A metroidvania action-adventure where you play as the agile hunter Hornet, exploring an ancient insect kingdom filled with deadly foes and mysterious secrets.

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Hollow Knight: Silksong Guides | GAM3S.GG

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<h3>Overview</h3>
<p>Hollow Knight: Silksong transforms the secondary character from the original game into a fully realized protagonist, offering players a chance to experience the metroidvania genre through Hornet's unique combat style and abilities. Team Cherry has crafted an entirely new kingdom for exploration, moving beyond the familiar caverns of Hallownest to present a world dominated by silk, song, and ancient mysteries. The game maintains the challenging platforming and precise combat mechanics that defined its predecessor while introducing fresh gameplay elements that reflect Hornet's distinct fighting style.</p>
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<p>As princess-protector of Hallownest, Hornet finds herself captured and transported to an unfamiliar land where she must navigate treacherous environments and battle formidable enemies. The narrative framework establishes her as both hunter and hunted, creating a compelling dynamic that drives the exploration-based gameplay forward.</p>
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<p>The sequel promises to deliver the same level of atmospheric storytelling and environmental narrative that made the original Hollow Knight a critical darling, while expanding the scope and scale of the adventure. Players can expect to encounter vast hordes of new enemies, discover powerful abilities, and uncover secrets that connect to Hornet's past and the broader mythology of this insect-dominated universe.</p>
<h3>What Makes Hornet's Combat Unique?</h3>
<p>Hornet's combat system distinguishes itself from the Knight's approach through her emphasis on speed, agility, and ranged attacks. Her signature needle-and-thread fighting style allows for both close-quarters combat and strategic distance management, creating a more dynamic and varied approach to enemy encounters.</p>
<p>Key combat features include:</p>
<ul><li>Needle-based melee attacks with extended reach</li><li>Thread-based grappling and traversal mechanics</li><li>Aerial mobility options that surpass the original protagonist</li><li>Unique healing system that differs from the Soul-based recovery</li><li>Special abilities tied to silk manipulation</li></ul>
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<p>The thread mechanics serve dual purposes, functioning as both offensive tools and traversal aids that open up new possibilities for level design and player movement. This system allows for more vertical exploration and creates opportunities for creative problem-solving that extends beyond traditional platforming challenges.</p>
<h3>A Kingdom Ruled by Silk and Song</h3>
<p>The new setting abandons the underground aesthetic of Hallownest in favor of a more diverse landscape that includes coral forests, shining citadels, and mossy grottos. Each area presents distinct visual themes and mechanical challenges that test different aspects of Hornet's abilities.</p>
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<p>Environmental storytelling remains a cornerstone of the experience, with the kingdom's history revealed through visual details, enemy designs, and architectural elements. The silk and song motifs permeate every aspect of the world design, from the way light filters through webbed canopies to the musical themes that underscore exploration and combat encounters.</p>
<p>The vertical design philosophy that made the original game's world so memorable receives fresh interpretation here, with the pilgrimage to the kingdom's peak serving as both narrative goal and structural organizing principle. This approach ensures that progression feels meaningful while maintaining the sense of discovery that defines quality metroidvania design.</p>
<h3>Technical Excellence and Artistic Vision</h3>
<p>Team Cherry's commitment to hand-drawn animation and meticulous attention to detail continues to define the visual presentation. The art style evolves beyond the original's palette while maintaining the distinctive character design and atmospheric lighting that became series hallmarks.</p>
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<p>The audio design builds upon the foundation established by Christopher Larkin's acclaimed soundtrack for the original game, with new compositions that reflect the different emotional and environmental themes of this silk-dominated kingdom. Sound effects and ambient audio work together to create an immersive soundscape that enhances both exploration and combat encounters.</p>
<p>Performance optimization across multiple platforms ensures that the game's demanding animation and particle effects maintain smooth framerates without compromising the visual fidelity that defines the series' aesthetic appeal.</p>
<table><tr><th>Requirement</th><th>Minimum</th><th>Recommended</th></tr><tr><td>OS</td><td>-</td><td>Windows 10</td></tr><tr><td>Processor</td><td>Intel Core 2 Duo E5200</td><td>Intel Core i5</td></tr><tr><td>Memory</td><td>4 GB RAM</td><td>8 GB RAM</td></tr><tr><td>Graphics</td><td>GeForce 9800GTX+ (1GB)</td><td>GeForce GTX 560+</td></tr><tr><td>DirectX</td><td>Version 10</td><td>Version 10</td></tr><tr><td>Storage</td><td>9 GB available space</td><td>9 GB available space</td></tr></table>
<p>Hollow Knight: Silksong represents Team Cherry's ambitious expansion of their acclaimed formula, offering both newcomers and series veterans a fresh take on metroidvania gameplay through Hornet's distinctive abilities and story. The combination of refined combat mechanics, expansive world design, and the studio's proven expertise in atmospheric storytelling positions this sequel as a worthy successor to one of the genre's modern classics. With its emphasis on exploration, challenging platforming, and environmental narrative, Silksong stands ready to deliver the depth and polish that has become synonymous with Team Cherry's approach to game development.</p>

