Alright, put your pitchforks down.

We get it, Konami has done some pretty scummy things in the past. From their treatment of Hideo Kojima to the cancelation of Silent Hills and the utter bastardization of properties like Metal Gear and Contra—and that’s to say nothing of the allegations of borderline abusive treatment toward their employees—Konami has certainly been deserving of fan backlash. However, there’s reason to believe that, slowly but surely, things are changing for the controversial Japanese publisher. It may take a while, but we don’t think it’s impossible for Konami to rescue themselves from the hole they’ve spent most of the past decade digging.

To begin, though it may sound like downright blasphemy to most horror fans, particularly given the legendary status of P.T., it seems like Konami may have had a legitimate reason to cancel Silent Hills back in 2015. Heartbreaking as it was and disrespectful as it seemed at the time, there’s reason to believe that Kojima may have gone off the rails a bit, creating an incredibly expensive, overly-ambitious project which may have been far too niche for its budget, prompting Konami to cut ties with him.

The reason we believe this to be the case is because… well, that’s almost exactly what happened with 2019’s Death Stranding, a far-reaching title that, for the most part, didn’t even come close to living up to expectations. Kojima’s first major release after his high-profile departure from Konami, Death Stranding felt like it suffered from George Lucas syndrome; it was marred by an overzealous creative who was never told when enough was enough.

Of course, it’s hard to say for sure what could have come of the Silent Hills game—again, it’s worth mentioning that the demo alone was one of the most revolutionary, memorable releases of 2014—but, had it turned into a bloated mess ala the convoluted mailman sim we eventually received, Konami may have had a real mess on their hands. That’s to say nothing of rumors that Silent Hill may eventually be returning in the not-so-distant future, though we have no idea what we could be in store for in that regard.

Beyond that, there’s no doubt that what little Konami has delivered in the past five or so years has been either totally underwhelming or completely insulting… but that’s not exactly true. Amidst all their garbage monetization schemes and half-assed attempts at reviving long-dormant franchises, they’ve actually developed a few quality collections in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection and Contra Anniversary Collection alongside the emulation wizards in M2. Sure, it may not seem like acceptable penance for their past sins, but these releases were certainly a step in the right direction.

Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that, in recent months, they’ve been a bit less protective of their IP, working with sites like Fangamer and lending their iconic Silent Hill characters to the notorious asynchronous multiplayer title Dead By Daylight. These may seem like inconsequential moves, but, for a company that previously seemed content to shy away from gaming entirely and focus on the Japanese gambling scene, it’s another positive sign. That’s to say nothing of the remarkable Netflix Castlevania series, on top of that.

We understand that, in the eyes of many, Konami may never regain their status as publishers of legendary games, something they admittedly haven’t held since the NES and SNES era. However, if they continue in this direction and avoid any major flubs like what Contra fans had to suffer through with the abysmal Rogue Corps., they may be able to regain some of the respect they previously held.

It’s important to remember that, back in 2012, fellow Japanese publisher Capcom seemed to be in a very similar situation, releasing dud after dud in Resident Evil 6, Resident Evil Operation Racoon City, Street Fighter X Tekken, and even the controversial Asura’s Wrath’s “True Ending” DLC. At the time, Capcom’s action seemed irredeemable, but they righted the ship years later with success like Resident Evil 7 and the fantastic Resident Evil 2 remake.

It may not seem likely at the moment, but Konami isn’t as bad as everyone thinks, and they may be able to make a comeback in the near future.

NEXT: Silent Hill: All The Games Ranked From Worst To Best