Played this when it initially came out and shelved it within few hours, finally gave it another go years later and i actually really like this game.

Never been a big fan of Metroidvania's but feeling lost in this game felt pretty good, backtracking felt very natural and with purpose however the game ended right when i thought it was about to start but that's to no fault of the game itself rather thanks to the critical acclaim its received, it made me expect something more grand and ambitious but Hollow Knight's very simple, from its combat to its environments but it does all of that very well but it never felt like the game everyone made it out to be, to me.

Jet set radio meets tony hawk meets psychonauts.

Extremely fun core gameplay though the level design does fall a bit short, the story is serviceable but I wish it was more stylish, something more cheesy and in your face, it felt rather bland for a game like this even if the point they were trying to make was good, it just took itself too seriously, soundtrack is very good but I would've preferred the ability to shuffle through it at will.

i can't complain much about this game not innovating or introducing anything new and just taking everything good the previously mentioned games did and combining them in a streamlined package since thats exactly what ive wanted for years (especially the psychonauts part, i pray they expand on that sort of level design and aesthetic in the sequel), however it could've used more time in the oven and some extra polish as some of the story segments did annoy me and the combat was downright bad.

regardless like I said the core gameplay is just so fun that now that I've finished the story I can see myself routing combos or just free roaming for a good month or two.

loading screens are a bummer.