I’d actually told myself I was done with games that try to kill me for fun. Then Silksong arrived. And suddenly there I was again — sweaty palms, coffee on the table, and the feeling that the world outside could wait. It’s a game that doesn’t ask for your time; it demands your patience. And when you finally find the rhythm, it feels like remembering why you started playing in the first place.
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Disclaimer: Apropos Magazine received access or a review copy. As always, we share our own impressions — unfiltered.
Six stars
At last, it’s here. Fans of the indie classic Hollow Knight have waited years for Silksong — and the wait was worth it. When the original was released in 2017, it quickly became a cult favorite, selling more than 15 million copies and spawning four free DLC packs. So when Team Cherry — a studio of just three people, yes, three — announced a sequel, the internet collectively went into a coma. On September 4, the game landed on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo, and of course the servers crashed. The hype was too big, and the internet wasn’t ready.
Silksong is classic Metroidvania — a 2D platformer where you fight, die, learn and try again. You play as Hornet, the acrobatic heroine with perhaps gaming’s most passive-aggressive catchphrase: “Git Gud.” And that is, in truth, the whole point. Silksong isn’t about making things easy. It’s about getting better.
Once you start to understand the rhythm, that strange zen state kicks in. Enemies that initially felt impossible slowly turn into little calculations. Every victory feels earned, every mistake is entirely your own. And when you finally master a boss pattern that once had you considering therapy, it’s almost beautiful. The game’s learning curve is perfectly balanced — it forces you to improve without ever feeling unfair. It’s Dark Souls in 2D, just with more charm and more insects.
There’s enough content here to swallow a summer holiday whole: Crests, Tools, Wish Missions and Alternative Endings enough to reach 100 hours — if you survive Steel Soul Mode, where one death means game over. (I have that achievement in Hollow Knight. No biggie. Ahem.) Add to that a cornucopia of loot, builds and enemies you’ll both hate and miss.
But the real magic lies in the atmosphere. Like its predecessor, Silksong drips with craft and dedication. The animation style is old-school beautiful, the soundtrack feels more emotional than a game really ought to allow, and the world hums with life. It’s a universe full of anthropomorphic insects that make you laugh, recoil and feel. Hornet is everything you could want in a modern hero — fast, fierce and completely indifferent to whether you can keep up.
The story hides in the details. You gather it in fragments — a town here, a conversation there — and suddenly you’re deeply invested in something you don’t fully understand. It’s mysterious, poetic and exactly as open as one could hope. And then there’s the sound: when you land a perfect dodge in silence and are rewarded by a single piano note, you know the game has captured something rare — the rhythm between control and chaos.
It almost feels as if Team Cherry doesn’t make games, but rituals. And the best part of all? It only costs 19.50 euros. Less than a pizza — and it’ll keep you full for 100 hours.
Reflection:
Silksong is one of those games that reminds you why you love hating games. It punishes you, teases you and challenges you — but always with love. It’s beautiful, brutal and full of soul. And if you dare to die enough times, you might even learn something about yourself.
