So, You Thought You Were Good at Hollow Knight? Silksong Says "LOL."
I booted it. I blinked. I died. (Art, apparently.) Welcome to Hollow Knight: Silksong, the game we’ve collectively been hallucinating for the last five years. It’s real, it’s here, and it has absolutely no time for your feelings. The biggest conversation blowing up every corner of the internet isn’t about the lore or the art. Oh no. It’s about one thing: the difficulty. Is Silksong a masterpiece of challenge, or did Team Cherry accidentally ship a torture device? Let's get into it. 🫠Let's make one thing clear: this isn't an accident. Team Cherry looked at the original Hollow Knight-a game that already filtered out the weak-willed-and said, "We can make this hurt more." In an interview with IGN, the devs basically confirmed that our new hero, Hornet, is so fast and agile that they had to make the enemies smarter and more aggressive to keep up. said co-director Ari Gibson. Read that again. The *tutorial bugs* have a 401k and a mortgage now.
Team Cherry's Official Stance: "Git Gud"
Their solution to the inevitable player tears? Freedom. If a boss is turning you into a fine paste, you’re encouraged to just… leave. Go somewhere else, explore, find new tools, have a little cry, and come back later. This non-linear approach is their version of an easy mode. There are no sliders here. Just the option to run away and live to fight another day. Bold of them to assume my pride will let me. 💀 The community response has been, to put it mildly, a complete dumpster fire of opinions. It’s basically two camps yelling at each other across a chasm of skill issues and free time.
The Great Divide: Artistic Vision vs. Actually Having Fun
In This Corner: The "Pain Is The Point" Crew
For the die-hard fans, the high difficulty isn't a bug; it's the main feature. They argue that overcoming a brutal challenge is the entire point of a "Souls-like" game. That feeling of finally beating a boss after your 87th attempt? That’s the good stuff. It’s a "canon event" in your gaming journey. To these players, adding an easy mode would be a betrayal of the artistic vision. They bought a ticket for the pain train, and they expect it to run on schedule.
And The Challenger: The "I Have A Job and Three Hours To Play" Council
On the other side, you have players who just want to see the pretty bug world without developing carpal tunnel. They argue that locking the story and art behind a massive wall of difficulty makes the game inaccessible. Not everyone has the time or the reflexes to master every single boss pattern. For some, the relentless challenge isn't rewarding; it's just a frustrating barrier to entry that makes them want to go play something cozy instead. Some have even called the difficulty "artificial," pointing to enemies with massive health pools as a lazy way to make things harder. This ain't it, chief.
The Critics Have Entered The Chat 💅
The professionals are just as divided, which is honestly peak entertainment.
- PC Gamer didn't pull any punches, calling Silksong the "videogame equivalent of sticking your hand into the Dune pain box." I mean, they ate that.
- The Washington Post went full hipster with the headline: "'Silksong' is cruel, majestic and not for everyone. That's why it's for me." Okay, we get it, you’re special.
- Polygon kept it real, noting that Silksong is a "deeply frustrating and difficult game that doesn't hold players' hands at all, but that's entirely by design."
So, the consensus is: it's hard on purpose. Congratulations to the developers for successfully achieving their goal of making us all suffer. An award is in the mail.
The Verdict? Good Luck, I Guess.
The Silksong difficulty debate is just a symptom of a bigger conversation in gaming. What's more important: a developer's pure, unfiltered vision, or making sure everyone who paid their $30 can actually finish the game? Team Cherry planted their flag firmly in the "vision" camp.
So, is Hollow Knight: Silksong too hard? The answer is a resounding "maybe." It all depends on what you're looking for. Do you want a challenge that will test your limits and make you feel like a gaming god? Or do you just want to explore a beautiful, melancholic world without wanting to throw your controller into low-earth orbit? If it's the latter, you might be in for a rough time.
For me? The art is immaculate, but the gameplay is a crime against my sanity. Looks rich, plays broke. But not me actually starting another run as we speak.
Wishlist it and make them earn you.
