Summary
The last seven years have left many gamers awaitingHollow Knight: Silksong. Since the originalHollow Knightstole the hearts of players everywhere, the announcement of DLC starring infamous boss character Hornet—that would later turn into a whole game of her own—was incredibly exciting. However, hardly any news aboutHollow Knight: Silksonghas come from Team Cherry since.
Hollow Knight: Silksong’s presence may be a bit of an inside joke these days, but the game’s hype is no joke as it once held the title ofSteam’s most wishlisted game. While Hornet’s solo adventure is most certainly going to be a Metroidvania like the game it spun its own silk from, there’s plenty of room for it to do all kinds of things differently. One of these things has room to overhaul how abilities work compared toHollow Knightitself, thanks to the potential of expanding Hornet’s weapon of choice beyond her singular needle.
Side quests
Size, judging by the number of checkpoints/benches
Hollow Knight
Unlockable dash, double jump, wall jump, and quicker late-game dash
Possible through using Soul through Focus; takes a second or two.
41 benches
Hollow Knight: Silksong
“More acrobatic movement;” likely to scale with Hornet’s original boss fight.
Possible to instantly heal; likely hinting toward quicker and more demanding battles.
Full side quest system with a journal to keep track, divided into types known as Gather, Wayfarer, Hunt, and Grand Hunt.
Over 100 checkpoints confirmed by Team Cherry
Hollow Knight: Silksong’s developers have stated that the reason what was once DLC became a full-fledged game of its own deals with the title’s overall scope, which has been teased to be much larger with what little pieces of content are known so far. Side quests are finally part of the picture, and the kingdom of Pharloom is much larger with likely the same depth as Hollownest from the first title.Everything that’s understood aboutHollow Knight: Silksongso fareither expands upon previous features or adds something completely new.
Through this, there’s plenty of room forSilksongto do something different withHollow Knight’s charm mechanicsand unlockable abilities, be it either giving the system an overhaul or changing it entirely. If Team Cherry chooses to, giving Hornet different weapons with abilities similar to charms would be a great change of pace.
This would allow Team Cherry to have fun designing unique needles with designs that not only challenge usualHollow Knightbuilds but also encourage players to do something different for personal expression through customization.
The Potential Behind Abilities Being Attached to Unique Needles for Hornet
AsHollow Knightis considered an honorary Soulslike, it would make sense forSilksongto take further inspiration from the genre by adding more than one available weapon throughout the playthrough. Not only would this allow fans to customize Hornet at least just a little bit, but features such as elemental weapons could add further depth to the game’s combat, which could be extremely useful as Hornet’s quick healing implies faster fights. Even Hornet’s silk string could be charged with powers that cause damage if enemies touch it.
Of course, not every ability at Hornet’s disposal should be tied to a weapon, as many players are likely looking forward to taking control of the boss they had trouble with back inHollow Knightitself. While it’s likely that these abilities will be slowly taught to the player through some sort of tutorial, players should most certainly be able to play with Hornet’s full kit from the start. Earning the right toplay as aHollow Knightbossmay be a gradual tutorial just like the first game, but the best execution of these ability-based weapons would be to have them be icing on the cake rather than essential if put to use whenSilksongeventually arrives.
WHERE TO PLAY
Play as Hornet, princess-protector of Hallownest, and adventure through a whole new kingdom ruled by silk and song! Captured and brought to this unfamiliar world, Hornet must battle foes and solve mysteries as she ascends on a deadly pilgrimage to the kingdom’s peak.Hollow Knight: Silksong is the epic sequel to Hollow Knight, the award winning action-adventure. As the lethal hunter Hornet, journey to all-new lands, discover new powers, battle vast hordes of bugs and beasts and uncover ancient secrets tied to your nature and your past.
