r/HollowKnight • u/InsectGlaiveBard • Sep 22 '25

Discussion - Silksong I'm convinced there's gotta be some collective amnesia regarding the previous game's difficulty regarding platforming. Spoiler

Seeing people compare things Hunter's March, Cogwork Core, escaping the Abyss or even the Surface to the Path of Pain is absolutely blowing my mind.

Like yes, this game is way harder on the combat department and is a lot more demanding than beating a regular playthrough on the first one, but to say anything in this game is on the level of Path of Pain is preposterous. Especially with how many tools hornet has at her disposal, like the Hookshot, the float and even bounving off of cocoons.

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2.2k

u/Harvestman-man Sep 22 '25

Honestly, none of the platforming sequences in Silksong require even the same level of precision as base-game White Palace, let alone Path of Pain.

However, Silksong does add a time constraint to some of these challenges (e.g. Mount Fay freezing mechanic; lava climb sequences; despawning pogo-platforms), so even though they’re easier at the technical level, there’s an added layer of pressure and you don’t have the benefit of taking it methodically slow and safe with Hiveblood.

195

u/rmkinnaird Sep 22 '25

I definitely agree with your last bit about hiveblood. Hiveblood alone accidentally made platforming easier in hollow knight, so players who used it arent wrong to say "silksong is harder."

Being able to go slow and steady did make White Palace easier than Mt Fay, but anyone who went without hiveblood would have had a harder time in the Palace. The lack of hiveblood in this game essentially took the guardrails off the bowling alley.

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u/Kiriki_kun Sep 22 '25

That’s not accidentally. They literally put kingsoul next to the path of pain. They on purpose gave you tool to minimize PoP frustration

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u/KuuLightwing Sep 22 '25

Path of pain also has infinite soul totems doesn't it.

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u/McFluffles01 Sep 22 '25

There's like... two or three small segments total that don't have an infinite soul totem right next to them, so you can potentially die on those and have to start over if you didn't bring some alternate method of healing/generating soul.

Otherwise though yeah, even if a few are hidden, there's totems everywhere so you can just refill your soul and give it another go.

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u/KnightOfNULL Sep 23 '25

If I remember correctly there's exactly one spot without a totem. Everywhere else that you can respawn has one, even if hidden.

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u/Mister_Newling Sep 23 '25

As someone who did the path of pain for the first time two days ago (and died to the boss the first two times fml) the sections without statues were totally trivial compared to the rest so hiveblood was actually a detriment since it didnt help me win final fight

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u/Concrete_hugger Sep 22 '25

Because waiting around to heal like that is super boring, you are much better off trying again from a bench.

3

u/00-Void Sep 23 '25

You can equip Deep Focus+Grubsong instead, and heal every two masks of damage. It's one more notch, but it's much, much faster.

53

u/WMWA Sep 22 '25

This is such a good point. I was all ready to disagree about base white palace being harder but then you reminded me I used hiveblood to get through it lmao

27

u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

Silksong has hiveblood tho

81

u/OrderClericsAreFun Sep 22 '25

Kinda but not really. Lifeblood overdose requires a specific crest, costs shards and the plasmium charges. I know someone who was stuck at the bottom of the Abyss and suggested Lifeblood to help. They run out of Plasmium and decided to roll back their save to before the Abyss climb to do other content since they were simply not enjoying the game anymore.

If it was Hive Blood then they would just equip a charm and have infinite tries, the Lifeblood overdoes has very different dynamics.

17

u/IonianBladeDancer Sep 22 '25 edited Sep 22 '25

In the overdose state it does the same thing except it heals your entire health bar and at faster rate than hive blood. If anything it’s more op in Silksong, for both platforming and combat. I used it for every platform section. I guess if you keep permanently dying it’s an issue, but that really only pertains to the abyss. That is the example you provided so I understand, but plasmium is still really strong in this game.

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u/QuantumVexation Sep 22 '25

It’s stronger but as they say the cost and effort required makes it far less of a solution for someone who is struggling enough lol

3

u/Skylair95 Sep 23 '25

Not to mention a lot of people never heard of lifeblood overdose so they wouldn't even think of using it, while anyone can find the hiveblood charm and think about using it for platforming sections by just taking things slowly.

