Hollow Knight
Jan. 2nd, 2022 08:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
When I was first looking for more games to play, Hollow Knight was one I saw highly recommended very often, so it was one of the first I tried. However, after a bit over four hours I concluded that it wasn't for me. It's not very colorful, a story hadn't developed yet, and when I got stuck at Hornet I decided to stop.
But I couldn't quite get it out of my head, especially because I kept seeing people talk about how great a game it is and how much better it becomes after the slow start. So a few days ago I decided to give it another try, and after a few more attempts I finally defeated Hornet, and then right after the Gruz Mother. (The trick was to concentrate on not taking damage instead of dealing damage.) Exploring the Fungal Wastes was interesting, and I just found the Mantis Village.
I'm still not sure if I want to continue or not though. After more than seven hours there's still no clear plot, just some snippets of lore that I don't find particularly compelling, and the few characters are barely more than plot devices. The discovery and exploration of new areas is well done, and the combat is well designed in the sense that I can see how it's hard but totally doable with (a lot of) practice and very rewarding once mastered. And on the one hand I kind of want to continue to prove that I can do it; but on the other hand I don't need to prove it to anyone, and there are other challenging games that have an actual plot and characters I'm interested in.
…maybe I'll play something else for now and I can always come back to it later.
But I couldn't quite get it out of my head, especially because I kept seeing people talk about how great a game it is and how much better it becomes after the slow start. So a few days ago I decided to give it another try, and after a few more attempts I finally defeated Hornet, and then right after the Gruz Mother. (The trick was to concentrate on not taking damage instead of dealing damage.) Exploring the Fungal Wastes was interesting, and I just found the Mantis Village.
I'm still not sure if I want to continue or not though. After more than seven hours there's still no clear plot, just some snippets of lore that I don't find particularly compelling, and the few characters are barely more than plot devices. The discovery and exploration of new areas is well done, and the combat is well designed in the sense that I can see how it's hard but totally doable with (a lot of) practice and very rewarding once mastered. And on the one hand I kind of want to continue to prove that I can do it; but on the other hand I don't need to prove it to anyone, and there are other challenging games that have an actual plot and characters I'm interested in.
…maybe I'll play something else for now and I can always come back to it later.
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Date: 2022-01-03 02:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-01-03 04:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-01-03 03:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-01-03 04:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-01-06 11:58 pm (UTC)I'm a sucker for that kind of archeological story experience, where I get to sift through the shattered remains of a civilization and figure out how it all went to hell, but it's definitely not a story-focused game, so I think you have the right impression of what you'll get if you keep playing. Hope you find another game you'll have more fun with!
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Date: 2022-01-07 11:01 am (UTC)