Hollow Knight is incredibly overrated.

BossLackey

BossLackey

Gold Member
Look, I love Hollow Knight. It's a great game. I have played Metroidvanias since their inception and Metroid/Castlevania before that.

But in the last 8 years, the amount of people that act like the genre started in 2017 with it's release and serves as it's pinnacle just really grinds my gears.

It's consistently ranked #1 on seemingly everyone's list and it makes me feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

And I'm it's target demo! I love bugs (keep several tarantulas, a jumping spider, hissing roaches, etc.), I love hand drawn art (been making it my whole life), and I love 2D action platformers (see above). But even I know it's not THAT good.

Is it truly just the Hot Topic aesthetic that's deluding everyone?! What is happening!?

Hell, even the devs are aware of this because if they weren't, Silksong probably would have released by now! They've been shitting their britches trying to make a sequel that lives up to the hype.
 
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Totally agree. Never understood the appeal aside from maybe the art style (which I find bland as hell ). There are many better pathfinder games out there to me.

Edit: And yes I own it
 
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Well that's certainly an opinion.
I've been playing it during my vacation, 108% completion rate now, it's seriously up there in the top 5 all time best for me. Can't wait for Silksong!!
 
Fess said:
Well that's certainly an opinion.
I've been playing it during my vacation, 108% completion rate now, it's seriously up there in the top 5 all time best for me. Can't wait for Silksong!!
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It's in my top 10. Great game! Just tired of seeing it get sucked for years on end.
 
It's a great game. And like with many other great games, the best you can do is ignore the fanbase and just enjoy the game for what it is.
 
Nah, it deserves the praise, it's fantastic.
Love the gameplay, art direction, awesome secrets, great bosses and interesting lore.
There's definitely games that do individual things better (Ori has better platforming, Nine Sols has better combat, Castlevania has better music, etc), but as a complete package I still think it's easily the best Metrodvania.
 
Gaiff said:
>I love bugs
>Proceeds to list arachnids
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Well I was lumping spiders and roaches together and at least colloquially speaking, some parts of the US consider spiders and insects to be "bugs".

I wasn't going to say "I love arthropods" despite that being true.
 
If anything, some aspects of it, like its OST and contextual narrative are severly UNDERrated. They are masterfully crafted and thought out. It has that "From Software" kind of genius, where every element fits in perfectly. This made by 3 guys is really an achievement.

It's the best Metroidvania out there and one of the most influential games in the last decade.
 
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It's one of the most confusingly popular games I've played but always too scared to say so. Thank you for making me feel safe.
 
Angry_Megalodon said:
If anything, some aspects of it, like its OST and contextual narrative are severly UNDERrated. They are masterfully crafted and thought out. It has that "From Software" kind of genius, where every element fits in perfectly. This made by 3 guys is really an achievement.

It's the best Metroidvania out there and one of the most influential games in the last decade.
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Living proof that games dont have to cost 200 million and 2000 people to be good and influential
 
It's ok to have something you think is overrate, we all do. My most current one is Dark Souls 4 Elden Ring. For me HK is an overall incredible experience that deserves all the praise.
 
Completely, 100% agree. Never understood why this game, out of all the metroidvania's, got the love it got. Still baffles me to be honest.
 
BossLackey said:
It's in my top 10. Great game! Just tired of seeing it get sucked for years on end.
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If it's on your top 10 then why do you think it's incredibly overrated??
How many other metroidvanias is on your top 10?

For me it's only surpassed by Super Metroid for the genre.

The things I would praise it for now that I've gone past 100% is: The controls, they're absolute perfection, the game mechanics regarding having all the skills and the strategies coming through the charms, the perfect exploration and rewards from that. And just the overall mass of content. It's a gigantic game really.

I used to think Ori was better but in hindsight I think it came from it being easier. First playthrough of Hollow Knight I just did the bare minimum and thought it was extremely difficult.
 
