When Hollow Knight: Silksong was first announced, fans were curious to see just how it would improve over the first game. Making Hornet the lead character was a smart move, as she was fairly popular in that first installment, and her move-set was pretty different from the first game’s lead. She can use dive attacks and grappling hooks; who wouldn’t want to play as her?
Fast forward to today, and fans are now enjoying Silksong, as it’s another well-made Metroidvania experience. It looks just as good as its predecessor, maybe better with all those vibrant colors, and it still feels really good to play. Hornet doesn’t have overpowered moves right away from her boss phase in the first game, but she still has a few tricks the original dinky knight did not have.
Hornet being the lead does mean she immediately comes with some QOL features that fans will appreciate. Does that make Hollow Knight: Silksong easier than the original game, though?
Hanging by a Moment
One of the early Silksong moments that shocked me was seeing how Hornet can just climb up ledges. When you jump and press forward, Hornet will proceed to hang onto the ledge and get herself up. It took me for a loop, because I had been used to the previous game’s floaty platforming, so this was a nice change of pace.
The original Hollow Knight had very precise platforming, relying on your timing and button presses to get through some of these challenges. Naturally, your original lead character could not climb up ledges. Players had to time their jumps just right and make sure to hold that button for higher leaps. It’s not the worst, but it can feel a bit stiff for some.
In contrast, Hollow Knight: Silksong’s platforming feels more rhythmic with the ledge grabbing. Granted, it’s not Prince of Persia or Tomb Raider, but there’s still a lot to like about this game’s movement. After getting used to the first game’s floaty platforming, the ledge grabbing lets me be a bit reckless with Hornet’s platforming.
Platforming has definitely seen an upgrade in Silksong.
Take a Dive
Like I mentioned earlier, Hornet can do dive attacks in Hollow Knight: Silksong, and it’s the coolest thing ever.
Not only is the dive attack easy to do, just press the down button and attack, but it can also be used strategically for battles and platforming. When Hornet hits her dive attack, she does a little flip that gives her some distance from enemies. This means you can use this attack to reach platforms that have flying enemies near them. More importantly, the dive attack helps you do damage to a boss and even leaves some space so you can gather your bearings and heal.
Admittedly, the diving attack isn’t very strong, so I wouldn’t spam them like one would with Wolverine in Marvel vs Capcom 3. The Hollow Knight games are all about precise timing in combat, so players can get caught with attacks while doing dives if they’re overconfident.
Even with that, this is an appreciated QOL improvement that makes Hornet feel cooler than The Knight from Team Cherry’s first game.
Healing is Easier…and Harder?
On paper, Hornet’s healing in Hollow Knight: Silksong is a lot more convenient than The Knight’s. Just press a button after you’ve filled a meter, and three of your health circles are full. All in all, it’s a solid improvement over the first game, and just pressing a button instead of holding it is pretty smooth.
But that’s on paper, because this slightly smoother healing mechanic also has its drawbacks.
First, you can only heal multiple health circles in one go. The original Hollow Knight let you heal multiple times in a row if there was enough meter, so players could time their recoveries well. Unfortunately, Silksong only lets you heal once when the meter is full, so players have to time them.
Did I also mention that getting hurt while healing results in no heals at all? Yeah, that makes this feature “worse” than it is in the first game, even if it’s a fair mechanic that adds tension. “Worse” because this mechanic does make you think about your next move in advance.
An odd QOL improvement, as it has drawbacks, but it does make the game more compelling.
Up, Up, and Away
It was brave of Team Cherry to just drop players into the original Hollow Knight and let them piece out the story. Not everyone liked this move, but it did add to the game’s moody atmosphere.
Hollow Knight: Silksong actually changes things up a bit by giving Hornet a main goal. She had to escape her current predicament by going up to the heavens. It’s vague, but giving Hornet a clear objective does give her story more urgency, while still allowing for exploration and intense combat.
Do we know why she wants to go up? To escape. Simple stuff, but it works.
Another bit that adds credence to her story is that Hornet actually talks with people. You will see her converse with characters and try to strike up conversations before remaining committed to her goal. It shocked me the first time, before I thought about it and realized that Hornet was talking in that first game.
While Hornet talking isn’t new, it does make her more of an actual character, rather than that adorable blank slate from the first game. Sure, she’s mostly a stoic badass with a heart of gold, but that’s better than nothing. A huge QOL improvement for Hollow Knight: Silksong.
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