Hollow Knight is a game that had been on my radar for years, but one I never actually started. The hype surrounding Hollow Knight: Silksong was the perfect reminder to finally dive into this universally praised title.
After about 25 hours, I reached the end. Well… “the end” is a big word. Let’s just say the credits rolled. On that final screen, I saw that I had only experienced 56% of the game. Hallownest still has countless stories left to tell, secrets to uncover, and enemies waiting to cut me down.
Whether I’ll actually go back and see all of that is another question. Spoiler: the answer is probably no. But the fact that I “finished” this masterpiece from Team Cherry at all already feels like a huge achievement. Not mine, but theirs. That a tiny indie studio of just three people managed to create something of this scale still blows my mind.
I’m Allergic to Backtracking
On this blog I try to cover as many different genres as possible, but you may have noticed there’s never been a Metroidvania here before (another “first” that Team Cherry is no doubt immensely proud of). The simple truth is: I’m just not a fan of the genre.
You can’t escape it in Metroidvanias. There’s backtracking. Lots and lots of backtracking. And I can’t stand it. To me, backtracking usually feels like nothing more than cheap reuse of environments. Uninspired at best. When I have to comb through the same area for the third time, I can’t help but roll my eyes.
You’re also forced to fight the same types of enemies over and over, the kind you can practically beat with your eyes closed by then. Hollow Knight’s fast travel options are limited, so you often have to trek quite a distance just to reach your next objective. Along the way, you’ll pass through areas you’ve already seen to death.
Yes, there’s a map (if you’ve bought one), but it’s not always clear. Sometimes it shows a path you supposedly haven’t discovered yet, even though you’ve already been there. Other times it shows a route that’s open but actually blocked until you unlock a specific skill.
I lost count of how many times I came back to a path five or six times before remembering, oh right, I can’t even enter this yet.
Part of that blame lies with the developers. They could have been a bit kinder by marking blocked areas more clearly. But mostly, it’s down to my fading memory and terrible sense of direction, as anyone who read my Sword of the Sea review already knows.
And Yet, There’s Something Magical About Metroidvania Level Design
Backtracking is the main reason I usually don’t get along with Metroidvanias. I’ve tried games like Crypt Custodian and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. And to be fair, I thought both were genuinely good. With Crypt Custodian I even got far enough that I really should pick it back up someday and see it through.
But I just tend to lose interest quickly, for all the reasons I mentioned earlier. The fact that I managed to push past that with Hollow Knight is largely thanks to its breathtaking level design.
Many games in the genre share this impressive quality: the way every area connects so intelligently to the next. Even though the genre isn’t really my thing, I’ve always been in awe of how cleverly the environments are constructed.
It must be insanely difficult to design such a well-woven web, almost a labyrinth, of corridors and passageways, all seamlessly linking together and connecting at exactly the right points. I imagine developers spend far more time puzzling over this than over creating the most visually impressive but less interconnected 3D environments.
“When you realize that a familiar spot seamlessly links to a completely different area you had no idea about, it still feels magical.”
When I try to imagine how much thought goes into this kind of design, my head starts spinning. I picture level designers hunched over their sketchpads, working out every possible connection. Yes, you’re often sent back to the same places. But when you realize that a familiar spot seamlessly links to a completely different area you had no idea about, it still feels magical.
This is something I’ve admired in every Metroidvania I’ve tried. So why did I actually make it to the finish line in Hollow Knight? Two of the main reasons: the visuals and the audio.
Every single area in Hollow Knight looks stunning, overflowing with atmosphere and history. The art style was the first thing that caught my eye, and it kept me curious about what might be waiting around the corner in the next unexplored passage.
The soundtrack ties it all together perfectly. Often subtle, but always heightening the atmosphere and enhancing the mood of the moment. Therapeutic and calm when needed, then pumping and dramatic when you’re thrown into a real challenge.
On top of that, the environments themselves tell a story, rich with history. Which brings me to my next point.
Metroidvanias Rarely Rely on Story
Exploration and challenging boss fights are usually the foundation of the genre (or so I’ve been told). Story, on the other hand, often takes the back seat, and that immediately puts the game at a disadvantage with me.
And while Hollow Knight still doesn’t feel like a story-driven game in my eyes, and I really dislike silent protagonists, it does contain a huge amount of hidden lore and environmental storytelling. And as luck would have it, that’s exactly what I love.
I’m a sucker for great dialogue, shocking plot twists, and strong voice acting that brings a narrative to life. But just as much, I love when you walk into a room and the environment alone tells a story without spelling it out for you. I think of moments in Red Dead Redemption 2, where I stumbled into an abandoned house.
“Sometimes stories hit the hardest when they aren’t laid out for you.”
Inside, I found several lifeless bodies. The place had been ransacked, with nothing left behind but a note hinting at what had happened. As a player, you could draw your own conclusions. Another player might come to a completely different explanation. Sometimes stories hit the hardest when they aren’t laid out for you.
And this is exactly where Hollow Knight shines. Every area tells its own fascinating story, always open to interpretation. Team Cherry guides you through a long, tragic history, scattering hints across the most unexpected corners of the world.
By listening to NPCs (who always have something intriguing to say) and by paying attention to the details in those gorgeous environments, you gradually piece together fragments of the bigger story.
It’s a long and complicated puzzle. You have to scour the game from end to end to collect all the pieces, but with every new detail, things begin to fall into place. I’ll never know the full story without Googling it, but from start to finish, my interest never wavered.
The Boss Fights Never Feel Unfair
First, let me remind you that I only saw 56% of the game. After rolling the credits, I Googled “most difficult Hollow Knight bosses” and realized I hadn’t actually faced any of the ones people usually mention. So this part only covers the bosses I did encounter; not the crème de la crème.
That’s probably for the best. I enjoy a healthy challenge in games, but if I need too many attempts without making progress, I tend to lose patience.
The boss fights I did experience in Hollow Knight were perfectly balanced for my level. They gradually ramped up in difficulty, requiring more and more attempts. But every time I failed, I felt myself getting closer. Each time I thought: next try, I’ve got this.
It was incredibly satisfying to learn more about each boss’s skill set with every attempt. They mixed things up just enough that I could adapt after a few tries, and I always felt confident that I’d eventually prevail, which, thankfully, I did.
Everything You Do Feels Meaningful
What also helped was knowing that every boss fight came with a generous reward. A little extra health, more focus, an important charm, or just a pile of Geo to spend on useful items.
And this, I think, is the heart of it all. Many games promise that exploration is valuable, that everything you achieve truly matters. But Hollow Knight is one of the few that genuinely delivers on that promise.
Every path I explored, sometimes for the third or fourth time, rewarded me in some way. Sometimes with powerful items, sometimes with just a piece of lore that made the journey worthwhile.
Despite containing so many things I normally struggle with, Hollow Knight managed to stand out in its genre and gave me an experience I’ll never forget. And the best part is that with Hollow Knight: Silksong, I can hopefully dive straight into more of the same.
