Blog Post

Silksong is a difficult game, I’m talking old-school tough. The kind of tough that makes you question, at times, whether you’re even having fun or not (but trust me, you are). Yes, I did complete this fuckin thing, though not to 100%, and I gotta say; at least for now, I probably prefer it over the original Hollow Knight. (Though that’s not to say I don’t have my issues with it).

As to be expected, there’re spoilers here. So don’t read too far if you haven’t played through the game for yourself yet. There won’t really be much mention of the story itself, though maybe some specific story beats here and there.

Hornet Sheself

Obviously if you’re gonna write a review of Silksong, you gotta talk about Hornet. She’s kind of a bitch to control, at least at first. Her movements are quick, but punish you for doubting yourself or changing your mind partway through a movement (if you want to turn around after starting a sprint, you’re gonna get hit). Her downward strike, at least with her default moveset, is also difficult to learn since it’s at an angle. I didn’t really get how to control Hornet until later into Act 2, and it definitely played into my struggles with a lot of the bosses. Hornet's Silk Skills are basically just Spells from the first game except you’re (usually) forced to pick just one, and I had the same (personal) issue as the first game; I was always so darn scared to use them in boss fights since they consume the same resource you use to heal. But once you stop being a wuss, they’re actually pretty strong and definitely worth using.

Those Weird Tools

Tools are a system I’m iffy about. Foregoing Hollow Knight’s Charm Notch system for a simpler one slot, one tool system is an odd choice to me. The Charm system just felt built so well as to allow both strong and weak Charms to co-exist due to Notch costs. In Silksong, however, since you’re so limited on Tool slots, certain Tools become borderline useless because why would you ever use them over the objectively best options? Also, fuck Red Tools. Like, I think they’re to play cool in concept and expand on Hornet’s attacks from the first game, but why would you make using them expend a resource as annoying to grind as Shell Shards?? Shell Shards are genuinely one of, if not my biggest, criticisms of the game. Making Red Tools cost Shell Shards does nothing but add a bunch of pointless grinding or worse; as in my case, stop you from using them altogether. An update that makes Shell Shards easier to get or something would vastly improve the game, I think.

Crests

The Crest system, while interesting, isn’t really my thing. While I like the variety in movesets, the ones that limit your healing ability into some gimmick aren’t really worth using to me and kind of feel like wasted space compared to other Crests like Reaper and Wanderer which are more basic. I obviously think more gimmicky Crests should exist for the people who want them, but I’d prefer at least one more vanilla-feeling Crest or something. I relied a lot on the Crest of the Reaper in the early game since it simplifies Hornet's moveset quite a bit, just at the cost of being a little worse damage-wise. I could never really pick up any other Crests besides the Crest of the Wanderer, which is basically the first game's moveset, and eventually I stuck with the default Crest of the Hunter into the late-game.

This World Kinda Exists

The world building in Silksong, in my opinion, is vastly improved from Hollow Knight. Locations feel alive, with bugs interacting with their environment separately from Hornet, and towns evolving and changing as you progress. The only thing I wanted more of was stuff like the Bone Tyrant attack on Bone Bottom, where some optional event you choose to do can drastically alter an area permanently. Though I obviously understand why they couldn’t do this too much more. The plot lines with Garmond and especially Shakra also helped make these characters actually feel like they’re doing their own thing, with how you can easily miss them and such. Also all the lifeblood/plasmium stuff in the Wormways?? That was a sick way to expand on something that got very little attention in the original Hollow Knight. Here's to hoping the stuff gets expanded upon in the DLC.

Blocked Roads

I don’t mean “road blocks” in the way of just difficult bosses here, I mean moreso the issues I had that made getting through Silksong a little harder. Mainly, really, was just how hidden certain required upgrades & fights were. Faydown Cloak requires you to progress to the peak of Mount Fay (an area I assumed was meant for later), the entirety of Bilewater is hidden behind a single breakable wall, and also (this is definitely my fault) I had no clue where the guy who upgrades your needle was until literally High Halls. Also, HIGH HALLS’ FUCKING GAUNTLET. Genuinely the most I struggled in the game at a single encounter. I struggled less against Groal the Great and Lost Lace than I did this fuckass gauntlet. I’m glad I was able to complete Shakra’s quest to get her help here, otherwise I’d be fucked. Like, it wasn't just hard, it felt genuinely unfair at times.

Act 3

Definitely one of the coolest parts of the game. Really, I think Act 3 is where the game shines the most. Obviously Act 2 is already a huge improvement over Act 1, but the sheer scale of the event in Act 3 makes it feel like the world (in the game) is genuinely gonna end if you don’t figure out how to do something. The dream battles against Skarrsinger Karmelita and Crust King Khann are both really good (fuck Nyleth though), and the new variants of bosses (like Lost Lace and Tormented TROBBIOOOOO) are a fun way to add rematches that feel thematically fitting. I do hope a future update adds a way to refight a lot of the bosses that don’t get rematches, though, especially First Sinner and the Cogwork Dancers. Oh, and even finding the Silk and Soul quest is kinda difficult, though I guess that’s fitting since it’s needed for the secret act.