HOLLOW KNIGHT: VOIDHEART EDITION - MY NEW FAVOURITE GAME

On the surface, Hollow Knight's premise is simple. A Metroidvania souls-like set in the hauntingly beautiful world of Hallownest, one which the player character - an unnamed knight hailing from a distant land - is tasked with exploring. Yet when put into practice Hollow Knight becomes so much more than that, as the sprawling in-game world and its various mysteries gradually unfold before the player.

For me, this game has it all. Engaging - yet it must be said, challenging - combat, a great sense of exploration, intriguing lore, tightly-designed bosses, secrets absolutely everywhere, a timeless art style and an absolutely gorgeous soundtrack.

Weirdly, I picked up this game a couple of times previously, played a few hours and then just bounced off of it. But this time I stuck with it and I am so glad I did.

To say too much about this game would genuinely ruin the experience, seriously just pick it up and play, you won't regret it.

One of, if not the best, games I have ever played - and I've been gaming for 20+ years. And it was only made by an incredibly small studio to boot.

A masterpiece in every sense of the word.

Apesar de poucas pessoas leem, amo o que faço e me sinto bem criticando de forma positiva e analítica o que muitos fazem mas poucos tem reconhecimento de forma exemplar e merecida. Não irei citar sua história por completo mas sim, seu desenvolvimento, trilha sonora, ambientação e sua forma interpretativa de caminhar a sós.

“Um jogo adiado pode eventualmente ser bom, um apressado será sempre ruim.”

Hollow Knight foi revelado no Kickstarter (Site para arrecadar fundos para aqueles que não conseguem bancar seus jogos) em novembro de 2014 e alcançou sua meta inicial de financiamento em dezembro do mesmo ano. Com 3 anos de desenvolvimento e apenas 4 desenvolvedores, Hollow Knight nos entrega uma experiência que consegue ser sombrio na mesma medida que encantador, desafiador sem ser frustrante, como ele usa de forma inteligente diversos elementos tradicionais e modernos ao mesmo tempo que consegue ser original resultando em um dos melhores jogos do gênero de plataforma (seguindo a linha de Castlevania e Metroid).

“Caminha com suas próprias pernas”

A história de Hollow Knight segue a ideia que Dark Souls propõe: ausência de narrativa que instiga o jogador a procurar e entender o que está acontecendo naquele lugar. Hallowenest era um reino subterrâneo que há muito tempo atrás fora um reino próspero, repleto de riquezas e belezas naturais, mas subitamente uma maldição assolou todo o império e hoje jaz em ruínas. Um pequeno personagem apenas conhecido como “O Cavaleiro” busca entender todos os ocorridos do que já foi uma lindo reino.

“Uma atmosfera de encher os olhos e uma trilha sonora exemplar”

Poucos jogos conseguem transmitir emoções apenas por expressões corporais e pensamentos, a junção desses fatores com uma trilha bem pensada para cada momento, resulta certamente em um linda experiência inesquecível e é isso que Hollow Knight tenta repassar. Um sentimento, uma emoção em formas de desenho, um mundo desconhecido para superar seus medos e te dar confiança para progredir.

Preciso falar algo sobre a ambientação? Foram 3 anos de trabalhos feitos a mão por apenas 4 pessoas. Cada traço, cada rascunho, cada brilho... foi feito com muito carinho e amor ao seu trabalho. Talvez por ser um grupo pequeno, a probabilidade de todos pensarem iguais e de forma coesa, resultou em uma obra-prima.
Infelizmente jogos Indies (desenvolvedoras pequenas) não são muito destacados como jogos triplo AAA (Desenvolveras grandes) tendo a mesma, se não, uma qualidade até superior que jogos de grande porte. É isto, espero que quem leia, goste, mesmo não tendo pesquisado nada sobre o jogo, quem sabe tenha interesse agora?
Obrigado.

Pros:
+ a huge Metroidvania that rewards curiosity and effort
+ sequence breaking is encouraged and rewarded with a variety of possible pathways
+ sign system offers helpful, wordless hints for traversal
+ soul trade-off system is a genuine innovation and perfectly executed
+ large variety of items and collectibles
+ combat system is perfectly executed and satisfactory
+ large variety of memorable, kick-ass boss fights that are tough but fair
+ a beautifully melancholic atmosphere with a distinct, hand-crafted art style
+ amazing soundtrack that changes depending on the context of the action (low health)
+ most NPCs have a life of their own and a story to tell