The beloved world of Hallownest expands as Team Cherry delivers the highly anticipated sequel that places players in the silk-wrapped boots of Hornet herself. This metroidvania adventure promises to capture the precise combat and atmospheric exploration that made the original a masterpiece, while introducing fresh mechanics and an entirely new kingdom to discover. Hornet's journey through this haunted realm of silk and song represents one of the most eagerly awaited indie game sequels in recent memory.

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Hollow Knight: Silksong

Tool and charm systems might feel restrictive

Still unclear how late-game build variety will hold up

Soulslike progression may frustrate some new players

<p>After years of waiting, Hollow Knight: Silksong finally arrived, and within minutes of launch, it was clear just how much anticipation surrounded it. Servers across platforms went down under the weight of demand, and for good reason. Silksong takes the foundations of Hollow Knight and expands them into a larger, sharper, and more ambitious experience that both fans and newcomers can enjoy.</p>
<p>The first hours establish the tone well. Hornet immediately feels different from the Knight — more agile, expressive, and combat-focused — and Pharloom itself is a vibrant, dangerous kingdom filled with character. Areas like Moss Grotto show off Team Cherry’s refined art direction, while the expanded NPC interactions and Hornet’s voiced personality add a new layer to the atmosphere. The presentation shines across the board, from the hand-drawn visuals to the orchestral score that shifts naturally between calm exploration and frantic battles. It feels familiar yet distinct, a world worth getting lost in.</p>
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<h2>Gameplay</h2>
<p>Hornet’s mobility is the most immediate difference. She is faster, more agile, and better equipped for fluid exploration. Dashing, slashing, and throwing daggers all feel smooth, and her dialogue gives the game a slightly more present tone without losing the quiet mystery that defined the original. She’s not overly talkative, but she offers just enough commentary to ground you in her perspective.</p>
<p>Exploration has been improved in meaningful ways. The map is easier to track from the start, removing some of the frustrations from Hollow Knight’s opening hours, while still keeping the thrill of venturing into unknown spaces. Pharloom offers more branching paths earlier, which encourages curiosity and makes progression feel flexible. Secrets, quests, and environmental storytelling give the world density, and it’s easy to see how players will be uncovering hidden corners for dozens of hours.</p>
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<p>Combat is the other major shift. Hornet’s needle and acrobatics create a faster pace compared to the Knight’s more grounded style. The crest system and secondary tools add options that can significantly alter how fights play out, though early on they feel restrictive since you have to choose between basic utilities like keeping a compass equipped or gaining extra resources. Boss design is strong, often punishing but rarely unfair. My run through the early acts included some brutal stretches — a fight against the Last Judge comes with a long, enemy-filled runback that tested both patience and skill — but the learning curve is steady, and victory feels earned.</p>
<p>Where some concern starts to creep in is the “tools” system, which limits the number of abilities you can equip at once. Early game choices can feel restrictive, like having to choose between a working compass or other passive buffs. There’s a question of whether this will eventually evolve into a meaningful build system or just a frustrating limitation. Similarly, while charms are now color-coded and tied to slot types, it’s too early to tell if this system supports real diversity or leads to clearly optimal builds.</p>
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<h2>Review</h2>
<p>Not everything works perfectly. The game’s economy, centered around rosaries, can feel unrewarding. Dying twice in quick succession often means losing large amounts of currency, and while there are systems to bank or mitigate losses, the costs of saving progress or unlocking fast travel spots sometimes pile up unfairly. Combined with traps that can strip multiple health points in one mistake, this side of the progression loop feels harsher than it needs to be. Some players may also find the difficulty spikes discouraging, though for many, they will be part of the appeal.</p>
<p>Despite these frustrations, Silksong succeeds in being more than just a sequel. It smooths out the rough edges of Hollow Knight’s early hours, introduces new layers of depth through tools and combat variety, and delivers a world that feels alive with detail. Its challenges are demanding but rewarding, and its atmosphere is unmatched in the genre.</p>

Hornet’s movement and combat feel fluid and responsive

Strong world-building with thoughtful art and soundtrack

Improved early pacing and better map/vendor accessibility

In-depth, unbiased, and honest Hollow Knight: Silksong Review by GAM3S.GG. Find out more about gameplay, how to get started, and our review score.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

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