Hollow Knight

PC / PS4 / Xbox One / Switch

What this game actually is

A 2D action-platformer ("metroidvania") — explore the ruined underground kingdom of Hallownest, fight with melee combat, and gain new abilities that open up areas you couldn't reach before.

Plot summary

You play a silent knight exploring the fallen, insect-inhabited kingdom of Hallownest in search of your own origins.

What you're aiming for

There's no fail state beyond a temporary setback on death (see Glossary). Progressing well means gradually exploring more of Hallownest as new abilities unlock new areas — the classic metroidvania loop.

Glossary

Geo: The currency — spent with merchants, on tolls, and on Nail upgrades.
Soul: A resource for healing and spells, built up by landing hits with your Nail.
Nail: Your basic weapon, upgradeable several times through a specific NPC using Geo and a rarer material.
Charms: Equippable passive bonuses — offensive, defensive, or utility — and a core way to shape your playstyle.
Shade: What appears where you died, holding all the Geo you lost. Kill it to get everything back — but die again first and that Geo is gone for good.

Difficulty settings, explained

There's no traditional difficulty setting in the base game. The one real difficulty-adjacent option is Steel Soul Mode — permadeath, where a single death deletes your save entirely. It only unlocks after finishing the game once, so it's an optional harder mode for a second playthrough, not something to worry about as a newcomer.

Early priorities

Play with sound on — audio cues flag off-screen enemies, hazards, and secrets, and it's an easy thing for newcomers to miss. Don't assume a tough area means you've gone the wrong way; difficulty here varies by location rather than story order, so wandering into a hard spot early is normal, not a mistake. And if you die, prioritise getting back to recover your Geo before risking a second death nearby.

Top sticking points

The early game feels overwhelming

You're weak, unfamiliar with enemy patterns, and dropped into a large non-linear map all at once. This is the hardest stretch for most players — it gets much more manageable once a few abilities click into place.

Losing Geo to a second death

Dying once just leaves your Geo waiting to be recovered. Dying again before you get there loses it for good — this trips up more players than most boss fights do.

Difficulty spikes that don't follow the story

An area can be much harder than wherever the plot has "sent" you. That's normal here, not a sign you've wandered somewhere you shouldn't be.

Early boss fights feeling unfairly fast

A common early wall, especially before you've picked up charms or abilities that make a fight more manageable. Coming back later with more tools is a completely normal approach.

Not experimenting with Charms

Charms change how a fight or area feels more than most newcomers expect. Worth trying different combinations rather than settling on the first one that works.

General navigation tips

Each area's map has to be bought from a wandering mapmaker before you can actually read it — until then, you're exploring blind. He's usually easy to find by ear (a hum, then a paper trail), and if you somehow miss him, the map's sold for a bit more back in town. Explore thoroughly rather than beelining forward — this game is built for backtracking once you've got a new ability.