It’s been a while since I’ve liked a game as much as I did Hollow Knight. When’s the last time I had that urge to play a game every spare moment? It was the exploration in Hollow Knight that kept me coming back: filling up the map, finding new upgrades, and discovering the areas of Hallownest. The combat system as well is a highlight. It is difficult, but rewarding to learn and master each enemy’s attack patterns.
Unfortunately, I found the story to be told in an uncompelling way, leaving me without an answer to why I was exploring this world or what my ultimate goal was supposed to be. Nevertheless, Hollow Knight is a great metroidvania thanks to its interesting world and rewarding combat.
Remember, this review reflects my experience and therefore everyone else’s as well. If you disagree with any point I bring in this post, then you should reflect on your opinion until you agree with me as I am correct and you are wrong. Thank you for reading!
Exploration
My favorite part of Hollow Knight was exploring the world. Right from the beginning, you get to delve into the caves and see what’s down there. I love a game where you fill in the map by visiting each area yourself. It really motivated me to get everywhere. Once you get the tram pass, the world really opens up, so you can explore several areas in any order you like. Each area is unique and mysterious, making for a great experience.
The player is highly rewarded for exploring too. There are secret areas hidden all around for the eagle-eyed as well as hidden collectibles and upgrades that completely change how you play the game. And who could live with themselves with not saving all the grubs!? You must save them they are adorable!!!
I am disappointed to say that by the end of the game, I was less invested. Even though there was lots left to do, I had explored the vast majority of the world, leaving mostly combat and platforming challenges left for me to complete which didn’t interest me quite as much. I wish the game was built so that there was at least one more really big area to map out just before the final boss.
Combat
The combat in this game is fun as well even if it’s brutally difficult at times. As you explore a new area, you will be introduced to a new enemy. Each enemy behaves differently, so you must memorize their patterns and attack when they are vulnerable. At first with a new enemy, it can just seem impossible to hit them without abusing invulnerability frames. However, with some practice and thought, reacting to and killing them becomes muscle memory! Immediately when you start to feel comfortable with an enemy, the game throws you two of them at once, or with some other difficulty added. It keeps you on your toes and forcing you to improve.
The bosses turn the difficulty up a notch. Past the halfway mark of the game, I went into every boss expecting to die several times as I got the hang of their attacks. This could get a little annoying when the respawn point was not anywhere near the boss, but it was not ever a big deal. It was usually satisfying to overcome a difficult boss.
My biggest complaint with combat has to do with the special maneuvers you learn. These special attacks are talked up to be really strong and to help you a lot, but they only seem to do about double the damage of your regular attack despite taking 7 billion years to charge up. I think this could have been remedied with a hit stun system for big attacks. After getting hit with one of these, the enemy, even bosses, are thrown back and are halted from performing any attacks for a few moments. Or they could have just made them do 5 times as much damage.
Story
The weakest part of the game for me was its story, specifically how it was told in-game. The game was too vague and mysterious about the past events for me to get fully invested in the outcome. Going towards to the Black Egg after exploring the dark abyss and going through the white palace, I still had no idea why any of this was happening or what my goal would be when I got in there.
Nothing about what happened to the King or the Hollow Knight or why so many bugs have gone insane is made clear. There are references to a grand story all over the place in the form of ancient statues and bugs who seem to know more than they are letting on. It’s all presented in an intriguing way, but without a moment in the game where you are told in plain words what exactly happened, it never had a payoff for me.
Score
The gameplay of Hollow Knight is polished to a shine. The world is well-crafted with tons to discover. The controls feel very good, allowing you to freestyle during combat to pull off some rad moves. Every upgrade you find transforms how you interact with the world, so much so that you can hardly imagine how you lived without it before you got it. It’s hard, but not too hard and there are serious extra platforming and combat challenges for those who seek them out. Basically, Hollow Knight is a great metroidvania game. Full stop.
Personal Score: 13/15
Objective Score: 14/15
Now, like everyone else in the world, I will eagerly watch every Nintendo direct live and plead in the chat for Silksong to get a trailer.
SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG SILKSONG