While its predecessor became a sleeper hit, it seems that Hollow Knight: Silksong is sleeping far more, with news being few and far between at the best of times. Fans of the world's greatest bug game have been waiting eight years for Silksong, with it originally starting life as an expansion of the original, only to bloom into its own project that seems like it will eclipse the first Hollow Knight with its size and its scope. It puts one of the Hollow Knight's most popular characters, Hornet, at the helm, and with her movement, there come some changes.

Hornet is one of the few friendly NPCs in Hollow Knight; after showing her in two separate boss fights, said boss fights remain some of the game's best. Hornet is a vocal character by Hollow Knight standards, technically a sibling of The Hollow Knight and the Knight/Ghost (the protagonist), and proved to be a fan favorite. Still, to get Hornet to work in Silksong, the game will likely need to be bigger to function and feel authentic to the character, even though the original Hollow Knight is one of the biggest Metroidvanias ever.

Hollow Knight: Silksong Needs To Be Bigger Because Of Hornet

She Moves Faster And Further Than The Knight

By the looks of things, Silksong will end up being bigger than its predecessor, which shouldn't come as a surprise since elements were only cut from Hollow Knight because Team Cherry ran out of money. Still, the game's sheer size might not be only because of a greedy desire to create every environment that comes to mind. Hornet is larger than the Knight, so the environment needs to be larger for her movements. Her movements are also faster and push her further, making her just as elegant to play as to fight against.

Hornet is the daughter of the Pale King, and Herrah the Beast, the Queen of Deepnest, was birthed from a bargain to make Herrah a Dreamer.

It shouldn't be underestimated how much Hornet's size can affect the game since the Knight is small enough to fit and fight in tight spaces that Hornet cannot. These spaces are needed for the feeling of occasional claustrophobia, and these will need to be bigger so that Hornet can still fit. The larger environments with jumping puzzles and swarms of enemies will have to be even larger because of how much more ground Hornet can cover compared to the Knight. A quiet update on Steam for Silksong gives hope that fans can see these environments soon.

Hornet's Movement Will Require More Space

She Has More Movement Options Than The Knight

As seen in Silksong's Xbox Game reveal trailer back in 2022, Hornet showcases more movement options than the Knight, having diagonal and drilling dive attacks, elegant rolls after attacking foes from above, grapple hooks, and so much more. She needs more space to work to use these mechanics, and while this might not mean there will be more zones (although there probably will be), the zones themselves will need to be bigger for Hornet to strut her stuff. The downside is that these zones still need the same level of detail despite the increased size.

Hornet's kit will be far more complicated, having the Knight's dash and Nail Arts, as well as tools like bombs and grappling hooks.

While the original Hollow Knight was simple yet effective, it seems that Hornet's kit will be far more complicated, having the Knight's dash and Nail Arts, as well as tools like bombs and grappling hooks, and more basic movements through jumping. She also seems to have more aerial options for combat, able to uppercut into the air and attack mid-flight in quick succession. Her superior aerial kit will mean that she needs more space in the air to fight and jump around, which could mean boss arenas have higher ceilings, too.

The Extra Size Could Be Why Silksong Is Taking So Long

Each Zone Needs More Detail, And There Are Probably More Zones

Silksong is taking a long time for many reasons. Team Cherry remains comedically small with only three developers, and since Silksong is probably going to end up larger than the original, which was already one of the biggest Metroidvanias ever, it's no surprise that development is slow. Zones themselves could end up larger to make room for Hornet's size and movement, and there will probably be more zones, given that cut areas, like The Forest of Bones, are making comebacks one way or another.

A larger game, a still small team, and no real reason to rush, given how much money the original Hollow Knight made, all contribute to slow development. Still, there is hope that the game will be released this year, and with all the work Team Cherry has put into the game, Hollow Knight: Silksong could sur its predecessor as one of the greatest Metroidvanias of all time. Either way, it could end up as one of the most revered titles in the genre, as well as its biggest release in a long time.

Source: Xbox/YouTube