The Perfect Successor: Silksong Soars Beyond Hollow Knight's Shadow

Since its announcement in 2019, Hollow Knight: Silksong has faced challenges due to the success of its predecessor and high expectations from fans. Development delays have caused the game to gain a notorious reputation in the gaming community. Recently, it was noticed that Silksong has been in development for over 1600 days, putting it in the company of other games stuck in a development limbo. However, it is not uncommon for successful and beloved games to take a long time to release, like Final Fantasy 15, Team Fortress 2, and The Last Guardian, which all took nearly a decade to develop.

What makes Silksong unique is the constant scrutiny it faces regarding its release date, even with recent updates from Team Cherry pointing towards a near future launch. This constant scrutiny may be due to the unfair context in which Silksong is being framed, considering its predecessor's legacy and the current atmosphere surrounding game development. Despite these factors, Silksong should be given the opportunity to be judged on its own merits as an indie game.

Hollow Knight's Development and Release Set A High Bar

Hollow Knight's origins as a crowdfunded indie game should never be forgotten, despite being easy to overlook. While the success of the game validated the support it received, this is not always the outcome for similar projects. Only a third of Kickstarter games have actually been fully delivered. Whether Hollow Knight's triumph was a stroke of luck or destiny is not crucial. However, it is important to acknowledge that Team Cherry's debut game started from modest beginnings and defied the odds. This recognition should shape our perception of Silksong's development.

Furthermore, it is worth noting that Hollow Knight itself took approximately three years to reach completion and be released. Therefore, the fact that Silksong has already undergone four years of development should come as no surprise or cause for concern. For instance, Naughty Dog's The Last of Us and its sequel each took three and five years to develop, respectively. Both games garnered critical acclaim upon their release. While players may eagerly anticipate a return to Hollow Knight's world, they should not be misled by its success regarding Silksong's lengthy and relatively quiet development, especially considering the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the gaming industry as a whole.

Context is Important When Considering Hollow Knight: Silksong

Team Cherry's approach to developing Hollow Knight versus Hollow Knight: Silksong is worth acknowledging, as it could mislead players' expectations. Hollow Knight, being a Kickstarter project, had a transparent development process with regular updates that assured backers of progress. However, Silksong lacks such transparency, which could frustrate players and contribute to their response to the sequel's delays.

Moreover, Silksong faces additional challenges that its predecessor did not encounter. There is a growing discourse around lengthy development cycles, with players expressing annoyance towards studios like Bethesda and Rockstar for taking too long to release games. While both sides may have valid arguments, it implies that players are more sensitive to slow game development and delay announcements. As a result, the high levels of scrutiny and demands from fans are inevitable, even if Silksong's release is imminent.

Hollow Knight: Silksong is in development for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.