Silksong Players complain about high difficulty, Steam Scores Fall, Easy Mode Mod Gets Popular

Somewhat above average game gets a sequel, contains much of the same frustrating elements as the first game, review scores fall, reality sets in that the main reason you were excited to play it was simply because of the hype and not because the first one was that great.

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Schizophrenia is one hell of a thing.
 
If a game is balanced extremely well it's ok to be difficult because it's tough but fair. It's a fine line.

Inputs need to feel responsive as well. That was one of my issues with the first HK. Sometimes it felt like my inputs wouldn't register for no rhyme or reason. I'm seeing similar complaints about the sequel.

Couple that with the pogo bounce complaints and supposedly overtuned bosses, the criticisms make sense. Arsic Arsic recently completed HK and loved it, but he has tons of complaints about the design choices in SS. He thinks it's more bullshit than tough.
HK 1 I think settled as a 8.5/10 and I appreciated a lot of it. The challenge, even at its hardest, felt fair. Its largest issues, not uncommonly shared, are the large back tracking when you die to a boss, and needing to take a slot for a compass in your loadout.

Here, the compass loadout slot is still needed so they ignored their feedback entirely in 8 years. Fine that's something I can live with. But the back tracking here isn't just intact it's made SO much worse and intentionally a middle finger to the player.

The Last Judge back tracking for the act 1 boss is beyond retarded. I am trying to find a checkpoint for the current boss in the organ, but the closest starts two biomes away across a lost woods like of wondering puzzle level, tons of enemies, platforming and more. On a perfect run to get to her would be 15 minutes. Mind you no map, no check points, no quick travel spot I've yet to find because the further you get the more retarded hidden these become. Plus you have to pay currency just to unlock them if you find them.

The games goal is to suck fun from the player. It's not hard - it's just a slog/grind/middle finger to the player exercise.

The game also introduces issues not in the first game like pogo bouncing being an issue until you find a crest that makes it easier.

I hope my opinion improves… I WANT to love it.
 
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If you're not good enough or "too old for this" or not fast/skilled enough to beat the game. Too bad. You don't deserve to beat every game. No one does. Move on and find another game within your level.

Just because the game has high x users, they want to join the club and feel left out when it's not a gimme game.
 
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Starfield?!?
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Bruh, the game is difficult, not Trash.
I'm referring to this thread. A hyped game slipping in the Steam ratings, though Starfield was much more spicy because of console warz. Kept going lower and lower and lower.

 
On social media sites like X and Reddit, as well as conversations with colleagues at Polygon, it appears that some Silksong players are approaching the game with a tilted head. Few people are saying that Silksong is too hard. It's more that everyone has had to adjust their expectations as to what Silksong was going to be like.


"Taking damage is more punishing, movement is more precise and feels a little clunky until you get the hang of it," one popular Reddit thread reads. "The overall skill curve is much much higher. Love it though."


"bro Silksong is like Endgame Hollow Knight difficulty FROM THE START," a post from a viral thread on X reads.




Article:
Hollow Knight: Silksong Mod Removes One of the Biggest Fan Annoyances



Article:
Even Hollow Knight fans are surprised at how punishing Silksong is

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On a more serious note. Maybe they can get their wife's boyfriend to help them beat it.
 
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Bruh.

These games get easier when you age. I'm older than you by a lot.

[...]

Yes 100% agree at first with your whole message.
Then i met Sekiro and had to cheat to complete a game for the first time in my life.
Then for the first time i thought "how is it any fun/rewarding to be this difficult".
Now i think a bit differently.
 
As others have mentioned, most of the negative reviews are from Chinese players complaining about a poor translations.
I'm still early in the game (around 5 hours in) but I haven't found it particularly challenging so far. Maybe it gets frustrating later on, but so far it has a nice level of challenge where you need to pay attention and have some precision, but nothing too punishing.

I played Nine Sols earlier this year and that was significantly harder out of the gate.
You can make Nine Sols very easy If you want tho.
 
People should be doing their due diligence before buying a game solely based off hype. They see the scores, see the price, haven't played the OG, and dive right in without actually looking at any gameplay or reviews, then complain when it's too hard.

