The bags of PTV drugs discovered by Harry Mason in the first Silent Hill game.
PTV is a recreational drug that was distributed at one point by Dr. Michael Kaufmann who was doing dealings with the local religious cult known as The Order and it was used by the citizens of the town of Silent Hill and tourists visiting the area. The main ingredient of the drug is White Claudia. It is revealed that Officer Cybil Bennett from Brahms County outside Silent Hill made a reference on PTV to drug trafficking within Silent Hill and the nurse Lisa Garland was a heavy user of PTV.
This is one of the many 'in-jokes' made by the programmers, as PTV is a reference to the band, Psychic TV. A room in Nowhere contains boxes of the drug labeled as "PSYCHICK TV". When Harry Mason comes to the shopping mall, he approaches an escalator, at which point his daughter, Cheryl, suddenly pops up on some TV screens and calls out to him. Afterward, they show the same symbol shown in the school earlier, and among the symbols flashing across the screens is the Psychic TV cross. Another reference is to Psychic TV's leader, Genesis P-Orridge, as the bridge to Central Silent Hill is named "Orridge".
References to PTV and White Claudia can be found throughout the first Silent Hill game.
File 8: White Claudia Report
Location: Office, Silent Hill Police Station (on blackboard).
Product only available in select areas of Silent Hill. Raw material is White Claudia, a plant peculiar to the region. Manufactured here? Dealer = Manufacturer?
File 12: Newspaper Article
A newpaper article about PTV.
Location: Norman Young's motel.
INVESTIGATION STALLED "PTV" Dealers still at large. Suspicious deaths continue. Like the anti-drug mayor, a narcotics officer dies of sudden heart failure of origin unknown.
File 14: White Claudia Description
Location: Third floor, Nowhere room.
WHITE CLAUDIA Perennial herb found near water. Reaches height of 10 to 15 inches. Oblong leaves, white blossoms. Seeds contain hallucinogen. Ancient records show it was used for religious ceremonies. The hallucinogenic effect was key.
Trivia
- The drug possibly causes memory loss and manic behavior, as exhibited by Lisa who is a known PTV addict. Lisa is even shown performing sexual favors in Riverside Motel to obtain the drug.
- In Silent Hill, in the storage room in the alternate Alchemilla Hospital (where Harry can pick up the Blood Pack), there are several bottles in the shelves. Upon examining them, Harry will state "There's a bottle filled with some kind of drug. Better leave it". It is unknown whether it is or not PTV, though it's possible.
- In Silent Hill: Homecoming, when Alex Shepherd wakes up on the shore, plants that fit the description of White Claudia can be seen growing.