"It’s been about a year since the video game Hollow Knight: Silksong was released. What do people think about the game now, and how does it compare to the first game, Hollow Knight?" --SkIp Valadez, 8th grade
SPOILER WARNING!
It’s been about a year since the video game Hollow Knight: Silksong was released. What do people think about the game now, and how does it compare to the first game, Hollow Knight?
Hollow Knight: Silksong is a game by Team Cherry. Team Cherry is an Australian indie developer team consisting of Ari Gibson, William Pellen, and Jasmine Vine. The game was announced on Valentine’s Day of 2019, and released on September 4th, 2025, almost seven years later, with the Sea of Sorrow DLC being revealed on December 15th that same year.
Hollow Knight: Silksong (typically shortened to “Silksong” by fans) is a game about Hornet and her quest through the underground Kingdom of Pharloom after being brought there against her will from her home kingdom of Hallownest. Most of the characters are bugs, and those who aren’t are typically plants or constructs (robots). Hornet, the protagonist, is a bug herself, being part-Weaver. The Weavers are basically a special race of all-female spiders, and most of them died or disappeared before the events of either game, which is elaborated on later in Silksong.
Some bugs in Silksong are pilgrims. The pilgrims are bugs who journey to the “holy” Citadel, though many don’t survive long enough to see it. In addition, the Citadel is not as holy as it seems. It functions thanks to the help of malnourished workers, the waste from the Citadel pollutes nearby regions, and the Citadel has done horrible things to many other lands, along with other secrets. The Citadel captured Hornet and brought her there from another Kingdom, though she managed to escape, and her main objective is to reach the Citadel and demand answers as to why she was kidnapped.
It’s been about a year since the video game Hollow Knight: Silksong was released. What do people think about the game now, and how does it compare to the first game, Hollow Knight?
Hollow Knight: Silksong is a game by Team Cherry. Team Cherry is an Australian indie developer team consisting of Ari Gibson, William Pellen, and Jasmine Vine. The game was announced on Valentine’s Day of 2019, and released on September 4th, 2025, almost seven years later, with the Sea of Sorrow DLC being revealed on December 15th that same year.
Hollow Knight: Silksong (typically shortened to “Silksong” by fans) is a game about Hornet and her quest through the underground Kingdom of Pharloom after being brought there against her will from her home kingdom of Hallownest. Most of the characters are bugs, and those who aren’t are typically plants or constructs (robots). Hornet, the protagonist, is a bug herself, being part-Weaver. The Weavers are basically a special race of all-female spiders, and most of them died or disappeared before the events of either game, which is elaborated on later in Silksong.
Some bugs in Silksong are pilgrims. The pilgrims are bugs who journey to the “holy” Citadel, though many don’t survive long enough to see it. In addition, the Citadel is not as holy as it seems. It functions thanks to the help of malnourished workers, the waste from the Citadel pollutes nearby regions, and the Citadel has done horrible things to many other lands, along with other secrets. The Citadel captured Hornet and brought her there from another Kingdom, though she managed to escape, and her main objective is to reach the Citadel and demand answers as to why she was kidnapped.
Hornet attempts to enter the Citadel with some pilgrims.
Many bugs are also affected by the Haunting, a strange phenomenon that turns bugs mad and aggressive. The Haunting is sometimes shown as silk threads attached to the afflicted bug.
The first game, Hollow Knight, takes place in the ruined kingdom of Hallownest (which is also underground), where a similar thing occurs. Here, bugs are driven mad by the infection, which manifests itself as orange blobs or gas. The protagonist of this game is the Knight, a silent and mysterious warrior even the player doesn’t know much about. The objective of the game is also unknown for quite a bit, unlike in Silksong, where there are quests you can view in your inventory. Hornet is a major character in this game, too.
The first game, Hollow Knight, takes place in the ruined kingdom of Hallownest (which is also underground), where a similar thing occurs. Here, bugs are driven mad by the infection, which manifests itself as orange blobs or gas. The protagonist of this game is the Knight, a silent and mysterious warrior even the player doesn’t know much about. The objective of the game is also unknown for quite a bit, unlike in Silksong, where there are quests you can view in your inventory. Hornet is a major character in this game, too.
Hollow Knight's main character, the Knight, looking down into a well.
Both games are Metrodvanias, a portmanteau of the game franchises Metroid and Castlevania. Specifically, a Metroidvania is a game with an open world, requiring abilities to access new parts of the world.
The games are also hard, and they are meant for people who are willing to struggle a lot before overcoming a challenge. Aria Wood, a Bay Area teenager and fellow Hollow Knight player, says that, “if you don’t like difficulty, it’s terrible.”
Since these are games about bugs, there are spiders (like the weavers). While there aren’t many, and most look different enough in Silksong, Hollow Knight has an area with lots of them, and some go across the foreground or come out of objects without warning. In general, the area is a very creepy spider area, so players should be prepared if they have arachnophobia.
The abilities are fun, though I think Silksong’s “Needolin” (playing music on your main weapon, the needle) doesn’t add much to combat. It stuns enemies after a few seconds, which is usually too long, and it drains your main resource, which could instead be used for healing or attacks. It also doesn’t add anything to your movement, mainly being used to open specific doors. However, it does let you see hidden dialogue or lore by making characters sing, and it is used in certain cool music-related moments. I would also like to mention the first game’s “dream nail,” which does mostly the same thing, but it gives you a decent amount of the main resource instead of draining it, and you can shorten the charge time with a certain item.
