JOHNNY KUZMANOVSKI

Hollow Knight Narrative:

The nameless, silent insect knight ventures to Hallownest to explore the ancient old kingdom. Hallownest use to have a king and ruler, Hallownest use to be lively. However, an infection plagued Hallownest, the king searched for answer, a hollow knight & shell to absorb the infection and be locked away in the Black Temple. Alas, this knight was locked away but the knight wasn’t entirely Hollow and the infection & sun radiance grew in power. Hallownest was consumed and it consumed many brave adventurers that tried to explore its depths. There were three dreamers who used themselves to seal the Black Temple. The silent knight must uncover the secrets from the dreamers, break the seals and destroy the radiance that plagues Hallownest.

Depending on the player’s progression, different endings will occur. However, the player can use the same save file to further progress and find a different ending to HK. This works really well because it allows the player to further explore and uncover more secrets in Hallownest.

 

The narrative is mainly explained through the characters and creatures the nameless knight meets throughout their journey in the Hallownest. The dream world plays a big role in understanding both sides of the narrative; the past and the present.

 

The “Elderbug” is a character in Dirtmouth that provides the player with tips, story and things the player can complete throughout HK. It is a very useful character as it provides the player with knowledge if they are ever unsure of their progress.

 

There are many side quests & unique characters that allow the player to explore the hidden depths of Hallownest. Through these characters and side quests, the player can unlock new abilities, mechanics, skills and charms. All of these different personalities allow the player to uncover Hallownest at their own pace. While the narrative has an end, the path that the player takes varies and can change, providing every player with a unique engaging experience.

 

Hollow Knight Mechanics:

Hollow Knight begins with the player discovering very few mechanics; moving, jumping and attacking. Allowing the player to familiarise themselves with the controls throughout the introduction area. HK allows the player to discover the controls and the area for themselves, HK doesn’t tell the player specifically where to go, the player is guided by the level design of the area. Usually you see games telling the player specifically how to jump, move, attack and do other things. The creators have realised that this is not needed due to understanding the audience and the players who will play HK.

 

HK doesn’t tell the player many things at the start, apart from the narrative and the very first mechanic that is introduced; Soul Vessel. Soul Vessel is allows the player to absorb the “souls” of enemies and store them. The player can then use the souls to regain lost health by channeling them. Later on, Soul Vessel’s amount can be extended and the player can use the souls to cast powerful ranged spells. This mechanic provides an excellent balance to the player’s playstyle. HK allows the player to play the game their way. Players who are aggressive can use their souls at will while players who are defensive can choose to conserve their souls until necessary. The Soul Vessel mechanic provides a high amount of variability and allows the player to experience the game their own way which in turn creates different experiences for each player depending on their chosen abilities, skills and playstyle. New mechanics, skills and abilities and charms are obtained by defeating bosses, exploring areas and finding secrets as the nameless silent insect knight travels throughout the ancient kingdom.

 

The nameless knight has a set amount of health masks (5) at the beginning of the game which can be increased by collecting health shards. Four health shards create one health mask. Health can also be extended temporarily by finding and destroying blue slime like figures. The player loses health after being hit by an ability, enemy or environmental object. The player can regain health by focusing their souls. When the player is low on health, the player’s surroundings begin to darken, the player’s vision is limited and the health bar shakes. This visual darkening of the environment allows the player to realise very quickly that they are on their last life, it saves the player time and keeps their focus on the platforming and combat instead of looking at their health bar. When the player is hit, the screen freezes and a strike is shown, the freezing of the screen for a second allows the player to stay focused and react to the next encounter. When the player loses their life, they lose their soul and they have to retrieve it. This mechanic lowers their Soul Vessel amount and restarts the player at the last bench from which they rested on. This can be a frustrating mechanic that can cause the player to be use a good amount of time trying to recover what they lost. It can be a good mechanic that forces the player to be more carefully while also punishing the player through the loss of time.

 

The platforming in HK is balanced well and utilises all skills and abilities from the player. There are many scenarios where multiple mechanics combine to defeat a platforming section. There are platforming sections that are challenging while other platforming areas that are simple. The player is always on flat horizontal ground throughout HK’s experience. This creates a base simplicity for HK, then adding in other platform mechanics, enemies, and player abilities. Throughout HK, the platforms change mechanically and visually breaking up the repetition in the platformer; the platforming provides a challenge to the player and keeps them engaged. Having different functionalities to the platforming mechanics works well. The jumping mechanic in HK can be described as graceful, slow, accurate and reactive. The HK’s jump allows the player to use precision and skill throughout the metroidvania platformer. There is a high amount of variability with the jump mechanic which creates enjoyable, reliable and reactive gameplay. HK has designed the platforming with the intention of it being secondary, while the combat is primary. When dying to the environment, the player isn’t punished as much as they would if they had died in combat; instead only one health mask is lost. Health can be easily obtained throughout HK, therefore an instant death on an environment out of bounds would have caused players distress and the overall quality of the game would have lacked.

