Hollow Knight: Silksong review – fierce, fun, and mostly fair

Eight years. That’s how long I wanted for the sequel to Hollow Knight, and Team Cherry first shared news of Hollow Knight: Silksong six and a half years ago, so to say it’s been an arduous wait is an understatement. Still, on September 4, 2025, the game finally burst onto the scene, arriving on the consoles and PCs of many players around the world. Yes, this includes me.

During this time, I reached a point where I never took off the clown makeup, desperately waiting for that ‘next Nintendo Direct‘ to give me something more about it – a bit of a running joke for fans. Games like Hollow Knight are rare, and by that I mean it’s not often that an indie game takes the world by storm to the extent of Team Cherry’s Metroidvania. As such, this long-awaited sequel has a lot to live up to, and dare I say it does.

Hard games are enjoyable to me, and you get that in spades with Silksong. However, I have to admit that the balance feels slightly off at times. While most of the game feels fair, some segments are too difficult, while others are too easy, offering little challenge. However, perhaps I need to just count my blessings during those small ‘breaks’ where I feel unstoppable, and ‘git gud’ at those portions where the difficulty spikes.

It’s a minor complaint, really, because at no point does my enjoyment of the game diminish, and I’ve been struggling to put the controller down since I first took control of Hollow Knight’s Hornet. She’s an enigmatic badass, and easily has a place among my list of the best videogame protagonists after my time with her in Pharloom, the land in which the game takes place.

The world itself, unsurprisingly, is beautiful, with Team Cherry once again demonstrating its environmental flair, from the very first area, Moss Grotto (a forest biome) to the Deep Docks, Citadel, and Mount Fay – the latter of which is where you can get the Hollow Knight: Silksong double jump ability, one of the most useful in the game when you combine it creatively with other skills.

Exploring is a joy, though I find myself so engrossed in my surroundings from time to time that it spells my demise at the hands of whatever enemies are around. Silksong isn’t short of variety in the foes you encounter throughout the game, which I always appreciate. In my Shadow Labyrinth review – another 2025 Metroidvania – my biggest complaint was a lack of enemy variety and repetition, so it’s great to see Silksong avoid that issue.

The combat is a lot of fun, with Hornet’s needle being fast and lethal, and the variety in enemies forces you to take a different approach depending on what you’re facing. For instance, some fly, so you need to jump and swing, while others are on the ground – when fighting these, you can either go on a continuous assault and risk a counter, or dash in for a hit and step back, repeating until you strike down all who stand in your way.

While I enjoy the encounters with standard enemies, it’s the Hollow Knight: Silksong bosses that truly steal the show. To be honest, I got a bit too ahead of myself, patting myself on the back for defeating the very first boss with great ease. I was cocky as I entered The Marrow, working my way through the area to my fight with Hollow Knight: Silksong’s Bell Beast, and that’s when I came barreling back down to Earth as the giant bug squashed me.

After getting my bearings, I overcame it and continued my adventure, but it served as a harsh reminder that this game can turn on you at any moment. Still, the first few fights teach you what you need to know to come out on top against the later bosses – specifically, you should acquaint yourself with the jump button early, because it truly is your best friend.

Something that does give you a slight advantage, however, is how the healing system works. At least, I think it does. You see, I’m a huge fan of Bloodborne, a game that rewards aggression by letting you reclaim health with each hit for a period of time after sustaining damage. While Silksong doesn’t go that far, there’s a silk bar just below your health, which you fill by hitting enemies. Once full, you can replenish your health. Yes, you still need to pull your punches and pick your moments, but this system means you always have the ability to get your health back in a fight.

Plus, that silk bar is how you use various abilities – I’m not a fan of spoilers, so I’m going to use the earliest one you get as an example, and that’s the silkspear. You get to throw a spear for a portion of your silk bar, which causes increased damage and can remove webs that are blocking various pathways. Beyond this, there are plenty of abilities and tools throughout the world; you just need to explore and track them down. Trust me, it’s worth the effort, and I always applaud a game that gives great cause to spend extra time carefully looking around.

Speaking of looking around, there are plenty of characters to meet on your adventure. Some act as merchants, allowing you to buy useful objects, including Hollow Knight: Silksong map items, while others require your assistance with their own problems. Sure, Hornet’s in Pharloom for her own reasons, but it can’t hurt to lend a helping hand, especially if the task is on your path anyway.

Performance-wise, I can’t speak to what you can expect on the Nintendo Switch or the Switch 2, as I’ve played the game on Xbox so far, but when I do get it on NS2 (because I need to be able to take it on the go with me), I’ll be sure to update this review with everything you need to know. However, I can say that it performs beautifully on the Xbox Series X.

All in all, Hollow Knight: Silksong is a new Switch game that’s worth your attention. It’s a fierce challenge, ridiculously fun, and mostly fair, though the difficulty tips the scales from one end to the other at times. Hornet is a fabulous protagonist, and you simply have to join her if you’re a fan of the first game.