Cons:
- screen shake effect when taking damage is overdone
- Crystal Dash cannot be canceled
- foremost front layer tends to get in the way of the action
- world map unlock system is an acquired taste
- map marker is tied to a charme
- dreamnail waypoint system is tied to progress
- resource retrieval system after death is antithetical to the exploratory approach
- checkpoints are too rare and not placed well
- main character is a hollow vessel and completely uninteresting
- obscurantist writing in the DS style is played out and tiresome
- missing contours and outlines of the map are needlessly confusing
- notch system for charms feels limiting and some are simply useless
- spells are too weak in the beginning and too strong in the end
- in-game economy is not balanced well and superfluous by the half-way point
- story and the endings feel like fluff and not worth the hassle
- lackluster DLC that add little to the game as a whole (except for masochists)
- final boss is a disappointment
- Path of Pain is bullshit (although I completed it!)


Magic Moment(s): Entering Greenpath for the first time and falling in love with the music. Climbing up the path to the Colosseum.
Best Boss: Mantis Lords. A perfectly designed boss with clear tells, attacks and weaknesses.
Worst Boss: Nigtmare King Grimm. It just isn't worth it, and the amazing music is wasted on a boss that kills you in seconds.

Verdict: Hollow Knight is a great addition to its genre and a polished, exciting experience. It offers a huge, beautiful world full of secrets and rewards you for exploring it, thus helping you to improve and overcome the manifold tough challenges as you explore. The combat just works and the playstyle options are genuinely innovative and well-implemented. However, while being exceedingly difficult in parts, most of the frustration is not caused by the tough enemies and unique bosses, but by the lackluster implementation of the checkpoint system. Having to reclaim you resources after a death might work in Souslikes, but here, it becomes an unnecessary obstacle in traversing and exploring the world on your own accord. Despite these shortcomings, however, Hollow Knight is a great effort by Team Cherry and a must-play for every fan of the genre.

This game is beautiful, there's no other way to describe it. It's hauntingly beautiful, as any good post apocalyptic world should be. The controls are tight and the stages challenging, but in the way that when you die, its your fault... and also your job to learn from that mistake or continue to die over and over... and over. I spent so many hours trying to 100% it, but there were somethings I just couldn't do.

The only negative is that the story isn't super obvious, and that's a shame! I wanted to know the story, but I didn't want to hunt it down by the time I realized i had missed it. Fantastic game for any platformer fan!

This is my favourite game of all time. I have never played something that motivated and delighted me at the same time like this game. Everything about Hollow Knight is perfect.

The soundtrack, the gameplay, the level design, the boss design, the skills, the long term motivation, the urge to perfection... This game offers everything and I am honest...

The only game that could top this one is Hollow Knight 2. Will it be able to do that? Most likely it won't, because what Hollow Knight gave me has never been given me by anything else. No, not even hookers. ♥

One of the few games I'm glad I went for platinum, or else the score would have been slightly lower. The game gets better and more challenging bit by bit, there isn't really a part where I can say "This game starts for real here", no, progression is smooth, and there isn't a difficult spike unless you explore the areas out of order. I thought the difficulty was overrated and it kinda is, it feels slightly above average for the most part (since you also get better bit by bit), but as I said, it gets harder and better over time, and when you get closer and closer to the end or even better, closer to getting the Platinum/all achievements/100%/whatever, oh boy... You're gonna have your ass kicked in a good way. Absolute greatness.

This game is great, really....but honestly ? I thought i would love it more . Sorry, my favorite metroidmania is still super metroid right now

Obviously, there is outsanding part in this game: the exploration is even more better that in super metroid, the visual and soundtrack are amazing, the level design is decent, and incorporate element you can only access later really well, and all the location are mémorable, but idk... sometimes, the movement of the character, even if its usually really fluid, can sometimes feel a lil jank? Dont get me wrong, the game plays really well, but sometimes, it doesnt react how i thought it would be, and not in a good way

Also i thought that some boss just werent fun: too easy, too frustating, or just boring...its a minority, of course, but they drag the experience down

And yeah, even if the game usually is great at giving subtle direction, sometimes, it just doesnt, and you are just lost...

I didnt meant to bitch that much, especially because the game is incredible, so im just going to praise it now:

Ok, this game, if you avoid the lil inconvenience i listed, is just a joy to play! I really enjoy the story, the feel, and just pure fun and intricate exploration, even when i am clueless ! Like i said, all the location are great and distinct, despite all taking place on a cave, and are, for the most part, really enjoyable, with interesting enemy design, good and varied level design, and for the most part solid bossfight

This game is honestly really good, despite my little disappointment, and you should obviously check it out