Independent (indie) games have been known to be hit or miss in the video game community. However, there are times when a game makes it big. In this case, it’s “Hollow Knight: Silksong,” also known as “Silksong.”
For just $20, “Silksong” broke Steam charts and even managed to crash the platform, delaying purchases for some. According to Steam, by the end of the day, the game sold three million copies and five million saves to Steam wishlists.
“Silksong” is a sequel to “Hollow Knight,” a 2-D, open-world, action-adventure game. It was released Feb. 24, 2017, on Steam by Team Cherry. As it gained popularity later, it was released on consoles such as the Nintendo Switch, Xbox and Playstation.
Playing as a small insect-like creature, commonly referred to as “The Knight,” players travel through ancient cities, intricate caverns and deadly environments. Through all of this, they battle strong insects and befriend bizarre bugs. The game is known to have a hidden but intricate story the player discovers as they go.
Seven years ago, a sequel to “Hollow Knight” was hinted at, with the star being Hornet, an important insectoid character in the original game’s storyline. With no other information released about the so-called sequel, it became a meme among the community that the game would never come out. Finally, it was announced that it would come out on Sept. 4, 2025.
“Silksong” differs from the original game by offering more gameplay and a new world to explore. While most of the game mechanics are still similar to the original, the character Hornet has some key differences from “The Knight.” To start, Hornet is a lot more agile than its counterpart. Its ability to move faster offers new opportunities to speedrun the game, making the playing experience more enjoyable.
“Hollow Knight” is known as a very difficult game. So “Silksong” is no different. In fact, some players find “Silksong” to be more difficult due to a unique mechanic. In “Hollow Knight,” if the player gets hit by an enemy, they lose one health bar; however, in “Silksong,” certain enemies will deal 2 health bars of damage with one hit. This makes it easier for players to die in-game and have a difficult time progressing.
With the hype of the sequel’s release, you can definitely expect a new wave of players to dive into this breathtaking game. I can only recommend playing “Hollow Knight” before getting into “Silksong.” Although it may be hard, don’t let that be what stops you from experiencing something new.
