this game is fucking amazing, holy sheet. i don't have anything negative to say about it, one of the best experiences ive ever had. music, story, art, level design, sound design, the atmosphere... everything combines to create a perfect experience. completely blown away. so many cute bugs, and hornet steals the show, her fights were so much fun. boss fights are hard but very rewarding once you overcome them. MASTERPIECE.

can't wait to explore more and discover all the hidden secrets in this world. metroidvania peaked here, it doesn't get any better than this. GIT GUD

Hollow Knight is okay. It certainly isn't the best metroidvania imo. The areas are way to dull at points and exploration seriously never feels rewarding. Most of the time, I would explore and find some lore, which I didn't care for since the story in the game wasn't interesting me. Charms never felt good to find as I never received their effects immediately since I had to wait until a bench to use them. I only enjoyed exploring for the Grubs as they actively felt good to find. It felt like I was accomplishing this tiny goal, and I liked that a lot. I never knew when I was progressing in this game. It took me a while to learn that my main objective in this game was to defeat the three guardians or whatever. I ended up exploring and doing a lot of things, but I never knew what counted towards getting the best ending or what was optional and what was not. The bosses were easily the highlight however. I loved how hard they were, and my favorite boss in this game is NKG. It took me so long to get his pattern down, and I loved that so much. The White Palace was a great area that really tested your nail bouncing abilities. The crystal caverns are my favorite area though. They're so unique and different from the rest of the game. It has the only piece of music that I enjoy from this game, and I love the way it looks. If each area was as distinct as this area was, I would love the game so much more. So many areas in this game blended in with each other. I can barely tell the Queen's Garden and the Green Path apart. I also don't like the map system. It isn't as bad as people say it is, but it was always super stressful to enter an area and not know where I was going or what I've already explored. I know metroidvanias should make you lost, but I at least want to know what I've already done so I'm not wandering around aimlessly for prolonged amounts of time. I always had to use one set of charms in this game for exploring since so many basic map features, like knowing where you are on the map, are locked behind charms. I don't understand this. Why not just make it a normal feature? It adds nothing to the game except more confusion. Idk maybe I just only like Metroid and Castlevania, and indie metroidvanias just aren't for me, but I can safely say that Hollow Knight to me was a very mediocre game. It had great moments, but I only remember the constant boredom the games areas brought.

I have an issue with metroidvanias, and though I love the classics and have always leaned more towards the castlevania side of things than the metroid one, I have found most of the games that are inspired by symphony of the night and super metroid don't really do it for me, as I would rather just play those games instead.

Hollow Knight shattered my expectations, and I would include it in the same breath as those two foundational games. A detailed world brimming with personality and interesting lore draws you into this game that radiates with the love you can tell was dumped into it by its creators. The bug theme is so clever, and I loved to see all the new enemy types. I thought I disliked the art style when I saw the games promotional material (it screams "hot topic" to me in the worst way possible) but damn was I wrong, this game looks stunning in motion. Worth the hype.

Faz um tempo que eu não jogo Hollow Knight e ainda me pego pensando a respeito daquele universo. É muito interessante realizar que é todo um mundo composto por vermes/insetos e que o principal tema em torno disso tudo seja a ganância, da forma mais abrangente possível, pois há ganancias de todos os tipos possíveis no jogo. Daí, a sacada mais sensacional disso tudo é que o protagonista se chama Hollow Knight, literalmente um cavaleiro oco, desprendido de todo esse materialismo e que é encarregado de libertar esse mundo.

O problema é que esse mundo é tão zoado, que a sua salvação depende de um sacrífico. É a abdicação total de tudo que é material para tentar resgatar os valores mais simples. No final principal, há uma passagem de bastão bem singela para a Hornet (protagonista da sequência) que é o simbolo da esperança dentro daquela terra, visto que é a personagem com uma aura mais ingênua, que se cobra para se superar o tempo inteiro e se tornar melhor com o passar do tempo. O vazio se sacrifica para dar lugar ao autoconhecimento.

Hollow Knight é melhor metroidvania desde o primeiro Metroid. Criação de universo impecável. A ruina de um mundo de insetos destruído pela ganância de um rei megalomaníaco e súditos completamente cegos pela criação deste universo. Briga de tribos, luz versus trevas, genocídios, experimentos terríveis. Só um filho sobrevivente das trevas e perfeitamente vazio de qualquer sentimento é capaz de salvar este mundo da infecção do Deus luminoso e da arrogância de um rei egocêntrico. Cada canto do ambiente conta uma história, o mapa desnorteante e detalhista dá vontade de explorar cada cantinho e entender o porque que aquele mundo ruiu. O simples artesão passa a ter importância, nenhum personagem ali é vazio.

Tight combat and platforming, exhilerating boss battles, a sprawling, interconnected map and detailed, grimdark worldbuilding make Hollow Knight one of the most revolutionary modern metroidvania titles to grace the indie scene since Shovel Knight. And at its relatively low price point, you get a lot of bang for your buck. You can dump over 100 hours into this game and still find new challenges and interesting new bits of lore. Pulling inspiration from Dark Souls, however, makes it harder to get into for some people. Death is unforgiving and it happens frequently. Late game and extra challenges may feel near impossible. But it is nonetheless a masterpiece, also boasting an incredible soundtrack that I myself have listened to countless times. I would highly recommend at least giving this game a try. It's worth it!

imagine if super metroid was actually good.







and samus was a bug

I had a relatively unique experience with Hollow Knight, given its trajectory and explosive popularity. I played it on the day of release with next to zero expectations. Despite being a Kickstarter backer, I hadn't read a single update in the roughly three years since the campaign launched, so late February 2017 arrived and I figured I should at least try it.

I spent two hours thinking it's nice. Pleasant. Well made, sure, impressive even! Presumably tiny budget, absolutely tiny team, they're doing a lot with a little. As the hours pass, I start wondering when exactly I'll stop being impressed. There reasonably shouldn't be this much game. So much of it shouldn't be this unreasonably good.

There's an alarming number of soft thresholds where your attention is tested. Not directly, or loudly, but it becomes increasingly clear that Team Cherry crafted a world—and tools to investigate, engage—that welcomes scrutiny, and stands alongside the best in the medium. I'd refer to FromSoftware, but the comparison is approaching threadbare at this point.

I came back this year to finally try the free updates, and it holds up. Easily. I consider myself lucky to have had an unburdened, uninformed first experience, but the game can take a punch. Expectation is a challenge, and Hollow Knight is ready for it.