Hollow Knight is a Metroidvania video game developed and published by Team Cherry. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux in 2017, and for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One in 2018. Development was partially funded through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, raising over A$57,000 by the end of 2014.
The game tells the story of a knight on a quest to uncover the secrets of the long-abandoned insect kingdom of Hallownest, whose haunting depths draw in the adventurous and brave with promises of treasures and answers to ancient mysteries.
A sequel to the game, Hollow Knight: Silksong, is currently in development and is set to be released on Microsoft Windows, Mac, Linux and Nintendo Switch, with Team Cherry stating that "more platforms may happen in the future." Team Cherry had previously planned this game as a piece of downloadable content. Kickstarter backers of Hollow Knight will also receive Silksong for free when it is released.
Gameplay
Hollow Knight is a 2D Metroidvania action-adventure game, which takes place in Hallownest, a fictional ancient kingdom. The player controls an insect-like, silent, and nameless knight while exploring the underground world. The knight wields a nail, which is a cone-shaped sword, used both in combat and environmental interaction.
In most areas of the game the player encounters hostile bugs and other sorts of creatures. Melee combat involves using the nail to strike enemies from a short distance. The player can also learn spells, allowing for long-range attacks. Defeated enemies drop currency called Geo. The knight starts with a limited number of masks, which represent hit points of the character. "Mask shards" can be collected throughout the game to increase the player's health. When the knight takes damage from an enemy or from the environment, a mask is deducted. By striking enemies, the knight gains Soul, which is stored in the Soul Vessel. If all masks are lost, the knight dies and a Shade appears at that place.
The player also loses all Geo and can hold a reduced amount of Soul. The player needs to defeat the Shade to recover the lost currency and to carry normal amount of Soul. The game continues from a last visited bench—they are scattered throughout the game world and act as save points. Initially the player can only use Soul to "Focus" (regenerate masks), but as the game progresses the player unlocks several offensive spells, which consume Soul.
Many areas feature more challenging enemies (bosses) which the player may need to defeat in order to progress further. Defeating some bosses grants the player new abilities. Later in the game, the player acquires a "dream nail", a legendary blade that can "cut through the veil between dreams and waking". It enables the player to face more challenging versions of some bosses, and to break what is sealing the path to the final boss.
During the game, the player encounters non-player characters, with whom they can interact. These characters provide information about the game's plot or lore, offer aid, and sell items or services. The player can upgrade the knight's nail to deal more damage or find soul vessels to carry more Soul. During the course of the game, the player acquires items that provide new movement abilities. They include an additional jump mid-air (Monarch Wings), adhering to walls and jumping off them (Mantis Claw), and a quick dash (Mothwing Cloak). The player can also learn other combat abilities, known as nail arts, and the aforementioned spells. To further customise the knight, the player can equip various Charms, which can be found or purchased from NPCs. Some of their effects include: improved combat abilities or skills, more masks or their regeneration, better movement skills, easier collecting of currency or of Soul, and transformation. Equipping a Charm takes up a certain number of limited slots, called notches. Wearing a Charm that requires more than the available number of notches is possible, but it results in being "overcharmed", causing the knight to receive double damage from all sources.
Hallownest consists of several large, inter-connected areas with unique themes. Although Hollow Knight does not bind the player to one path through the game nor require them to explore the whole world, there are obstacles that limit the player's access to an area. The player may need to progress in the story of the game, or acquire a specific movement ability, skill or item to progress further. To fast travel through the game's world, the player can utilise Stag Stations, terminals of a network of tunnels; the player can only travel to previously visited and unlocked stations. Other fast travel methods, such as trams, lifts, and "Dreamgate", are encountered later in the game.
As the player enters a new area, they do not have access to the map of the surroundings. They need to find Cornifer, the Cartographer, in order to buy a rough map. As the player explores an area, the map becomes more accurate and complete, although it is updated only when sitting on a bench. The player will need to buy specific items to complete maps, to see points of interest, and to place markers. The knight's position on the map can only be seen if the player is carrying a specific Charm.
Plot
Base Game
Prior to the start of the game, a creature known as a Wyrm dies near Hallownest, but later appears as a being known as the Pale King. The bugs of Hallownest at this time worshipped a being known as the Radiance, but the Pale King is able to convince the bugs of Hallownest to forget the Radiance and accept him as the ruler of Hallownest. The Pale King then goes on to construct a great kingdom. However, after some time, bugs began hearing the whispers of the Radiance in their dreams, and this soon led to an infection of madness and mindlessness that affected many of the bugs of Hallownest. In order to combat this, the Pale King attempted to contain the infection within a single Vessel, shadowy beings created by the Pale King. This Vessel was then contained within the Black Egg Temple and sealed by three powerful bugs known as the Dreamers.
