It’s not often that I describe a video game as “simple”. However, I use this term to describe Hollow Knight in the best way possible. Sometimes I believe that video game developers believe that in order for a game to be successful, it must be complex in terms of combat, plot, and soundtrack. Hollow Knight disproves this. Produced by Team Cherry in 2017, Hollow Knight is a Metroidvania style game that wowed audiences with its effortless combat system, plot, and character design. I played Hollow Knight recently and was stunned by its simplistic yet rich approach to game design and plot.

The combat system of Hollow Knight, much like the rest of the game, is simple but effective. Your character, the Knight, can swing upwards, downwards, and to both sides, in an arc pattern. Throughout the game you can upgrade the damage output of your sword, or “nail” in the Hollow Knight universe, and can gain “charms” to give you additional benefits. These charms are a stroke of genius by the developers, adding a whole new level of strategy to the game. You are encouraged to use different combinations of charms to aid you with the situation at hand, with each giving different beneficial effects, such as the length of your attack being increased, little grubs to appear to collect any stray coins, or a retailating attack to any enemy that touches you. The charm effects vary widely, and each gives an effect that will be useful for you, either now or in the future. When you kill an enemy, you gain “soul” which you can use to employ a variety of effects that you gain as you progress through the game. At first you will only be able to heal yourself with the soul you gain, but later you will be able to do a ground pound that damages an area of enemies, fire a heavy hitting blast that uses your soul, or fire a fountain of damage above you, the uses of soul are endless. These aspects help give Hollow Knight a simple, yet complex and rewarding combat system that’s fun and enjoyable nearly every time.

Immediately upon being released into the game you are given a meager tutorial on how to move, then set free. There is little to no hand holding in Hollow Knight, which to some may be frightening, but I found it to be comforting. Hollow Knight is brutal by design; when you die you lose all of your money, and have to trek back to where you last perished in order to regain that money back. This leads to genuine suspense in going to go back to get your money, as if you die on the way there, you lose all your money permanently. If that weren’t enough, Hollow Knight has some genuinely difficult bosses, my favorites being Radiance, Grimm, and the Mantis Lords. In order to clear these bosses, you have to employ real understanding of their patterns and knowledge of what charms to use in this situation. All these factors come together to form a challenging, but immensely rewarding game, with genuine strategy and thought involved.

The Metroidvania style works perfectly for Hollow Knight due to its wide arrangement of beautiful, horrifying, and sad landscapes. Personally, my favorites are the City of Tears, Deepnest, and the Abyss. Each area puts something on the table in terms of game experience, and each is special and unique. As you progress throughout the game you reach new areas, which provides a sense of true adventure and wonder of what’s coming next. There is no feeling quite alike to walking into an unassuming room only to be greeted with a boss. On top of this, every area has some secret to be had, making exploring each area very rewarding. The soundtrack perfectly complements the areas as well. Whether it be the somber sadness of the City of Tears, the chilling grating sounds of Deepnest, one of the most terrifying places in the game, or the magic of Crystal Peak, the soundtrack is always on point. Please, look up the soundtrack if you’d like. I guarantee you won’t regret it.

The one aspect Hollow Knight I did not enjoy as much was the map system. Each time you enter a new area, you have to find Connifer the Cartographer in order to obtain a map of the area. This leads to a few moments of aimless wandering in order to find Connifer in order to more effectively progress through the area. However, these moments are few and far between, so this can be overlooked.

Hollow Knight is a beautiful and intuitive game with genuine strategy and thought involved. It’s combat system provides for a real layer of complexity and strategy to an already amazing combat mechanic. The landscapes perfectly fit the tone of the game, and each one has secrets that give the player true satisfaction when finding. The game truly lets you explore and experience the game in a new way. In conclusion, I definitely recommend Hollow Knight for any fan of the Metroidvania genre.