Admittedly, Silksong's first few hours are a lot harder than the OG because you're basic and most enemies still hit you for 2 health, but once you get a few abilities, it does start to get easier. I'm about 12 hours in now and I can comfortably say I'm enjoying this a lot more I was with the OG.

Most of the negative reviews are from the Chinese.
 
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I'm referring to this thread. A hyped game slipping in the Steam ratings, though Starfield was much more spicy because of console warz. Kept going lower and lower and lower.


The main difference is Starfield got a mixed reception across the board for not living up to the hype.
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Silksong has been well received in almost every region but is being review bombed by Chinese players who are unhappy with the translation
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The loud minority struggling with the difficulty and the Hollow Knight haters are trying to pretend the lowering of the Steam rating is primarily related to the difficulty, when in fact the overwhelming majority of the bad reviews are about something completely different.
 
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Game gets easier and more manageable the more upgrades you find and many of them are found by hmm exploring everything. I'd say play more and cry less.
 
It depends how old you are.

I'm 35 and not as quick and skilled as i was in my 20. Stressful situations are also more difficult than in my 20s.
Time passes, people grow old, there will be an increasing amount of 50/60yo gamers.
Depression also can worsen the difficulty spike as failing over and over can trigger self-image degradation even further, this shit also inhibit brain capabilities.
I know the "git gud lelz" over and over but i suppose very few people that constantly repeat this are 40+yo or have conditions.

Why not let people choose ?

(I dont have this game yet, it's just my pov about difficulty in gaming overall).
38yr old here. I love high difficulty. Love Nightreign and its Everdark bosses (Libra excluded). Love Elden Ring. Love going hard when playing BF online.

I don't think age has a lot to do with this, it's more about lifestyle and personality no?

Having said that, Silksong is stupid hard in places, like, unfair and lame type of hard.

I don't enjoy that. The bosses hitting double as hard + touching damage = insanely overturned when you only have "five hearts"
 
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I'm referring to this thread. A hyped game slipping in the Steam ratings, though Starfield was much more spicy because of console warz. Kept going lower and lower and lower.

I have a Starfield poster up in my mancave but it's only there to cover up the hole I left when I threw a liquor bottle at the wall over Darksouls.
 
Ah, so those Dark Souls 2 comparisons were more accurate than I thought.

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And much like my time with Silk Song so far, it's the easiest in the series. I'll never understand where people got ganked in DS2. I suck at games and DS2 is by far the easiest Souls. Met very little resistance in Silk Song thus far either. And again, I suck at games. Can't even play 3D Ninja Gaiden, filtered by Nioh etc.
 
And much like my time with Silk Song so far, it's the easiest in the series. I'll never understand where people got ganked in DS2. I suck at games and DS2 is by far the easiest Souls. Met very little resistance in Silk Song thus far either. And again, I suck at games. Can't even play 3D Ninja Gaiden, filtered by Nioh etc.

My social media has been flooded with videos of streamers raging at the platforming (like those red things you have to bounce on with the down attack).
I really don't get it since it's not that hard, I can only assume everyone is playing this with the D-Pad on an Xbox 360 controller lol.
 
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My social media has been flooded with videos of streamers raging at the platforming (like those red things you have to bounce on with the down attack).
I really don't get it since it's not that hard, I can only assume everyone is playing this with the D-Pad on an Xbox 360 controller lol.

the 360 Dpad is overhated. even playing with that one wouldn't be an excuse. maybe the Switch 1 pro controller Dpad is a valid excuse, with its accidental disgonals n shit.
the 360 dpad was better than many give it credit, I think the shape was still very unpopular at the time, but that has recently changed I think, as circle shaped dpads have become way more popular as people recognised the superior diagonals and circle motion abilities of a circle shaped dpad.
the later transformable dpads, the special edition 360 controllers had, opened at least my eyes to the world of circular dpads. the + shape simply made every input, that isn't just the 4 cardinal directions, worse.


actuall, I bet most people that complain about pogoing play using the stick tbh. which will absolutely give you issues unless you're very precise with it.
 
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This is crazy! Industry people openly mad about Hollow Knight Silk Song being good. Some of these takes are just jaw dropping. And I felt like I had a good grasp on how crazy the gaming hobbyists were nowadays. This damn hobby is doomed. At least on the industrial scale of the past couple decades. Devs and the customers are all cooked. Hail indies.
 


