Minus that ONE part…

Spoilers for late game Hollow Knight

When considering the thoughts and feelings of an experience, or game in this case, it can be difficult to allocate the right amount of focus to each aspect of it. Every part of something is weighed differently for every person. Some may be completely put off by a slow or stretched out tutorial while others may prefer getting immersed into the world and lore of the game they’re going through at a much more steady and intricate pace. As this is so varied from person to person, it can be a challenge to gauge how exactly to feel when a small section or even a moment of a game brings down your entire feeling about it. Even if it’s a small, insignificant moment in hindsight, if it taints the feeling or otherwise makes a strong enough negative impression it can cause damage or even poison the whole experience for the user. 

I’ve completed what I would say is a decent percentage of Hollow Knight (95%), even reached credits with the ending that is only possible after completing a section I’m about to talk about, and yet this one area has brought down my entire experience in a substantial way. 

White Palace in Hollow Knight is bad and it made me think less of the game as a whole. That’s it. That’s the post.

Let’s be clear, this is very much a rant post. I’m sure many are going to just say “git gud” and move on and that’s totally ok, this is my silly hangup that I’m trying to dive into and figure out why it affected me so much.

Now for some context I generally don’t enjoy platforming. Even if the genre and I go all the way back to where my gaming journey began on the Sega Genesis (Mega Drive for all my more fortunate non US readers). I find platforming and even Metroidvania pretty unrewarding, and they usually stray too close to being too mechanically difficult for my own personal engagement and enjoyment. So take some of my opinion with the appropriate amount of salt. Despite it perhaps not matching my tastes, Hollow Knight drew me in with its aesthetic, music, very tight gameplay and overall feel. It’s an incredibly well crafted game, full of intrigue and delightful moments that (mostly) rewards the player for their hard work and curiosity.

The capitol city of buzzsaws however can just get lost. White Palace is what I would consider a complete shift in the overall design and feel of the game and that shift is to its detriment. You won’t be fighting enemies here, in fact the zone is almost devoid of combat. In its place are jumping and platforming obstacles and sections. Mini puzzles you have to solve are only completed by navigating through various hazards using skills and techniques you’ve picked up throughout the game up to this point, be it jump precision or using abilities to move from safe platform to platform.

A section that is presented as a “test for all that you’ve learned” is totally fine, hell expected in most games like this. The issue for me here is it’s a test of ONE aspect of gameplay and on a level of intensity and difficulty not seen before OR after. If the back half of the game was more aligned with this I don’t believe we’d be here talking about it. Speaking of other areas of the game though, on thinking over this topic I was reminded of the Colosseum of Fools. It’s a fight arena of increasingly difficult long fight challenges that you can find a decent way into the game. I started to see this as a companion to the White Palace. Where one showcases your combat prowess, the other does for your movement and navigation skills.

A great pair they make, at least on paper as they cover most of the player input skills needed to play the game. However only one of these two areas requires completion to get a specific ending of the game. Locking what I would consider to be a pretty substantial and satisfying ending to the game behind a zone that’s such a departure from the rest of the game really feels frustrating. Again, to me that’s how it feels.

<Imagine locking a major story ending behind the Trial of the Fool>

It’s not all bad though, I find the area great in a number of ways even if I hate that it exists and specifically how required it is. The visuals give a wonderful contrast to most of what the player has seen, which in turn matches the complete gameplay shift you experience going through it. The dream-like haze and chilling soundscape and music really drive home how ethereal and mystical this location is. What you are doing here is significant from a narrative perspective and the visuals and music give that the respect it deserves. The end of the zone features one of the most poignant moments in the entire game especially considering the story up to this point. Truly fantastic choices through *some* of this whole zone. 

At the end of the day, Hollow Knight is an incredible experience that I do still recommend even with the blemish of White Palace. It’s a luxury car that feels really great to drive, but sadly it’s got this crack in the corner of the windshield. Yeah I can still drive it, see out the front, and have a great time. But that crack is there, and man I sure wish it was on a different window. 

Take care everyone. Thanks for stopping by.

<Rest while you can. The world is a harsh and scary place>

Also yes I did Path of Pain while making notes for this piece. I’m not going to talk about it, you can guess how I feel about it by now.