Silver Pines Is Out Now: Find Eddie Velvet in Team17’s Survival Horror Metroidvania

Silver Pines, from Swedish developer Wych Elm and publisher Team17, blends classic survival horror puzzle solving and resource management with Metroidvania exploration. It’s played from a 2.5D side-scrolling perspective, with hand-painted, rotoscoped animation and a neo-noir look that makes the whole town feel like a bad dream.

Survival Horror Meets Metroidvania

Silver Pines isn’t completely empty, either. You’ll meet a strange cast of townsfolk who keep their own secrets from outsiders, alongside a wide variety of monsters and hulking, demonic bosses hiding in the shadows.

“Silver Pines is four years in the making, and the road here has been a long and strange one for our five person team,” said Wych Elm co-founder Linus Larsson. “Those influences are baked into the strange little town we’ve created, and we hope to give players an experience we’re so often treated to in movies but so rarely in games.”

What Players Are Saying

Silver Pines is rated Very Positive on Steam, with around 94% of reviews recommending it. Players keep reaching for the same comparisons: Silent Hill, Twin Peaks, Resident Evil and David Lynch, with one player calling it a love letter to Lynch’s work. The rotoscoped art, soundtrack, voice acting and atmosphere get the most praise, and players also single out the interlocking map, the puzzles and how polished it is at launch.

Even the positive reviews have some complaints. Several players find the close combat clunky or a little wooden, and say there’s a lot of backtracking with not much guidance on where to go next. A couple aren’t fans of reloading mid-fight or of saves that cost in-game coins. One player who worried about backtracking was relieved to find a fast travel system later on.

Editions & Pricing

Silver Pines at a Glance

For more gaming news and reviews, check out our reviews section.