Gaming Hollow Knight - GOAT Metroidvania

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I dont think im there yet? I literally JUST picked up the wall climb jump thing. Already played about 7 hours. I'm useless at this :lol:

My past-self would be ashamed of me as I used to be a real gamer. Completed all DMC games on the hardest difficulty, played Street Fighter and Tekken competitively etc. Now, standard bad guys in fecking Hollow Knight beat the shit out me :lol:
Ah sorry, you've got that to look forward to then!

I think it's genuinely one of the best games I've ever played, I was surprised at how much I got enveloped by it for the few months I was playing it. Good luck on the rest of your playthrough mate.
 

Snowjoe

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I’ve tried to get into this twice but it doesn’t seem to do it for me. Not sure what I’m missing
 

Dirty Schwein

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I’ve tried to get into this twice but it doesn’t seem to do it for me. Not sure what I’m missing
I know what you mean. I didn't realize what Metroidvania was until I picked this up.

Don't get me wrong, I am quite enjoying it but there are so many routes and no obvious direction to go towards. This is already confusing for someone like me who has trouble with maps even in real life. Add to that the fact that sometimes I'll play and then pick it up again a week or two later, I find myself being lost constantly :lol:
 

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Best platformer I've ever played. Battered it during first lockdown on Xbox game pass. The path of pain was fun. Can't wait for Silksong.
 
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Moby

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Got it with Ps Plus and finally played it properly after trying it a couple of times. Definitely takes a while to get into it but once you do you would never wanna stop. Love the aesthetics and soundtrack as well. Enjoyed defeating that first False Knight but I am assuming that's probably the least difficult thing in the game.
 

esmufc07

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Got it with Ps Plus and finally played it properly after trying it a couple of times. Definitely takes a while to get into it but once you do you would never wanna stop. Love the aesthetics and soundtrack as well. Enjoyed defeating that first False Knight but I am assuming that's probably the least difficult thing in the game.
Yeah the difficulty certainly increases! But everything about the game is just so enjoyable. Already looking forward to playing the sequel.
 

esmufc07

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I’ve just had a go at fighting the Hollow Knight - he battered me but don’t want to complete the game yet (assuming it’s the final boss anyway) as I feel like I have so much more left to do.

When you finish it can you just carry on with your save like a NG+?
 

Ødegaard

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I’ve just had a go at fighting the Hollow Knight - he battered me but don’t want to complete the game yet (assuming it’s the final boss anyway) as I feel like I have so much more left to do.

When you finish it can you just carry on with your save like a NG+?
No.
Hollow Knight is the final boss unless you have the void heart and dream nail the Knight when a npc enters the fight.
 

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If Silk Song is anything remotely as good as the original I'd happily pay the money twice over. Been waiting for it for almost a year now, goddamn it Team Cherry.
 

el3mel

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I played this 2 or so months ago and it was fantastic. Lived up to the hype around it.

Helped by the fact I only paid 8 dollars for it on Steam and by the find I felt like it was an absolute steal.

Between this, the 2 Ori games and Bloodstained, these are the best modern metroidvania experiences your can this gen.
 

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I can’t praise this game highly enough. It’s one of the best games I’ve ever played.
I played a third (probably) and absolutely loved it - atmosphere, controls, design, sound, everything.. Really forward to playing it properly on the PS4 as it's a free game for this month.

Interestingly, I played the much hyped Celeste before Hollow Knight and it was not in the same bracket, really.
 

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Just started this after getting it through PS Plus earlier. I've never been much of a metroidvania player. Played the first Ori earlier this year and generally liked it but ultimately got turned off due to annoying platforming sections.

I'm not too far into this one but I already think I like it a lot better. Ori did have plenty of combat but I never really found it enjoyable, this is clearly something else. Positioning and timing feel spot on, at least once I switched to the dpad for movement (just feels better to me, especially for upward and downward attacks). I did the first boss, that was a lot of fun. I'm curious to find out just how good it's going to get further into the game.
 

el3mel

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Just started this after getting it through PS Plus earlier. I've never been much of a metroidvania player. Played the first Ori earlier this year and generally liked it but ultimately got turned off due to annoying platforming sections.

I'm not too far into this one but I already think I like it a lot better. Ori did have plenty of combat but I never really found it enjoyable, this is clearly something else. Positioning and timing feel spot on, at least once I switched to the dpad for movement (just feels better to me, especially for upward and downward attacks). I did the first boss, that was a lot of fun. I'm curious to find out just how good it's going to get further into the game.
While I liked both Ori games in general, the second one is a huge improvement over the first, and it is actually seems to be inspired by Hollow Knight by some ways, so even if you don't like the first, try the second.
 

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Playing this again now.

Honestly, this is not just a game. It's a work of fecking art.
 

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I'm having an absolute blast with the combat. Took down a couple more bosses plus a couple of optional ones, it's pretty awesome.

But... I'm also running into the same annoyance I had when playing Ori, which is I really can't remember which dead end was blocked by what obstacle. Meaning once I get a new ability, I find myself compelled to track back to each and every dead end of every map to check out if I can proceed and perhaps get some bonus items. Combined with limited quick traversal options, this quickly becomes a chore. I know that sort of comes with the genre, but I still consider it a weakness.
 

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Gonna start this again tomorrow. Can't remember where exactly I dropped it last time but it was because some boss that was wrecking my head.
 

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One Of the best indie games of all time and indeed the best Metroidvania. Have over 100 hours on steam in 2017 and 50 on PS4 in the last 2 weeks.
 

