Hello, gamers. Welcome back to my blog.
One of the games on my to-do list is "Hollow Knight", it was released in 2017 and was on my list for so long. Well, it's time to play it.
A Melancholy start
Right from the title screen, you are hit by powerful music that sets the game's tone perfectly. It does have some sad vibes to start with. Our protagonist (Hollow Knight?) is a little bug with a small weapon who is starting his adventure.
Right before that, we were shown a little cutscene which seems like an evil power. Is that the final boss or someone we have to save on this journey? No idea!
Anyways, we start in what looks like a cave infested with bugs. We have a weapon which can be slashed to kill those bugs. It is also used to break some doors.
This is a Metroidvania so I expect a lot of platforming and a rich story-driven experience. The few reviews I have seen were only positive so I am pumped.
The first thing you experience right off the start is the stunning visuals. OMG, it looks so nice. The background elements move with a slightly different pace and the animation makes you feel like you are in a 3d game and not a 2D platformer or similar.
I just love the heavy use of blue in this area. Damm, it is nice. Enemies in this game will drop those coins you see in the top right corner. There is this glowing egg-like thing which I cautiously sliced with my weapon. It dropped smaller eggs which gave an extra life.
After some more platforming and killing of more bugs, I got to a big door with a message next to it.
So, we are going to be stepping into the last and only civilisation, Hollownest. Consider me intrigued.
I destroyed the half-cracked door with multiple slices of my sword and went through the area. Another huge cliff and nowhere to go but jump, so I did.
And we landed in Dirthmouth: The Fading Town.
The music still feels super sad. Moving on I found an NPC standing right next to a bench. I can't attack this one so I knew it was friendly...lol.
This one is called the "ElderBug" and he told me that only he is left in this town.
He told us that Hollownest was once buzzing with many inhabitants but it is now a place filled with monsters and madness. This was once filled with treasures and riches but many come here to find it and never return from this pit. It explains the melancholic music and atmosphere.
I rested on the bench which saves the game and heal you back up. You can also heal by using 'soul' which you draw from killing enemies. You have to stand still for a moment to recover your health. 1 hit will take away one mask of health.
I found a well-like thing which should be the entryway to Hollownest but before jumping in I wanted to go and check the other side as well. On the far right there was a closed 'stone door' with a 'simple lock'. I will come back later when I get the key to open this door. Might take a long time, I suppose.
Into the "Forgotten Crossroads"
Jumping down the well/pit, I got into the Forgotten Crossroads. This was a crossroad as I could see many options, I choose to go to the right side first. On my way, I found more bugs trying to get to me, these were just basic one which deals damage by touching you.
My weapon was quick enough for them.
Temple of the Black Egg
Moving further right I saw a massive bug-like structure and light was coming out of it. It seems a pretty important room to me so I entered without going further right.
I found another friendly guy inside the room, he was trying to figure out the mystery behind all this just like me.
This is called Temple of the Black Egg. This other guy's name was "Quirrel" and he seems like an important guy as well. The 'black egg' seems to have 3 faces or marks, I think these are the 3 big things we need to collect to open this egg and reveal the mystery.
So far, the game is just giving locked doors and mysteries to solve. I am liking this approach. Apart from this black egg in the centre, this room had no other things or paths it leads out to. Just one entry/exit gate. So, I went out and went further right and see what more I can find.
Defeating the Big Hammer Guy
I came across another junction with 2 separate paths, one going right and the other going further down. I went into the right one and saw a big guy facing away from me. This one was holding a big stick which he uses as a weapon.
I think this is the first mini-boss in the game. I died once trying to heal between the fight but came back and defeated it easily. It has predictable moves.
I recorded the fight as well. I am not sure what this bug is called so I will name it big hammer guy.
After defeating the guy it gave a lot of coins and he trapped a poor little bug in a glass jar. I broke it free and that guy went into the ground.
I backtracked and chose the other unexplored path. Found many bugs along the path who were trying to kill me. One of the guys had unique jump attacks too. I came across some mosquitos as well. They are pure nuisance.
After some more bugs, I kept going left and found myself inside a big vertical room. You can go up or down and it connects to a lot of other rooms with bugs all over the area.
Cornifer - The Cartographer
Keep in mind, I had no maps until this point. I was just going from one room to another trying to map the place in my mind. I jumped down from this big vertical room and I hit the jackpot. I found the cartographer himself.
Corfiner was his name, he has a shop in Dirtmouth that his wife runs and I can buy maps and other items from her. This was just an incomplete map with no marking of where you are. You need to buy a compass for that, I guess. Also, I cannot fill in the incomplete section of the map as I need a 'quill' for that.
Well, at least I can see the temple of Black egg in here and I can identify the big vertical room on the left. This drops down to the Cornifer room, marked by his face.
There is something important in the centre of the map. Must be another NPC or perhaps a boss fight. Can't wait to reach there but it would be difficult. I don't understand the scale of the map yet. I feel like some rooms are out of scale or they must have some hidden paths.
I went right and soon found a glowing room, I entered and saw a glowing waterfall with a bench next to it. I rested on the bench which saved my game so I can log off safely for now.
What a fun adventure this has been.... the music, the mystery around the Hollownest and the visuals are all so captivating. Love the level design too. So, far it is not too hard but I have heard that it will become tough soon. Can't wait to play again. That's all folks.
Thanks for reading...
Until next time...
Note:
- All the content is mine unless otherwise stated.
- Hive gaming text divider from Raizel posted in Hivegaming Discord Server.
- Screenshots are from the game Hollow Knight.
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