Hollow Knight: Silksong’s Level Design Forges a New Path, and That’s for the Best

Level design is an important aspect of many video game genres, but it’s particularly integral in a Metroidvania. Exploration is at the heart of every Metroidvania game, and nothing encourages players to explore like clever and enticing level design. Hollow Knight: Silksong knows this all too well.

Without overwhelming the player, Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s first few hours present an array of optional pathways filled with rewarding goodies and secrets. Players are encouraged to explore every nook and cranny of Silksong‘s map right from the get-go, just as they were in the 2017 original. But while Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s level design does take after its predecessor, there’s one major difference that immediately sets the two games apart, and they’re both all the better for it.

Hollow Knight’s Level Design Is All About Digging Down

When Hollow Knight begins, players are thrown down into the depths of the Forgotten Crossroads. They’re immediately presented with two possible directions to head in, each one boasting its own bevy of branching paths and optional routes.

The entire crux of Hollow Knight‘s gameplay and story sees players diving further into the depths of the lost kingdom of Hallownest. With each new layer, players learn slightly more about the kingdom’s history and the events that led up to the game’s opening. This gradual peeling back of the game’s core mystery is one of Hollow Knight‘s best strengths, and its descending level structure aids it at every juncture.

Hollow Knight: Silksong’s Level Design Is All About Climbing Up

Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s level design takes the exact opposite approach to its 2017 predecessor. As Hornet, players find themselves in a new hub area called Bone Bottom. Its colorful inhabitants tell the player that they’ll need to reach the citadel at the very top of the Kingdom of Pharloom.

Thus begins the player’s gradual climb up through the various regions of Pharloom. But rather than solving a mystery with each step, Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s ascending level structure fuels a constant sense of progression. Players are given a goal from the outset this time, and each new region explored marks a rewarding step upwards toward that goal.

Silksong’s Level Design Lets Hornet Shine

Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s ascending level design also paves the way for an increased amount of verticality in its biomes. Hornet is far more acrobatic and agile than The Knight, and Silksong‘s level design allows her skills to shine.

The lengthy climb up to Pharloom’s citadel offers plenty of opportunities for Hornet to show off her stylish leaps and flips. The journey is also filled with new abilities for Hornet to learn, many of which go hand in hand with Silksong‘s verticality. Players can use elegant air dashes to clear wide gaps, they can use Hornet’s billowing cloak to glide and fly high into the air via slipstreams, and eventually, they’ll unlock the ability to use Hornet’s needle as a grappling hook.

While The Knight had a handful of movement abilities of their own, the general structure of Hollow Knight‘s level design meant that players were rarely using those abilities to climb, or at least not for prolonged periods.

Hollow Knight: Silksong, on the other hand, will often present players with lengthy platforming gauntlets where their express goal is to climb upwards to reach the level’s exit. This technically simple change is one of the most impactful differences between Hollow Knight and Silksong, with it affecting every moment of gameplay in both subtle and overt ways.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Released

September 4, 2025

ESRB

E10+ For Everyone 10+ // Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood

Developer(s)

Team Cherry

Publisher(s)

Team Cherry

Engine

Unity