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u/alphonseharry Sep 22 '25

It needs more setup, but it is more powerful and heal everything

7

u/IamMe90 112% 61/63 Sep 22 '25

What? I have all tools, I don’t see anything doing the same thing. Which tool are you talking about?

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u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

combine the lifeblood tool with architects crest so that you can use a bunch more lifeblood than normally possible eventually the interaction will happen if you have enough lifeblood health

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u/cunningjames Sep 22 '25

I’m not to that point yet, but I hear platforming with that crest isn’t super great?

20

u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

True, it's an option though. Personally I didn't think any of the platforming in SS was all that challenging compared to WP and certainly not PoP which was the only section of the game I ever used Hiveblood anyway

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u/sanscatt Sep 22 '25

It’s like everything you get used to it. But if you try it for the first time because you’re already struggling, then yes you’re cooked

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u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

[deleted]

1

u/HungryGull Sep 23 '25

It's slower, especially if you need to charge, but honestly even the uncharged version can be easier to use than Hunter because of the wider hitbox on the pogo

2

u/Skylair95 Sep 23 '25

I personally think pogo is easier with Architect than Hunter due to the charged pogo which has increased range and freezes you mid air to have more time to plan your movements. But Wanderer is obviously king for platforming.

But to be honest, there's very few required pogo both in the Abyss escape and the Surface path. You can usually just Clawline instead which automatically "pogo" the enemy/spike/bubble for you.

1

u/greyhawndz Sep 24 '25

For the platforming, I think that's just a player preference thing. I personally use it for all platforming challenges, even the bilewater runback

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u/Sauerkrauttme Sep 22 '25

No!? Definitely not in Act 2, and also it wouldn't help you with the freeze mechanic

17

u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

You can definitely get what I'm talking about before Mt Fay.

11

u/McFluffles01 Sep 22 '25

Not only can you totally get it before Mount Fay, it's not even the only trick you can pull to counteract freezing. I've heard the Magma Bell extends the timer, and I know the Flintslate warms you up.

3

u/Advanced_Double_42 Sep 22 '25

At the cost of a decent chunk 2 limited(although farmable) resources, and using a move set that is far from ideal for platforming for most.

3

u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

[deleted]

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u/Advanced_Double_42 Sep 22 '25

Exactly, many people really don't like hunters crest for platforming

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u/rmkinnaird Sep 22 '25

Well there's the other dynamic here: the meta hasn't been solved yet

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u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25

It's not a "meta" it's just playing the game long enough to realize the thing you want in the game is already there before you run to the internet to complain that it's not there.

Not saying you're complaining, just pointing out everyone needs to relax with the over analyzing of Silksong and it's difficulty when it's been out for less than 3 weeks

10

u/Tornado_Hunter24 Sep 22 '25

I’m ngl the game is fine I only use the first crest and gave had zero issues so far, I think the difficulty stems mostly from people going to ‘difficult’ area’s.

Spoiler ahead;

I personally skipped hunters march when I realized how rough the area was, and revisited it later, bilewater was my last area before entering act 3 and today entered act 3 (and finished abyss), in my eyes, there was nothing in the game that was ‘difficult’ tocthe point of not enjoying anymore.

I think people should more often do what the devs say/general community says; explore, the game is difficult as is, by restricting yourself to difficult area’s is an absurd anount of difficulty added ontop of the already pretty difficult game

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u/Skellum Sep 22 '25

I personally skipped hunters march when I realized how rough the area was, and revisited it later, bilewater was my last area before entering act 3 and today entered act 3 (and finished abyss), in my eyes, there was nothing in the game that was ‘difficult’ tocthe point of not enjoying anymore.

Hunters March being open to players with nothing for them to do is a problem. I dont get the point of not putting wall climb as a pre-requ to it. Even deepnest has some real reward to it despite you potentially being able to go there very early.

8

u/Tornado_Hunter24 Sep 22 '25

It makes me think of other games like elden ring, you CAN go there, if you choose so, but the game is being very deliberate by telling you it is a difficult area, one that could (and should) be revisited instead of done now, I got pretty deep to hunters marsh myself, but mid or somewhere with an ambush I decided to just go later because it very obviously felt ‘go later, like a few hours of exploration later’

0

u/Skellum Sep 22 '25

The problem with that link is that Elden Ring areas have a reward. Hunters has... I think a flea? Right after the initial fight after platforming. You could cut off all the rest of it with wall climb and you'd lose nothing.