Moby

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Yeah the difficulty certainly increases! But everything about the game is just so enjoyable. Already looking forward to playing the sequel.
That's my worry. I'm still in Greenpath and haven't really played much from last time, but I think it is fair to assume that going forward the difficulty will not just increase in terms of you being clever and knowing which abilities or powers or moves to use against which enemy, but after a point you just need to have crazy reflexes. For example I am not really able to master the pogo over the spikes to reach that one grub in Forgotten Crossroads, where you just need to practice that skill over and over again, and that's something that starts feeling more like a chore than something enjoyable. If that happens with bigger bosses later on in the game I am not sure how long will I be able to keep patient with this. :lol:
 

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Difficulty spike comes at Mantis Village IMO, and it’s where I nearly quit with rage on my first play through. Did that bit with ease yesterday though.

Despite spending over 100 hours on this game I never fail to get lost on my new playthrough. Exploring an area without a map is the most anxiety inducing thing...
 

Moby

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Exploring an area without a map is the most anxiety inducing thing...
It certainly is and the game doesn't make it any easier to find a map either. For example when I entered Greenpath, there was a tape with a message from Cornifer saying I can find the map in a shop in Dirtmouth, when the moron was sitting at a later point in Greenpath itself.

Great stuff giving me the map of an area after I'm halfway into the said area. :lol:
 
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Maagge

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That's my worry. I'm still in Greenpath and haven't really played much from last time, but I think it is fair to assume that going forward the difficulty will not just increase in terms of you being clever and knowing which abilities or powers or moves to use against which enemy, but after a point you just need to have crazy reflexes. For example I am not really able to master the pogo over the spikes to reach that one grub in Forgotten Crossroads, where you just need to practice that skill over and over again, and that's something that starts feeling more like a chore than something enjoyable. If that happens with bigger bosses later on in the game I am not sure how long will I be able to keep patient with this. :lol:
As far as I remember that particular skill isn't used that often.
 

Moby

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As far as I remember that particular skill isn't used that often.
Fair enough, just meant it as an example. Was just trying to say that I find these kind of games a bit more 'pure skill' oriented as compared to more generic RPGs where in you obviously have a bigger area to move around and can generally fight your way in multiple ways, but this one seems it will get quite hardcore at some point where you need to be a seasoned platformer and not just a casual one like me to get past the later stages. :lol:
 

Maagge

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Fair enough, just meant it as an example. Was just trying to say that I find these kind of games a bit more 'pure skill' oriented as compared to more generic RPGs where in you obviously have a bigger area to move around and can generally fight your way in multiple ways, but this one seems it will get quite hardcore at some point where you need to be a seasoned platformer and not just a casual one like me to get past the later stages. :lol:
Oh it's difficult alright. When you first run into the mantis lords you'll wonder how you'll ever beat them, but you'll get there.
 

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I'm so glad more people are starting to play this.

The devs deserve as much as they can from this game, even if now all it means is that it'll build some hype for the sequel.
 

el3mel

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The 6 watcher knights boss was when I was about to rage quiet the game and totally uninstall it. :lol:

I think it took me no less than 30 or so tries to defeat them. I don't want to remember this. Feck them.
 

Ainu

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Difficulty spike comes at Mantis Village IMO, and it’s where I nearly quit with rage on my first play through. Did that bit with ease yesterday though.

Despite spending over 100 hours on this game I never fail to get lost on my new playthrough. Exploring an area without a map is the most anxiety inducing thing...
I've reached that part now but haven't found the boss of that area yet. So far the difficulty has been ok for me. It's challenging but it's the sort of challenge I like, nothing requiring lightning reflexes, just a good sense of patterns, positioning, timing and precision. Based on your post I'm assuming I'm going to be in for a tougher time soon, though.
 

Dirty Schwein

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I've reached that part now but haven't found the boss of that area yet. So far the difficulty has been ok for me. It's challenging but it's the sort of challenge I like, nothing requiring lightning reflexes, just a good sense of patterns, positioning, timing and precision. Based on your post I'm assuming I'm going to be in for a tougher time soon, though.
This is where I'm struggling, precision. I find it incredibly difficult with the analogue stick.
 

Ainu

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This is where I'm struggling, precision. I find it incredibly difficult with the analogue stick.
I've experimented with both the dpad and joystick but ultimately settled back on the stick, it seems to work better for tricky platforming sections combining downward slashes with sideways movement. But perhaps the dpad might work better for you, depending on which controller you're using?
 

Dirty Schwein

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I've experimented with both the dpad and joystick but ultimately settled back on the stick, it seems to work better for tricky platforming sections combining downward slashes with sideways movement. But perhaps the dpad might work better for you, depending on which controller you're using?
I have an 8bitdo and on that, I'd play with the D-Pad but I usually play this game in bed holding the Switch in my hands. The D-Pad on that is atrocious so I have to use the analogue stick.
 

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Ok im going to give this another shot tonight and see what happens
 

esmufc07

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The 6 watcher knights boss was when I was about to rage quiet the game and totally uninstall it. :lol:

I think it took me no less than 30 or so tries to defeat them. I don't want to remember this. Feck them.
There’s a hidden chandelier above them before you go into the fight which knocks one of them out so you only have to fight 5.
 

el3mel

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There’s a hidden chandelier above them before you go into the fight which knocks one of them out so you only have to fight 5.
I know, but still the main problem was fighting 2 of them on the screen. :lol: It's really, really hard to concentrate on 2 of them at the same time with their jumping and bouncing attacks, and there's barely any window to heal during the fight, so you need to be near perfect in your movement to defeat them.
 

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Ah Watcher Knights! Forgot about those. I think that’s where I might need to go now actually, aren’t they in City of Tears somewhere?

I just got the Crystal Heart, can’t remember where I have to go now but I haven’t got to any of the dreamers yet. Think there’s one by the Watcher Knights from what I remember.