Silksong is a Masterpiece (Even if It’s Not Perfect)

I made a few posts about Hollow Knight: Silksong so far. The last post I made about the game discusses several aspects that, in my view, are hindering it from becoming a perfect game. But don't get me wrong, it is one of the best games I have played, and I am still not finished with it. I am at the beginning of Act 3. Yes, there is a secret Act 3 in the game, which you unlock after defeating the final boss in a specific way. That's all I am going to say about that. You have to see and experience that; it is one of the best plot twists.

In this post, I will talk about why Silksong is one of my favourite games. It succeeded in almost every aspect from the first game.

• A New World yet it feels so Familiar - Silksong is taking place in Pharloom, a bigger world compared to the Hallownest. Hallownest was a ruined, dark and decaying world, but Pharloom feels much brighter, vivid in colours and full of fresh energy. At least most of the parts are like that; there are still darker, tougher, creepier and crawling places like deepnest in Pharloom, but most of it feels good to explore. It is more like a living kingdom than long-dead ruins.

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• Memorable NPCs - In Pharloom, there are a lot of living NPCs which seem to have their own unique story. Hornet actively goes out of her way to save a few of them from danger. There are a lot more traders and normal bugs who are ready to help you in the game. Many of them give you tools or upgrades that are essential for your journey. Some of them are even linked with unlocking Act 3 of the game. There is a big surprise with some of them. I loved the Bellbeast, which is like a stag from Hallownest. You have to defeat it first for it to give you a ride and unlock the Bell stations. Later in Act 3, there is a surprise fight with a similar creature. It even has cute babies, which help us quick travel.

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• Hornet's Playstyle - Hornet is a much more agile character than the knight from the first game. She's fast, can run, and her combat feels a lot smoother. The ability to heal anywhere in the air, the down dash, and the float mechanism are all superior and make her a lot more fun to control. The knight was much simpler; it felt good to play with him, but Hornet is so much better playable character with all her quirks. All the new Hornet movement abilities work really well in challenging platforming sections, it makes you feel like a god of platformers at times lol.

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• Amazing Boss Fights - Hollow Knight won't be as popular if not for its memorable boss fights. I was afraid that Silksong wouldn't be able to match the level of boss designs, but thankfully, I was wrong. Remember the duel with Grimm or Mantis Lords in HK? It felt like a dance rather than a fight. There are a lot more bosses like that in Silksong. One of my favourites is the Cogwork Dancers. There is a lot more variety of bosses as well. Some of them are very challenging, especially without the right gear, but they don't feel bad, and you will be learning something new every time you retry that same boss.

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• Music and Atmosphere - Christopher Larkin is a genius. He created a masterpiece of an album, again, each track fits the distinct region and stirs a lot of emotions in you. The boss fights that I talked about earlier were made much more epic with fitting music. Each area or biome has its own distinct personality, and that is evident only from music. From the calm music of Bone Bottom to the beats of bosses.

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• Polished game on Release - Silksong feels like a very polished game with almost no bugs (the technical errors, not the bugs, there are hundreds of them in the game lol) that I faced. Every ability and tool seems to be tested and works well with the whole environment. The ambitious, new combat system could have gone a bad way, but they made sure to add a lot of crest and balanced it so that no one feels superior in every situation. Hollow Knight's combat, in comparison, feels much simpler now. Hats off to Team Cherry for pulling this big change with such grace.

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• Storytelling - The storytelling is a little less cryptic this time. Hornet's ability to talk and interact with a lot of characters in the game allows for more elaborate storytelling. The game doesn't have to provide 50 lore tablets with cryptic messages. Some players would prefer the former, too, but I like how we can hear Hornet's thoughts now. She can comment about the state of the world, give her opinion and even straight up threaten or even slap the bugs in the game. The return of Mr Mushroom is big. I got the signs that he is back, but I have yet to find him. There are a lot of side quests which make exploration more meaningful.

Silksong may not be a perfect game, no game really is, but it is one of the best games I have ever played. From exploration to combat, atmosphere to level design, amazing bosses to unique NPCs, everything feels made with a lot of love and devotion. I admire the efforts of the team to spend this much time on a game and launch it at a cheap price, where trash games are now launching at $70. Buying it for $20 is a steal. I got it even for less because of Steam's regional prices.

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I am a bit stuck at a tough fight in Act III, but I will be able to overcome it soon, I am sure. Have you played Silksong yet? I would love to hear your thoughts about the game.