Hollow Knight: Silksong review: A bug-eat-bug world of adventure & resolve

Whether you’re looking at the making of *Hollow Knight: Silksong* or the many patient fans who have been waiting, this has been a long time coming. In the end, it was worthwhile to open this game up, let it breathe, and take in all the details. Not only is *Hollow Knight: Silksong* a challenging Metroidvania, it’s also dense. While that challenging side sometimes slips into annoying territories, this is an undeniably well-crafted delivery of a promise made nearly a decade ago.

Need help with your own adventure? Check out our **HOLLOW KNIGHT: SILKSONG INTERACTIVE MAP**.

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### Into the Lands of Pharloom

The story of *Hollow Knight: Silksong* centers on a notable character from the first game: the half-god bug, Hornet. She finds herself in a predicament—captured by a cult, drained of her powers, and prepared for transport in a cage to some unknown recipient. Fate intervenes, granting her just enough strength to break free, causing her to fall to the very bottom depths of a land called Pharloom.

We quickly learn two important things:
– First, Pilgrims climb Pharloom in a quest to reach a holy place called the Citadel.
– Second, there is a mysterious thread scattered throughout Pharloom that causes both beast bugs and rational bugs (this world is all bugs, all the time) to lose their minds and attack one another.

Silksong’s setup provides a conceptually similar adventure to the first *Hollow Knight* game. The land is in the throes of a curse and, much like the first game’s Knight, Hornet is determined to break it—or at least break the force that tried to capture her.

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### A Massive, Beautiful World

That said, *Silksong* is quite the upgrade from the first game. Pharloom is an absolutely massive map full of unique biomes, secrets, and challenges to explore. It’s a delightful tapestry of art, music, and carefully crafted platforming action, stuffed with side quests and optional content that makes exploring every nook and cranny worthwhile.

*Hollow Knight* has always been uniquely expressive. For all its bugs having stoic shell masks, they’re wonderfully animated—whether to be cute, terrifying, or heartbreakingly sad. One memorable moment is a flea caravan quest where you help a traveling band find their compatriots. Why Team Cherry decided to make fleas so fluffy and cute is a mystery, but it’s a charming touch compared to their bloodsucking real-world counterparts.

Meanwhile, there are plenty of other life-draining elements within Silksong, like dangerous enemies and environmental hazards.

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### Incredible Music and Performance

The music is also incredible. Composer Christopher Larkin has outdone himself, delivering a collection that provides delightful ambiance across various regions of Pharloom. Many of the tracks have already found a place on my personal playlists because they make such perfect background music. The boss fight themes kick it into high gear, providing intense accompaniment to the game’s biggest challenges.

During my review, I played *Hollow Knight: Silksong* on PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2. I have to say, the Switch 2 version might actually be the better experience. On the PS5, I noticed occasional stutters when sprinting through halls or talking to NPCs. These stutters didn’t seem to affect platforming or fights significantly, but given how fast the game moves, it’s possible. I haven’t encountered these issues on the Switch 2, whether in handheld or docked mode.

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### Skillsong: Challenging but Rewarding

You may have heard it before—*Hollow Knight: Silksong* is not an easy game to complete. It’s not unfair, unbalanced, or broken; it’s just difficult, sometimes skill-wise and sometimes time-wise. This game is vast, bustling with increasingly challenging bosses, complex platforming, and an enormous amount of optional content that’s generally worth exploring.

*Silksong* follows the Metroidvania formula closely. You begin with limited abilities, exploring the map and discovering areas Hornet can’t access at first. As you progress, you collect new skills that unlock your movement, combat options, and the chances of reaching the game’s end.

One returning feature from the original *Hollow Knight* is the map system. Instead of having the map automatically reveal as you explore, you need to find an NPC vendor in each area who sells you the map for rosary beads—the primary currency in Pharloom. The compass also returns, which occupies an accessory slot. Personally, I dislike that choice because those slots are precious for amulets that reduce damage or boost attack. The compass only shows your location on the map—something many games do by default—so restricting it to an accessory slot feels unnecessary.

Thankfully, combat and platforming remain standout features in *Silksong*. Hornet moves differently from the first game’s Knight, with a downward-diagonal dive kick as her downward attack. Yet she still controls crisply and can weave around foes like a ballerina once you master her melee and jumping moves.

Anyone who played the first game knows it’s a very pogo-oriented action title. You can bounce on enemy heads or off obstacles with your downward attacks to traverse terrain efficiently. It takes time to get used to Hornet’s move set, but it’s worth noting that you eventually find crests that alter her basic moves and available equipment. One of the earliest crests gives her an attack style closer to the original *Hollow Knight*, but others are varied and fun to explore, upgrade, and mix into your overall kit.

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### The Difficulty and Some Tedium

I’m of two minds about *Hollow Knight: Silksong*’s difficulty. On one hand, from every grandiose display to the smallest detail, the game is impeccably crafted. The platforming is smart and satisfying, boss fights are generally fun and challenging to figure out, and the characters and their quests are consistently rewarding. The game looks and feels like almost every sight, sound, and response was carefully considered and placed with purpose.

On the other hand, there are several elements that feel like padding. Shell shards, for example, are a particular frustration. Throughout the game, you gain tools that act like subweapons—such as throwing daggers or a brew that makes Hornet move and attack faster. You have limited uses for each tool and must refill them by crafting with shell shards at any save point. Tools make boss fights far more manageable, but if you rely heavily on them, you quickly run out of shards, forcing you to farm for resources away from progress.

Rosary beads can also be stingy at certain points, though this becomes less problematic later on. Still, the farming and resource management feel tedious. It reminded me of *Demon’s Souls*’ item economy, which I also disliked.

Other sources of frustrating tedium include long runbacks to bosses after dying and quests that require you to shuttle across the entire map to find one or two items, sometimes without the aid of fast travel.

I mentioned disliking the compass mechanic earlier, but there’s also the requirement to buy map markers from an NPC for points of interest. If you encounter a blocked path and don’t have the map or relevant markers, you must remember the obstacle’s location yourself, adding needless difficulty in navigation.

*Hollow Knight: Silksong* shines brightest during actual gameplay—tackling tough bosses, navigating intricate platforming mazes, or engaging in story beats with beloved characters. The unavoidable tedium, unfortunately, brings down the mood and adds unnecessary valleys to an otherwise peak Metroidvania experience.

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### Nearly a Decade in the Making

Was it worth the eight-year wait? Absolutely. *Hollow Knight: Silksong* is beautiful and feels fantastic to play. It’s packed with content and challenges that are deeply satisfying to overcome. Its characters are charming and expressive, and beneath that charm lies a complex, morbid world that compels you to save these bugs from a terrible fate.

I could have done without the many hours spent farming and other padded elements, but *Silksong* remains an enormously packed journey—a tremendous payoff on a nearly decade-long wait.

Just remember to pace yourself. True endings won’t come easy, but that’s part of what makes victory feel so beautiful in *Hollow Knight: Silksong*.

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*This review is based on PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2 copies of the game. Hollow Knight: Silksong is available now on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2.*
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