 

Charms are skills that can be equipped to the player knight in HK. Each charm has a specific skill and bonus it provides while each charm also costs a certain amount of “notches”. Notches can be found and purchased to increase the amount of charms a player can use. Due to the amount of charms and the different skills they all provide; there is a high amount of variety and adaptability when it comes to combat & platforming mechanics. HK can account for many different playstyles and can therefore provide a variety of choices and experiences for the player. Every player will be able to build their style of play due to the amount of charm options offered. Charms can be swapped out at ‘rest’ benches allowing for different strategies and playstyles throughout the course of HK as some charms can be useful in certain scenarios while other charms won’t; and vice versa. However, through the player’s own discovery; a player can equip more charms if they would like - this would require repeated tries to discover. Becoming ‘overcharmed’ the player will have a wide variety of bonuses but however taking double the damage from every attack. While this can provide a significant advantage, it can also be a disadvantage for the player. HK does well to balance this out as they let the player take a risk for extra reward. Furthermore, it adds to the variability in the mechanics and gameplay of HK.

 

The enemies in HK have a range of different melee and ranged abilities. The majority of enemies have both melee and ranged abilities while some of the enemies just have melee or ranged abilities. This provides a range of ways that the enemy can interact with the player, while some enemies can counter the player or the player can counter enemies. HK removes the idea of repetition due to the amount of enemy designs, combinations and abilities while adding variability and variety to gameplay. In HK, bosses are pinnacle to the story progression; each boss is unique as they have their own mechanics, abilities and playstyles. Therefore, through the uniqueness of each boss mechanic that is designed; it adds to the variety of playstyles and strategies that are required to progress. It provides players with a range of responses and allows players to play their own way. HK does not restrict the player to a general playthrough, a truly unique experience is provided. HK engages and allows the player to enjoy themselves without feeling restricted to one part of the game. The ‘False Knight’ boss is the first introduction of a boss fight to the player. It is the ideal boss to introduce to the player as it introduces the player to the concept of boss battling; the open fighting arena. The ‘False Knight’ is a combination of different previously defeated enemies. HK slowly introduces the player to all of its mechanics without explicitly saying so. HK provides a good learning curve as the fight is simple, known and comfortable.
 

The level design of HK is really well designed; it teaches the player’s mechanics through its design after the player obtains a new mechanic. The level is specifically created to force the player to use the new mechanic to proceed. Rather than taking the player through a tutorial, HK incorporates its tutorial into the gameplay of HK in its level design. There are multiple level mechanics that provide a range of obstacles and challenges to the player. The level design breaks up the combat challenge and imposes a platforming challenge; HK keeps the player entertained and alert by providing a variety of level mechanics. HK’s level design is used to mechanically lock off areas; to depict to the player the areas that they can explore and traverse. HK’s level design allows for multiple options, directions and paths for the player. This allows players to find their own path, traverse using their own methods and to play the game their way which matches many other design choices by the developers. Signs, lights and objects have been used to depict to the player important areas or events. The extra detail provides the player with a better understanding of their location in Hallownest.

 

In HK, players can purchase maps of the areas from Cornifier the Cartographer. Players must find Cornifier in the new area in order to purchase a map. There are additions to the maps that can be purchased and certain charms that affect the map. This is a very interesting mechanic as it adds to the realism of exploring the ancient kingdom of Hallownest. Visual and audio queues such as paper trails and Cornifier’s humming are used to direct players towards his location; however, some players might not be able to find Cornifier and a map of the area. While this adds to the realism of Hallownest, it can also affect the player’s experience as the question of ‘Why can’t the player character chart the map themselves?’ since the player can update the map from a bench with the feather ink object. HK has the option of viewing a section of the map or viewing the entire map, while viewing the map; the player’s character is holding and looking at a map of the area which adds to the realism of exploring Hallownest. While the map system is a fantastic realism mechanic there can be some drawbacks to the player’s experience.

 

Hollow Knight Aesthetics:

Hallownest is an insect kingdom, the aesthetics of HK blend and mesh together to create an insect kingdom; ranging from multiple enemies, the player, the environment and characters. HK has a sense of cohesion and clear thought processes for the world of HK. Each area has a specific aesthetic that is relevant to the theme of that area. Bosses are created with consideration of the themed area and narrative. The depth and coherence of the aesthetic in HK creates a memorable, relevant and enjoyable experience for the player. HK’s ambience and music creates a finished and memorable experience for the player while HK’s sound effects provide a range of essential feedback to the player allowing the player to react with the gameplay.

 

Each area in Hallownest is separated through its theme and colour palette. Each area feels different and removes the idea of repetition in HK. The garden area has a grass and green theme while other areas have different themes. Areas have their own combination of unique enemies, mechanics and bosses while the background and foregrounds contrast well with the player and enemy characters. The forgotten crossroads is an area with its own aesthetic that is changed into the infected crossroads that has an entirely different aesthetic. The area has changed, paths have been blocked and backgrounds have changed; a completely different aesthetic. Provides players with a sense of shock and interest as an area that was once very comfortable for the player has changed to an unknown environment. The uniqueness of areas provide a sense of realism and character of the ancient kingdom Hallownest.

 

Final Outcome:

Hollow Knight is a game that provides a range of options and experiences for the player. HK allows the player to experience the narrative and the story behind Hallownest for themselves. There are many interesting design aspects that improve the overall memorable experience of the game for the player. There is roughly 20+ hours of gameplay in HK that provides a real value for money. Hollow Knight is a game that provides something for just about every player and every kind of playstyle.