'Silksong's Difficulty Patch Can't Fix The Game's Biggest Problem

"In the week since Hollow Knight: Silksong launched, the game's difficulty has dominated conversations about it. It's undoubtedly a more punishing game than Hollow Knight, which has left some players (on PC at least) scrambling for mods to tone down some of its more sadistic edges. Now, developer Team Cherry is issuing the first patch aimed at tweaking Silksong 's difficulty in a few small ways, but its limited scope means it doesn't come close to changing the game's biggest nuisances."

"Aside from squashing a few bugs, its main focus is toning down difficulty in a few targeted ways. The Moorwing and Sister Splinter bosses are getting a "slight difficulty reduction" while certain enemies will do a little less damage. The cost of opening some benches and Bell Beast stations is going down, and you'll get more rosaries in a few specific circumstances. Otherwise, the much-discussed difficulty of the game remains unchanged."

"For anyone currently banging their buggy little head against the two altered early game bosses or struggling to pay their bench tolls, the patch should soften the game just a bit. But extremely specific tweaks like this hardly scratch the surface of what's turning some players off of Silksong entirely. Namely, that it's not just a difficult game, but one that seems to make difficulty the focus of much of its design."

Due the week of September 15, a patch for Hollow Knight: Silksong introduces a mix of fixes and targeted difficulty adjustments. The patch slightly reduces difficulty for Moorwing and Sister Splinter, lowers damage from certain enemies, decreases costs for opening some benches and Bell Beast stations, and increases rosary drops in particular circumstances. Several bugs are also addressed. These limited tweaks ease a few early frustrations but do not alter the overall, pervasive difficulty emphasis in the game's design. Difficulty appears spread across systems rather than concentrated in boss fights, which can be tough but are not the sole source of challenge.

Read at Inverse