obscure, vague and cryptic on purpose so that it would spark online discussions and gain attention that way. Pretty cool stuff.

 

[Big Nikus]

Pocket Shami?

Yes !
I was writing a review of Forbiden Siren 2 and I asked if they could send me the documentary about Toyama. The deadline was approaching but they were super fast, sent me all the material they had, even unrelated stuff so I could watch the other documentaries they produced.

 

[Xliskin]

This. Provided one of the most unique, memorable games I've ever played. It's the least I can do lol

Can't agree more Gravity rush is one of my greatest games of all time

You know, I appreciate this guy but I can't really say I ever liked any of his games much. Silent Hill was amazing conceptually, but it's a pretty janky game. PS1 + heavy fog effects = lol. Siren is a terrible game for me because it's a mix of everything I can't stand. Clumsy escort stuff, classic Japanese horror film settings and scares, etc. I love reading about the story of Siren on Wikipedia or whatever, but the game is just not for me. I downloaded the demo for Gravity Rush on Vita and I love the art and gyro action control concept, but... it just... didn't really feel that fun to play? I dunno.

Give GR2 Demo a try , it's out there

 

[Spoo]

Give GR2 Demo a try , it's out there

I don't think that demo will sell him on the game -- it's kinda buggy and not too fun, and I say this as someone who loved GR1.

 

[encephalon]

The movie is an awful adaptation. Silent Hill is more than visuals.

 

[Guymelef]

Always amazed me how coming from Silent Hill and Siren he could bring something so colorful and kind as Gravity Rush.

 

[GrayChild]

I know this may be an unpopular opinion, but Toyama is up there with Miyazaki, Kojima, Mikami and Kamiya for me. Perhaps the single most underrated Japanese video game director.

And I just noticed he was only 20 when he created Silent Hill. Holy shit!

 

[Aostia]

You know, I appreciate this guy but I can't really say I ever liked any of his games much. Silent Hill was amazing conceptually, but it's a pretty janky game. PS1 + heavy fog effects = lol. Siren is a terrible game for me because it's a mix of everything I can't stand. Clumsy escort stuff, classic Japanese horror film settings and scares, etc. I love reading about the story of Siren on Wikipedia or whatever, but the game is just not for me. I downloaded the demo for Gravity Rush on Vita and I love the art and gyro action control concept, but... it just... didn't really feel that fun to play? I dunno.

I can see your point, but I still appreciate the guy a lot for its pedigree

 

[Acquiescence]

I've never played a Siren game. I love Gravity Rush and Silent Hill was a revelation back when it came out (plus I still really enjoy it), but for some reason or another, I just never bothered with Siren.

Anyway, I hope his next game is Gravity Rush 3.

 

[GrayChild]

I've never played a Siren game. I love Gravity Rush and Silent Hill was a revelation back when it came out (plus I still really enjoy it), but for some reason or another, I just never bothered with Siren.

Apart from its maddeningly high difficulty (at times), as well as some cringy voice acting, the first Siren is up there with Silent Hill 1-3 in terms of atmosphere, story, soundtrack and scares. You should definitely check it out.

 

[Taruranto]

Silent Hill 1 is probably his best game, Siren 1 though it's tremendously underrated. Never played Gravity Rush and I'm not a fan of the direction the Siren series took.

 

[The Praiseworthy]

He have such a beautiful mind... I loved all of his games and all his future projects are a "must" for me.

 

[Caipirinha]

Siren Blood Curse, without the pointless episodic intros/outros, is absolute survival horror perfection. I fucking LOVED it.

I really really hope we get a Siren PS4.Does anyone know what the chances are? I know most of the team have been working on GR2 so I guess it'll be a long time if ever :/

I would actually prefer a non-VR Siren, I kinda miss 3rd person survival horror..