In spite of my hunger for playing games, I find it far too easy to glaze over the good ones from time to time.


Definitely me, but with games. Also: people.

I had a notion people were really down with Hollow Knight, but it wasn’t until I had read reports that the follow up (Silksong) that just released today, ended up breaking most major digital storefronts across all platforms, at least temporarily, did I realize the sequel was going to be more of a cultural event of sorts. I can’t even remember how many threads, articles, and videos I watched hyping up the damn thing too, and looking back, I feel a little bit like the guard in Monty Python and the Holy Grail just watching Lancelot charge the castle, not putting two and two together the whole time.


My reaction to seeing the entirety of the gaming portion of Bluesky’s population freaking out about Silksong, wondering what people are going to be playing this next week

That’s the weird thing, though, as it was not like I was completely in the dark about the first game, having had the pleasure of playing it at some point. It was always one of those games I really enjoyed, but put on the back burner after only a couple of hours with it, cause I think in my purview, it was only one in a long line of Metroidvanias I had played, and was kind of like “no surprises here”, and then just shelved the damn thing. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if I was actively playing another Metroidvania at the time, and couldn’t justify playing two simultaneously, and eventually Hollow Knight just got lost in the shuffle along the way.


The sentiment I just mentioned probably comes off more harshly than I meant it to, as the second game feels inline with the quality of the first, which is to say, possessing a great deal of it

Which you know, better late than never I suppose, as I can always go back to the first one and see what I missed out on, *after* I finish enjoying playing through the second game, which almost seemed too big to miss, all things considered, reminding me of the saying “the best time to plant a tree was plenty of years ago, the next best time is now” kind of vibe.

Though, this whole scenario does have me second guessing myself, like…why does this game not hit with me quite the same as it seems to emotionally resonate with others? Is it due to the vastly sheer number of Metroidvanias I have played in my day? Is it because my cold, cynical, greasy heart just doesn’t have the same emotional availability as others have in this day and age? I’m aware the first game had compelling qualities, and after having played the second one for an hour, everything is coming up roses, as the artistry, music, and gameplay are all following suit in being just as stirring, if not even more so, than what I remember of the first, so what gives?


Cute, scary, melodic…what’s not to love? I ask myself with sincere curiosity

I can’t really say for sure, and I can’t be certain maybe there wasn’t some impactful happening going on when the first game launched that made the title evoke so many others where it failed to do so with me. Unlike, say, the pandemic, which was obviously pretty hard to miss, games like Doom: Eternal and Animal Crossing: New Horizons will always have that time and place that give them the extra little flavor that helps contextualize their unique contribution to society at large in great times of need. I’ll have to do some sleuthing to see if something similar happened with the first Hollow Knight, or if this whole hype machine was more due to the word of mouth that ended up building the sequel into a frenzied fervor with the number of delays and hungry fanbase after all these years, as it really does seem like this game revs a lot of other peoples engines in ways understandable to me, but still perhaps in many ways, alien in the power Hollow Knight holds over others.


Again…its cool, don’t get me wrong…just like, am I missing something, or?

Perhaps continuing on through the second title will help shed some light on the whole thing. I don’t have anything but positive things to say about Silksong thus far, though in the same breath, not having a tone of history or attachment to the first game, I also don’t feel I have a whole lot to bring to the table where insight is concerned. With so many clambering, craving, and likely crazy distracted by getting their sharp little claws dug deeply into the sequel, for once I don’t feel as if I have a tone of uniqueness to add to the conversation, which definitely lands me in a place of awkward farce.


I’d love to join the choir of resounding praise when it comes to Hollow Knight, but it seems I’m a little out of tune with the masses…

Normally I don’t mind interjecting some form of philosophy on the matter, but between the game being a fairly straight forward side-scrolling action romp, there isn’t a whole lot of nuance with which to delve into. As far as design mechanisms go, it is true to the Hollow Knight name, in creating a a unique ambiance in which to lose oneself, between the engaging boss battles, which are stern but fair, and the extra level of character Team Cherry seems to imbue in even their smallest characters, there is much to savor, though not much in the way of yet winning me over, like the hungry masses who are ready to eat this game alive. I don’t know…maybe due to the more chill nature of the game in question? Or perhaps cause the game has a touch of the “spoops” to it…the cute, homely kind of scary that people connect with, feeling like they are the same cozy kinds of weird as the creatures found within.


Hold on while I attempt to use the fast travel to arrive faster at the point in time where I “get” why everyone loves these games so god damn much….

Guess I’ll just take my time feasting on this one, I suppose, see if somehow, this dish remains an acquired taste of sorts.

~Pashford