Silent Hill: Townfall employs a "creepy Game Boy"-esque handheld CRTV device to "weaponize nostalgia," grounding players in its horror setting by leveraging familiar '90s technology, according to writer and studio co-founder Jon McKellan.
The game's unique approach to horror stems from its embrace of analogue video aesthetics, a hallmark of McKellan's own art style. The CRTV serves as a core gameplay mechanic, drawing parallels to the static and radio features of previous Silent Hill titles. "Having something recognisable and tangible just sort of grounds you in the world a little bit more," McKellan explained. "People might not ever have owned one, but we all can understand the sensation of holding a little screen in our hands that shows us scary things!"
Screen Burn always envisioned Townfall with first-person exploration and combat. The concept of facing a more visceral threat than in their previous titles was an early consideration. The team drew inspiration from '80s and '90s pocket televisions for the CRTV's physical design, aiming for a weighty, old-fashioned feel that was also practical for gameplay.
The '90s setting and the CRTV gadget coalesced early in development. The team sought to innovate on the classic Silent Hill radio trope by introducing a device that could offer more interactive gameplay elements. The '90s setting proved ideal due to the era's technological landscape: nascent internet and email existed, but devices were not yet sophisticated enough to solve all problems, creating a believable analogue feel that meshed well with the CRTV concept.
Initial concepts for the device were closer to a traditional radio, allowing players to tune into different frequencies. However, the shift to a TV format with a screen opened up numerous possibilities for gameplay, narrative, and puzzle design. "As soon as we latched on to the concept of it being a TV and having a screen that could be used for all sorts of game design uses, story development, and puzzle clues, the opportunities just immediately opened up for it, and there was no turning back," McKellan stated.
Significant experimentation went into the CRTV's enemy tracking functionality. The developers explored various methods, including assigning different frequencies to enemy types and relying solely on visual cues. The final iteration allows players to track multiple enemies, albeit with a "live" focus on one at a time, and offers the ability to quickly switch between tracked targets using the D-pad for more complex environments.
While there's nothing specifically Scottish about the CRTV's design, it fits the era and the game's setting, evoking the desire for such a device in the '90s. The developers utilized a collection of real-world vintage televisions and monitors, physically distorting signals with static, magnets, and loose cables to create the game's distinctive CRTV effects. This hands-on approach captured authentic static and distortion, offering varied pixel densities from different screen types.
McKellan believes the '90s provide a unique sweet spot for horror due to the transitional nature of technology. The visual break-up of older digital signals offers more cinematic potential than the abrupt stoppages of modern digital broadcasts. This tangible, textured aesthetic, even within a surreal dreamscape, lowers the barrier to immersion by providing relatable elements, allowing the team to "weaponize nostalgia" by twisting familiar comforts into sources of dread.