LogFAQs > #895479466

1. Hollow Knight
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My friends can tell you about how strict I am about what should qualify as a metroidvania, probably to the point of being a massive asshole. Super Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night were actually two very different games, simply using the same foundation. Whereas Metroid gave us a quick-to-traverse, compound map design with a seamless exploration loop, SotN opted for a more expansive world with completely free reign of exploration. I feel like a metroidvania should at least fit one of these descriptions, but seemingly everyone but me is so loose with the term, and games that simply have the foundation without the intricacies of design are being termed as a genre whose name was derived from two games that it is nothing like. This is definitely a me problem, and Im well aware, but god dammit Dust: An Elysian Tale has a world map for crying out loud. Essentially when I hear a game is a metroidvania, I go in expecting it to have the same foundation, yet failing to produce anything beyond linear story path but you can backtrack for upgrades. Then I played Hollow Knight.

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Hollow Knight is a game thats clearly taken its inspiration from various other works, gluing them together to form a cohesive and refreshing gameplay experience. Youre presented with a gigantic world filled with peril and very little to work with. While the game takes you through the motions for a little bit, teaching you its simple but creative mechanics, it quickly allows you to veer off into multiple directions. Almost every path you take is doable to an extent, and will lead you to powers that slowly open up the map from the center. You can explore the outskirts of nearly every area without gaining any new abilities, but when you do find those precious abilities, bits and pieces of each area slowly begin to open up further. This makes for an exploration loop that feels limitless, unbound by story progression. Your main objective is to find three guardians, called dreamers, who keep the kingdoms biggest secret sealed away. They are marked on your map the moment you hit the story sequence, but it gives you no other direction. Thats why the exploration feel so perfect. The dreamers are hidden away and require you to find the necessary powers to reach them, but you will have no idea where to find such powers. Because of the way the main story path stays out of your way, and the way the world opens up ever so slightly at a time, it feels like youre in a constant state of discovery. The game pushes you to look at each part of the map, as theres always the possibility of something special tucked away. Hell, when you enter a new area, you dont even get a map. And when you do, its incomplete and difficult to read. This puts even more focus on player exploration, not wanting them to feel tied down by a deliberate path. It makes every new find feel truly organic, and creates this unreal sense of tension as you search for a bench or stag station without a guide. This makes those moments where you see a sign pointing you to the safe space feel extra rewarding.

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That all ties into the games brilliant atmosphere. Hollow Knight spends most of its time as a quiet, ominous game. Theres this constant grayish hue over the world, giving off this feeling of emptiness. After all, youre scavenging through a long dead kingdom. The map music ranges from mysterious, to foreboding, to downright sinister. This is all in contrast to some of the more peaceful segments of the game. It isnt afraid to be humorous at times, or even heartwarming, and these positive interactions mesh well with the more negative atmosphere that crushes the player throughout the majority of the game.

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PSN/Steam - RoboQuote ; NNID - TazzyMan