As the years and months go by, Hollow Knight: Silksong is becoming something of a mirage. The closer it appears, the further away it gets. As each big game showcase comes and goes, Silksong fails to emerge, and fan disappointment grows. The developer, Team Cherry, is clearly unwilling to release something that it is not 100% happy with, which should be commended when so many games these days seem to be released in an unfinished state. That being said, whenever Hollow Knight: Silksong does eventually release, Team Cherry must ensure the game's scope doesn't come at the cost of its substance.
Hollow Knight took the Metroidvania genre by storm when it was released in 2017. A huge interconnected map, striking visual style, and sharp controls for combat and platforming were all underpinned by a rich tapestry of lore that left players wanting to spend as much time with the game as possible. As soon as its sequel was announced in 2019, the anticipation was high and has increased exponentially ever since. This is now in danger of boiling over into frustration though, with the lack of news around the project and silence from Team Cherry leaving some fans bemused.
How Hollow Knight: Silksong Can Elevate the Original's Platforming
The original Hollow Knight's platforming was just as central as its combat, and Hollow Knight: Silksong has a golden opportunity to push the envelope.
Hollow Knight: Silksong Needs to Strike a Balance Between Scope and Substance
A huge part of what makes Hollow Knight so special is the secret-filled world of Hallownest and the lore that accompanies it. Everything fits together so naturally, from the different biomes to the NPCs, and the whole experience feels organic. Despite the size of the world, it never feels too big or unnecessarily packed with content just for the sake of it. Everything has a purpose and meaning in the world of Hallownest, and the game benefits greatly from this.
There's a common misconception in the industry that sequels must be bigger than their predecessors in both size and scope. While this can sometimes be true, it certainly isn't a necessity. In fact, sometimes the opposite can happen. If a sequel tries to push the boundaries just for the sake of increasing the size and scope of the game, it can often have an adverse effect on the quality of the overall experience. Franchises such as Crackdown and Mass Effect attempted to get bigger with each installment, but in both cases, the earlier series entries are widely regarded as the strongest.
Hollow Knight: Silksong Doesn't Need to be Bigger to be Better
The success or failure of Silksong is unlikely to be decided by the size of its world. It will more likely come down to whether the Australian developer can successfully build on the solid foundations it introduced seven years ago. Better boss fights, deeper gameplay mechanics and an equally captivating world will be needed if Hollow Knight: Silksong is to be held in an even higher regard than its predecessor. Team Cherry is capable of this, and given the amount of time the game has been in development, it isn't too hard to imagine it ticking all of the above boxes when it does launch.
There's no telling when the next Hollow Knight: Silksong update will arrive, and at this point, most people have given up trying to guess. Team Cherry is hopefully unaffected by recent fan rumblings, and is obviously focused on creating a worthy successor to such a beloved game. In an ideal world, these efforts are being focused on the quality of the content on offer, rather than the amount of things to do and the overall size of the project.
Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Franchise
- Hollow Knight
- Platform(s)
- PS4 , PS5 , Xbox One , Xbox Series S , Xbox Series X , PC , macOS , Linux
- Developer(s)
- Team Cherry
- Publisher(s)
- Team Cherry
- Genre(s)
- Metroidvania