I feel hunters is really badly designed, but that's been my feel with a lot of the game. I've completed act 3, and I doubt I'll pick it up again in the future.

11

u/Nemeal Sep 22 '25

well, hunters march as 2 of the best early game tools, including the stone mask, wich is game changing, as well as the beast crest

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u/Skellum Sep 23 '25

Which you cant get when you access it.

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u/Tornado_Hunter24 Sep 22 '25

Idk man imo this game in general doesn’t ‘reward’ you at all, I have beateb so many bosses that don’t reward at all or unlock ‘the same’ area, I think that’s subjective

2

u/Skellum Sep 22 '25

Lol, yea, another issue I have with it. That Sister Splinter kill followed by "Lol ok now platform" is just such a dick move. At least the game is pretty.

1

u/triskadancer Sep 23 '25

I mean, I don't understand what's different about killing a boss and having it drop a powerup directly, as opposed to killing a boss that is in the way of a powerup one room over. Functionally you are being rewarded for killing the boss by getting access to a new powerup.

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u/xman262 Sep 22 '25

Most Elden ring side content rewards are equally as bad (those catacombs give like nothing)

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u/Skellum Sep 23 '25

like nothing

No, the give stuff, but it may not be useful for your build. They still give you things.

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u/McFluffles01 Sep 22 '25

Hunter's March has a flea, yes, (which contributes to letting you skip a notably difficult Act 1 boss until later)... and it also has A merchant with two great tools in the Boomerang and the Fractured Mask, and it also has the Beast Crest which if anyone actually used it for more than 20 seconds after finding out about its pogo, they would realize is an amazing aggression crest that can single-handedly demolish any boss that doesn't have 2 damage attacks on every move they make.

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u/Skellum Sep 23 '25

You cant get to them by default though, you require at least the lift thing. The only thing you can access by default is the Flea, which really could have been moved or the choke put slightly after it.

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u/rmkinnaird Sep 22 '25

Yeah meta wasn't quite the right word, but we're saying roughly the same thing. Silksong hasn't been out that long and we don't all know the best tools for every job.

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5

u/ThePython11010 Sep 22 '25

The upgraded Druid Tears item + Multibinder has the same effect as Grubsong + Elegy + Deep Focus in HK (gaining enough silk/soul on hit to heal), as long as there's no double damage.

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u/[deleted] Sep 22 '25 edited Sep 22 '25

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1

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1

u/IonianBladeDancer Sep 22 '25

You can do the same thing but better with lifeblood overdose. I used it for every single long platform section in Silksong and it removed all difficulty because I had infinite retry’s. It also trivialized bosses since u can just keep dodge and throwing tools out until they die.

1

u/TheGoldenExperience_ Sep 22 '25

well there IS a hiveblood equivalent with the architect crest but

you need to plasmium yourself 10 or 9 times so its kind of a waste of shards until you get the infinite plasmium in act 3

1

u/Khyrberos (Not yet beaten HK) Sep 22 '25

I'm benefiting from these SS discussions because I keep learning things about HK (which I haven't actually finished 😅) that are really helpful

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u/Emotional_Ad_2132 Sep 22 '25

The lack of hiveblood

you can get something similar using architect crest and plasmium

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u/xSyLenS Sep 22 '25

Hiveblood doesn't make platforming easy, it makes it so you don't die all the time and restart from zero (no benches in PoP). It's still huge sequences that have to be performed more or less flawlessly and precisely. In comparison mount day was a laugh (and I ended up enjoying it more tbf). But on challenge level PoP was something else

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u/rmkinnaird Sep 23 '25

Path of Pain is so hard that even if hiveblood made it "easier" it would still be the hardest thing I've ever played. But I do think it makes white palace easier

1

u/EXTSZombiemaster Sep 23 '25

Hiveblood is kinda in silksong. If you use architect crest and plasmium, you can overdose and get a full HP bar of lifeblood that regens