The games are also hard, and they are meant for people who are willing to struggle a lot before overcoming a challenge. Aria Wood, a Bay Area teenager and fellow Hollow Knight player, says that, “if you don’t like difficulty, it’s terrible.”
Since these are games about bugs, there are spiders (like the weavers). While there aren’t many, and most look different enough in Silksong, Hollow Knight has an area with lots of them, and some go across the foreground or come out of objects without warning. In general, the area is a very creepy spider area, so players should be prepared if they have arachnophobia.
The abilities are fun, though I think Silksong’s “Needolin” (playing music on your main weapon, the needle) doesn’t add much to combat. It stuns enemies after a few seconds, which is usually too long, and it drains your main resource, which could instead be used for healing or attacks. It also doesn’t add anything to your movement, mainly being used to open specific doors. However, it does let you see hidden dialogue or lore by making characters sing, and it is used in certain cool music-related moments. I would also like to mention the first game’s “dream nail,” which does mostly the same thing, but it gives you a decent amount of the main resource instead of draining it, and you can shorten the charge time with a certain item.
Hornet plays her Needolin.
I also find it annoying that Silksong’s double jump (“Faydown Cloak”) uses the same button as the float/glide (“Drifter’s Cloak”) by activating the double jump on the first press and the float on subsequent presses. This is usually not a problem, but it can be annoying to press the button multiple times if you specifically need the float, and, if you forget that they share a button, you could end up jumping into spikes or thorns.
Some bosses (and enemies) aren’t as fun to fight as others, and the “runbacks” (the path you have to take to reach a boss after dying to it) sometimes feel way too long or unnecessary, though they can sometimes be fun. Good bosses are very fun to fight, especially when they are hard but fair, and, as Wood says, “I like it when I finally beat a boss after dying so many times.”
As for things I like in Silksong, I really enjoy the parkour. It feels amazing to zip around a room, and I especially like the “pogo” feature, which allows you to bounce off of enemies, spikes, and certain objects or attacks by attacking downward at them. The “Clawline” ability also lets you do this by hitting them from the side, whereas Hollow Knight did not have anything like the Clawline.
Some bosses (and enemies) aren’t as fun to fight as others, and the “runbacks” (the path you have to take to reach a boss after dying to it) sometimes feel way too long or unnecessary, though they can sometimes be fun. Good bosses are very fun to fight, especially when they are hard but fair, and, as Wood says, “I like it when I finally beat a boss after dying so many times.”
As for things I like in Silksong, I really enjoy the parkour. It feels amazing to zip around a room, and I especially like the “pogo” feature, which allows you to bounce off of enemies, spikes, and certain objects or attacks by attacking downward at them. The “Clawline” ability also lets you do this by hitting them from the side, whereas Hollow Knight did not have anything like the Clawline.
Hornet uses the Clawline ability to reach new heights.
The tools and silk skills are great, too. You can equip different ones to change how you play. For example, one tool lets you heal more quickly, others can be thrown at enemies as special attacks, and one silk skill lets you block attacks before launching a counterattack.
The world is fun to traverse and explore since all of the areas are different, but they still feel connected and you can find aspects of certain areas in nearby areas. I like the story, especially Hornet’s character and how she slowly starts to open up to other bugs, along with other characters growing in their own way. The game has details that can improve your experience in little ways, like, as Wood says, “one thing that I really like are the sound things, like Cornifer’s little humming song, the grub sounds and the flea sounds, you can hear those and follow them, and it’s really fun.” Some characters and other details also give you little pieces of lore, and there are clues about the world even in things like area or character design.
The world is fun to traverse and explore since all of the areas are different, but they still feel connected and you can find aspects of certain areas in nearby areas. I like the story, especially Hornet’s character and how she slowly starts to open up to other bugs, along with other characters growing in their own way. The game has details that can improve your experience in little ways, like, as Wood says, “one thing that I really like are the sound things, like Cornifer’s little humming song, the grub sounds and the flea sounds, you can hear those and follow them, and it’s really fun.” Some characters and other details also give you little pieces of lore, and there are clues about the world even in things like area or character design.
Hornet travels through the Far Fields.
The music, which was composed by Christopher Larkin, is fantastic. I like that the music typically fits where it plays, such as an organ-playing boss having organ music, a wind-up robot boss’s music sounding like a music box, and weaver boss’s music using string instruments. Hollow Knight doesn’t do this as much as Silksong. In general, I find the music fun to listen to. In addition, the sounds the characters make can be so cute (they don’t actually say audible words, just little noises), so I think the voice actors did an amazing job.
So, is Silksong better than Hollow Knight? I would say yes. There is more of everything, and things like the art and combat have improved, most likely because Team Cherry had more time, resources, and experience while making the game. However, the first game is amazing, so I think both games are still great.
So, is Silksong better than Hollow Knight? I would say yes. There is more of everything, and things like the art and combat have improved, most likely because Team Cherry had more time, resources, and experience while making the game. However, the first game is amazing, so I think both games are still great.