Well Silent Hill f was really good.
Hinako has a lot of really nuanced relationships all around her, all while the pressure of expectation is forcing things to be simple. To be the way things are. It's little wonder she finds herself in two halves.
Fox Hinako is pretty obvious, it's the Hinako who succumbs to societal pressure and takes on the role demanded of her. A quiet, agreeable wife who has no opinion or say. It's the woman every woman says she must become to be happy. Grow up, and accept this is your lot in life.
But it's deeply unfair to what Hinako wants for herself. She has no say, no options, a husband was chosen for her in order to pay off her father's debts. And no one around her seems to care. It's marriage! It's the start of happiness, Hinako!
On the other hand, though. There is another Hinako. The one who follows along with the doll. Doll Hinako is, in some ways, just as much of a puppet as Fox Hinako is. Yes, she's opposed to marriage and being controlled, but it's to such an extent that in the end, she still isn't deciding. Rebellion without reflection makes it so all the decisions are already made for you once again. Only now in opposition. Some part of Hinako does, genuinely, care for Kotoyuki, her husband-to-be. Denying him as an extension of denying society around her is also denying her honest feelings.
It's why the fourth ending is the best outcome, overall. Both sides of Hinako are forced into motion by societal pressure, and neither has had a chance to breathe. Let alone think! Hinako extending grace to her conflicting feelings is what allows both to coexist. And to consider who the people in her life were. And who they will be to her. It's her choice to make. I don't think it's any mystery why this is the route that has Hinako talk with her parents, where they explain themselves. Kanta's sincere regret he has taught her poorly what a husband is. Her mother trying to reassure her that she does, in fact, have a spine and uses it.
But neither results in immediate forgiveness, aye? I don't think Ryukishi's fallen for the trap of displaying these other sides to Kanta and Kimie and thinking he's demonstrated gender parity. That see? "It's totally okay Kanta hit his wife and threw knives and Kimie never stood up for her daughters where they could see. They had things going on, they're absolved!" They are not. They're only shown to be exactly what they are. Deeply flawed humans who are also victims of the society around them. Kanta has to be violent because it's all that's allowed to be expressed from men. Kimie must be silent, because that is a woman's place.
But it does not absolve them, and the game very wisely leaves it to Hinako, and Hinako alone, whether to forgive them for the pain they've caused. It's not our, the player's, business to do so.
I do really applaud SHf for showing nuance, but without making the mistake of erasing women's struggles in patriarchal society. Even though Fox Hinako undoubtedly has power, grace, and authority in her own right, a Devil Trigger does not make me forget that the wedding ceremony was torture and torment she had to take on alone. She had to do so much work while Kotoyuki left her behind. She had to saw off her arm, be mutilated, while Kotoyuki is allowed to keep his own face under his mask, untouched and unbothered by the sight. I see the commentary of violence against women running in the enemy catalogue, I see it reflected in how Junko is also hidden behind a mask. It's a very clear message, there's still a lot of violence happening here and it is not okay.
It does make Hinako's dream of being able to decide for herself what she would like to do all the more impactful. It's the true measure of her struggles. I found it especially poignant, though, when she spoke about her happiness. And how it is something that can't possibly be chosen for her. Her choices may lead to sorrow, or anger, but those will be hers. And that's the shape of a joy that goes far deeper than childhood bliss or marital fantasy.
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