As someone that hasn't played much of it, it's hard to not just think of this...

The Big Lebowski Dude GIF


I tried giving it a shot, and it just didn't click for me for some reason. But hey, it's all subjective.
 
Played it, completed it, had no interest in doing the dlc. Found it to be average.

No idea why people wank themselves silly over the lore. "There's a fly and now it's got a shop! 10/10"
 
Yup. The amount of Zoomers praising it like it was a new genre need a reality check. (Same folks who praise Expedition 33 like it was something new and groundbreaking).

Don't get me wrong; HK and E33 are both fine. Good, maybe even great. But they don't hold a candle to the trailblazing Godfathers of the genres. Don't put them on a pedestal like they're a stand alone pillar.
 
It's been rated by many players therefore overrated.

I prefer Rabi Ribi and Tevi more myself.

I've never played Hollow because I don't like the artstyle at all. And I found the music rather bland. It's an interesting setting about cute creepy bugs but I just can't seem to care about it at all.
 
It's a solid 8,5/10 game which got massive bonus points from people by being created by just couple of dudes who gave you as much content as AAA studios and only charging you 20 bucks for it.
 
I do not like it. I find the combat mechanics basic and the presentation consistently bland. There are no qualities I would enjoy seeing in any context. I have had more fun with the nail pick-up in Dead Cells than Hollow Knight and I hate roguelikes.
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Disagree. Haven't played anything better in the genre ever since and I've played most if not all of them. What I will say tho is Silksong is probably going to be incredibly disappointing.
 
Team Skoda said:
Yup. The amount of Zoomers praising it like it was a new genre need a reality check. (Same folks who praise Expedition 33 like it was something new and groundbreaking).

Don't get me wrong; HK and E33 are both fine. Good, maybe even great. But they don't hold a candle to the trailblazing Godfathers of the genres. Don't put them on a pedestal like they're a stand alone pillar.
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Right. I think that's what truly gets my goat.

I have two friends that LOVE Hollow Knight but refuse to play other Metroidvanias for...some reason?

Discovery is one thing, but it's like someone thinking Tesla invented cars because it was the first one thing got in.
 
BossLackey said:
Is it truly just the Hot Topic aesthetic that's deluding everyone?! What is happening!?
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The answer is: Yes. Aesthetics and vibes count for a lot.

Don't get me wrong, well designed game, but not so well to inspire this much hype 7 years on. Other than it being 7 years on. These devs have to be careful with the gaps between releases. GTA6 will be the biggest launch ever, but if it disappoints in any way, it's going to be a big problem for T2 long term.
 
I'm with you, OP. I thought the game was good, but the lack of differentiated environments (both visually and in terms of obstacles) and middling soundtrack kind of torpedoed the thrill of discovery. It always felt like I was just making progress, not exploring.

But again - I still thought it was a good game overall. Just not a genre highlight.
 
BossLackey said:
Look, I love Hollow Knight. It's a great game. I have played Metroidvanias since their inception and Metroid/Castlevania before that.

But in the last 8 years, the amount of people that act like the genre started in 2017 with it's release and serves as it's pinnacle just really grinds my gears.

It's consistently ranked #1 on seemingly everyone's list and it makes me feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

And I'm it's target demo! I love bugs (keep several tarantulas, a jumping spider, hissing roaches, etc.), I love hand drawn art (been making it my whole life), and I love 2D action platformers (see above). But even I know it's not THAT good.

Is it truly just the Hot Topic aesthetic that's deluding everyone?! What is happening!?

Hell, even the devs are aware of this because if they weren't, Silksong probably would have released by now! They've been shitting their britches trying to make a sequel that lives up to the hype.
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Miyazaki's Slave said:
Eric Andre GIF by L.A. Foodie


I completely agree. I don't think silk song will fare much better but I am more than happy to be proved wrong.

Own several copies myself.*
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El Muerto said:
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T4keD0wN said:
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Lokaum D+ said:
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