Hollow Knight! What a game. Literally took me 70 hours to figure this game out the first time. I’ll TLDR some mechanics I’ve noticed throughout my gameplay in the context of the game since some of the terminologies can be a bit confusing.
Mechanics
The user starts out with a nail to slash through enemies and barriers. The user is able to travel to regions faster using the Old Stag if needed. As the game progresses, the user gains the ability to cast different spells. These spells cost Soul, which can be acquired by hitting enemies or soul totems with the nail, which is contained in the user’s soul vessel. If the user were to run out of masks (each corresponding to a life), they would spawn at their last spawn point, usually a bench or an important save point. The consequence of dying is now that the user has lost all their Geo (money) and their soul vessel cannot hold as much Soul. The user now has to kill a Shade version of their old self in the general dying location to get it back.
Additional mechanics of the game that may be beneficial to beginner players are mask shards, vessel fragments, rancid eggs, and nail sharpening. Some of these mechanics help lagging players stay motivated and engaged since they’re almost always able to improve their personal gameplay.
- The user starts out with 5 masks and can find mask shards across the map to get more masks and therefore health.
- Same with vessel fragments— the user can find vessel fragments to get more soul vessels and therefore hold more Soul at one time.
- Rancid eggs can be used to bribe a certain vendor to retrieve one’s Shade if the Shade is in a hard-to-reach place.
- The user also has the option to sharpen their nail to make their attacks land more damage. This option requires Geo and some precious materials, however.
What makes the game fun for me?
The additional mechanics of the game are what make Hollow Knight stand out to me so much. [Discovery] I love exploring the map for fun but also to find more of these masks or fragments (it’s the completionist in me). Sometimes, it even feels necessary to get more masks to complete certain challenges. [Challenge] Hollow Knight is hella hard! A lot of the bosses are tough and some of the platforming challenges are killer, but still, so fun to try and attempt. [Sense Pleasure] The soundtrack of the game is also super calming for me and so lovely to listen to. [Abnegation] I come to the game sometimes just to bask in the soundtrack and beautiful graphics of the game. 🙂
Signing off,
Annabelle
