Silent Hill f fans can't decide if its combat is "ruining the whole experience" with fights harder than Elden Ring, or if the new horror game "was designed for you to pick your battles"

After an impressive "Very Positive" start on Steam earlier this week, Silent Hill f players are taking to online forums to discuss their experience with the horror game so far – and one of the most common points of contention seems to be its difficulty.

As our own Silent Hill f review explores, the combat in Konami's latest title often feels "more irritating than scary." Compared by many longtime fans of the Silent Hill series to Soulslike gameplay, with its dodging and stamina-heavy mechanics, the combat in the latest entry is certainly more challenging than in its predecessors – and the so-called "Story" difficulty isn't cutting it for most players who are struggling with it, either.

I love EVERYTHING in this game. Except one, core part. And I NEED to complain. from r/silenthill

"I love EVERYTHING in this game," one frustrated fan writes on Reddit. "Except one, core part. And I NEED to complain." That one, core part? It's the combat. "It's so stiff, clunky," as the poster continues. "Perfect dodge system? It just works so AGAINST what everything else is, it baffles me?! I love EVERYTHING else, but golly do I feel this when it's 95% of the game past a point." They aren't the only person expressing as much.

"Starting to really dislike Silent Hill f," another player's thread reads. "The amount of enemies is just kinda ruining the whole experience for me, especially how bullet (pipe) spongey they are. I'm currently near the end of the game, and I just keep getting blasted with insane amounts of enemies that take 10 hits to even do anything [to]." The fan goes as far as saying actual Souls games like Elden Ring were "easier than this."

Elsewhere in a post, a player says their "main issue with Silent Hill f is that it was way too fight-focused." As is always the case, however, the community isn't a monolith, and others disagree with the combat being too annoying or challenging. As one fan asks, "Why aren't people just running?" Stating they've "had a lot of fun with the game so far by just running away when possible," they think "the game was designed for you to pick your battles."

Why aren’t people just running from r/silenthill

They conclude, "It's survival horror at its core, the fear of choice. I would think with a survival horror series, people would instinctively avoid combat when available, especially when the game provides practically no rewards for fighting." Obviously, though, everyone approaches Silent Hill f differently – and I for one haven't been a fan of the combat myself, even on Story mode. It's still undeniably a brilliant game, nonetheless.

Sitting on Metacritic with a solid score of 86 right now – one that places the game at the same spot as the recent Silent Hill 2 remake from 2024 – Silent Hill f has impressed critics and fans alike despite any hiccups regarding its combat and difficulty.

Searching for something else to play after Konami and NeoBards' latest banger? Browse through our quick rundown of the most exciting new games coming this year and beyond for more.