After watching the industry destroy itself with a focus on DEI, hamfisted commie propaganda, and predatory systems designed to squeeze every penny they can from their customers, I have become pretty cynical about every new game coming out. I was definitely worried that Silksong would become a victim to this same cancer, but am happy to say that it is amazing.
I'm not that far into it, and I am in no hurry to get to the end, but I can already tell that I am going to love every minute of it. I am relieved that Team Cherry can be counted among Fromsoft and very few others who still understand what matters in a good game, and give us something that is worth every penny. Other developers are losing their minds over a game this good being only $20, and they probably have a point. Just like with Hollow Knight, they could have charged $40 or more and nobody would have felt ripped off.
I am thrilled to see them doing so well that it crashed the servers for the stores on every console and on Steam. I hope they make absolute bank and keep on killing it. I just hope their next game doesn't take quite so long to come out.
Anyway, it's nice to have some good news for a change. If you haven't played Silksong (or Hollow Knight), you should definitely pick them both up. They are as close to perfect as games can get.
Hollow Knight suffers heavily from its first few hours being quite a slog. If the atmosphere of it doesn't grip you then its pretty miserable. Especially with making you play a decent amount with no map, having to lose an equip slot for the compass that shows were you are on said map, and needing to get a ways before you get any "faster" movement mechanics.
I bounced off it half a dozen times before I finally pushed through long enough to feel right. And if it wasn't so cheap that would be a huge mark against it.
This is part of being a metroidvania game IMO. At least a well designed one. If you start the game with the full move set, the developers are stuck with using locked doors and keys to separate the map rather than doing it with good map design that ties directly to the move set.
The map design being so intrinsically tied to movement is why Hollow Knight is so beloved. It makes it where backtracking across the map is still fun because every area was designed to challenge the player's mastery of it just as much as the boss fights were.
So I see the "slog" at the beginning as short term pain for long term gain.
I want a new castlevania
I don't disagree, but its still a filter that will remove people from getting to the part to see why its so beloved.
The first zone is grey, slow, and not all that interesting if that despair and emptiness doesn't catch your interest. And the slow walking speed, spaced out check points, and linearness of it make it hard to appreciate the first time through.
It pays off, but not everyone is gonna want to push through. And that's fine.
I don't disagree that it is a bit of a filter either. The genre has always been more niche than typical platformers, and I think this filter is a big reason why.
In the end, it's probably a good thing that it weeds people out, as developers are forced to cater to the target audience rather than falling for the trap of trying to appeal to everyone. Which we have seen over and over again inevitably leading to chasing the "modern audience".
As someone whose played most things in the genre, from mainstream to forgotten indies, I think it is a bit too much of a filter for its own sake. Like I earlier, I bounced off it numerous times before finally getting into it.
But it was also a kickstarted game made by a bunch of dudes as their first go around, and sold for basically a pittance brand new. I can forgive a lot of little things like that weighed against those factors without it marring my opinion.
And if the post game content is any indication, they lean almost too heavily in the opposite direction of "git gud, and fuck yourself" challenges. I'll never be able to do all of those and I fear the man who can.
I've suffered through enough "not having a map" in FFXI to last me a lifetime. Give me a map or give me level design doesn't that doesn't call for one to begin with. No other options are acceptable at this point. Maybe that's why I bounced off it.
I mean, its solid enough design that the lack of map isn't impossible or even ridiculous. Part of making it technically optional and the compass an equip (instead of default) was making that possible. But its still a Metroidvania which requires returning to old areas and the like.
The real problem is if you take a break from it and don't retain your internal map, then its a real problem that you basically are better off reseting if its not too deep in. Which is why if you don't get gripped and power through a few zones then its just lost.