The format of these posts is simple: let’s discuss a specific game or series!
Let’s discuss Hollow Knight. What aspects do you like about it? What doesn’t work for you? Feel free to share any thoughts that come up, or react to other peoples comments. Let’s get the conversation going!
If you have any recommendations for games or series for the next post(s), please feel free to DM me or add it in a comment here (no guarantees of course).
Previous entries: Nintendo DS, Monster Hunter, Persona, Monkey Island, 8 Bit Era, Animal Crossing, Age of Empires, Super Mario, Deus Ex, Stardew Valley, The Sims, Half-Life, Earthbound / Mother, Mass Effect, Metroid, Journey, Resident Evil, Polybius, Tetris, Telltale Games, Kirby, LEGO Games, DOOM, Ori, Metal Gear, Slay the Spire
I really love the difficulty in this game, but I get that that’s a matter of taste. Hollow Knight would definitely benefit from an “assist mode” like Celeste, or a “god mode” like Hades. I think the devs intended for the badges to be a way for players to fine-tune their difficulty and playstyle (kind of like how in Dark Souls, pyromancy is easy mode, at least early on). But often the best badges are hidden behind challenges, and even the best badges do not dramatically reduce the difficulty. So I totally empathize with your perspective.
For me it wasn’t some boss or something. It was just some ridiculous precision platforming that couldn’t get past. I’m 45. My reaction times aren’t what they used to be. And the fact that you have to fight your shade every time made it just that much harder.
Ori and the Blind Forest also had some difficult precision platforming but the instant reload and no death penalty made it much easier to just try dozens of times until you get it.
this is where I think an assist mode would come into play. Personally, I think the difficulty and the limited checkpoints are important for the delicious tension of the game, so removing either aspect would ruin the game for me (and as I said elsewhere, this game is my favorite of all time). But if you could go into the settings, and flip on an assist mode that gave you checkpoints at the beginning of every room? I see no downside there, make the game more accessible for more people!
I also agree that the Shade is a flaw in the game design. Honestly the only clumsy design choice that I can think of in this game. I think Team Cherry wanted to do something similar to the Dark Souls bloodstain mechanic without completely copying it, but the shade ain’t it. If you like the difficulty of the game, the shade becomes a meaningless roadbump after the first few times, so it might as well be an automatic collection. If you are struggling with the difficulty of the game, the shade is just another hurdle to the game clicking for you. The shade has some lore significance, but I feel like they should have just made it an automatic collection without having to actually fight the shade.
Idk, I know I’m in the minority, but the stuff I don’t experience in a game is just as important as the stuff I do experience.
As someone who played WoW as a kid, the world always felt bigger and more memorable because there was stuff I wasn’t geared/skilled/determined/lucky/whatever enough to see. Then during WotLK they made a concerted effort to ensure everyone could see all the content. Suddenly the world felt small. Less like a world and more like a series of checkboxes that you tick off and say “done, onto the next game”.
I really appreciate when the creators say “not everyone will see everything, and that’s ok, that’s how we intended it”. Elden Ring is really good about this. I’m about to finish my first playthrough, I know ive missed a lot of stuff, but that’s OK, my playthrough was uniquely mine.
I have never been good at platforming, almost gave up on getting into the main city. Luckily my partner has the skills and patience to do those pure difficult platforming challenges for me, so I managed to complete the game. Same thing with Blasphemous actually. Gorgeous game, platforming way too difficult for me.
Even he couldn’t do white palace, and I doubt I’m good enough to beat the true final boss, so I never got the good ending.
Thanks :)
I had the same problem with Dead Cells: I could finish the game once, but impossible to continue with the Boss Cells activated. Thankfully, they introduced an “Assist Mode” with a later patch and I managed to continue playing.