This is crazy! Industry people openly mad about Hollow Knight Silk Song being good. Some of these takes are just jaw dropping. And I felt like I had a good grasp on how crazy the gaming hobbyists were nowadays. This damn hobby is doomed. At least on the industrial scale of the past couple decades. Devs and the customers are all cooked. Hail indies.


same shit that happened after Baldur's Gate 3 released. "it will make people have unrealistic expectations for new games!" 😂
 
The main difference is Starfield got a mixed reception across the board for not living up to the hype.
dPN5I4Y0ja2c6n74.jpg


Silksong has been well received in almost every region but is being review bombed by Chinese players who are unhappy with the translation
bMwQLKv5aWS7nHpH.jpg



The loud minority struggling with the difficulty and the Hollow Knight haters are trying to pretend the lowering of the Steam rating is primarily related to the difficulty, when in fact the overwhelming majority of the bad reviews are about something completely different.


Chinese, Japanese and Korean. So, the translations of all Asian languages suck. That's too bad considering Team Cherry could afford good translators instead of dumb AI translations.
 
Even the shadow drop is getting shit on. Maybe the most.
All in all Silksong just shines a bright light on how overpriced games are that have very little to offer as opposed to Silksong asking for very little and offering so much.

It makes other indies insecure and makes AAA devs look bad.

Indies once again are by and large saving gaming.

Outside of games you really want it's far better to wait for a sale. Especially if you get burned on a "premium" game that should of been no question a knock out of the park.
 
Before the internet, if some dorky dad tried to play a difficult game and decided he "doesn't have time for this shit" he would've just dropped it and moved on. But now we must endure a campaign of moaning and nerf-begging every time a properly challenging game is released, and by extension suffer a drop in standards as games are catered more to people who don't like games.

I do hope that most devs are ignoring all this noise.
 
I like souls games and don't consider them too hard. If I was to compare these frustrating boss fights where you fight the boss + their summons in a tight space, the most similar comparison from souls that comes to mind would be the Capra demon in dark souls 1, where you fight the Capra demon and its dogs in a very cramped arena. However the Capra demon doesn't continually summon more dogs the way that a boss like Savage Beastfly from Silksong summons in more minions over and over.
 
Before the internet, if some dorky dad tried to play a difficult game and decided he "doesn't have time for this shit" he would've just dropped it and moved on. But now we must endure a campaign of moaning and nerf-begging every time a properly challenging game is released, and by extension suffer a drop in standards as games are catered more to people who don't like games.

I do hope that most devs are ignoring all this noise.
Come on man.....
I love difficult games, and I tend to be somewhat capable at them generally speaking.
My wife despises difficulty in games in general, but absolutely loves sim games and farming stuff and what not.
We are both equally gamers. Someone disliking difficulty doesn't make them someone who dislikes games, it makes them someone who dislikes games that you like, and that's clearly what's really bothering you.
 
Why do people have to complain when they get bounced from a game? I don't even like admitting it, but I don't go and demand the devs make a special mode. I wasn't able to beat any of the 3D Ninja Gaidens. Still bought each one at launch, still consider them all great. In my mind, I'm still going back one day to get it done. I'll buy 4 on launch and give it hell. Same for Nioh.

Now, this is of course a matter of how many fucks I give to play those games. I didn't click with Sekiro until like my 4th or 5th real attempt, with months between sessions and over a year from purchase. Going in fresh, having to relearn the controls. But I wanted to beat Sekiro. So I kept coming. I know if I wanted to beat Ninja Gaiden or Nioh I could. Just a matter of being willing to stand there and die enough. Sure, the end of Hollow Knight got tough at parts, but I don't remember having to give it as much effort as the three games named above. I used a walkthrough and boss cheese. Maybe these people aren't from the strategy guide era. I could see that being frustrating if I felt compelled by some code to not use such materials. I gave a lot of money to PRIMA and whoever else published those beauties.
 
I think difficulty complaints are more to do with a lack of patience.
I'm certainly guilty of this from time to time.
It's our entitled, fast food, "I want it now!!" culture that's to blame imo.
 
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