When you’ve played 30 hours and are still discovering new areas in Hollow Knight: Silksong, you realize Team Cherry set out to create the deepest metroidvania ever seen.
The number of locations and points of interest you can visit is completely out of this world, spread across numerous and varied biomes that make Pharloom an extremely vibrant place.
While Hollow Knight was already a dense video game with a tremendous emphasis on exploration and discovery, Hornet’s adventure takes it to a new level, significantly expanding the universe’s size.
As a result, multiple spectacular locations await us during our time in this new kingdom of silk, which I want to highlight through this list of the ten best areas in Hollow Knight: Silksong, ranked.
10 Memorium
Pharloom’s Bibliography
|
Bosses |
n/a |
|
Matters of Interest |
Cogheart Piece, Spool Fragment, ‘The Lost Merchant’ Quest |
Precisely because of Pharloom’s diverse flora and fauna, the Memorium found in the Citadel is one of my favorite areas in the entire game.
Not only because of the thematic coherence of having a place that brings together all the kingdom’s major species, but also because of how it translates to the player’s experience as a guide.
By visiting the Memorium as early as I could, I was able to discover I still had areas like Verdania and Voltnest to explore, just when I thought it was truly impossible for there to be more to discover.
Therefore, this area is unique for its cohesion with the universe, its ability to inform the player, and for reminding us of everything we’ve seen during our journey, which more than compensates for the lack of bosses and interesting things to do beyond quests like The Lost Merchant.
9 Mount Fay
Platforming At Its Peak
|
Bosses |
Pinstress |
|
Matters of Interest |
Mask Shard, Faydown Cloak, ‘Fatal Resolve’ Quest |
Unlike many players, I speak from a privileged position when I say I connected immensely with Silksong‘s movement mechanics, which made my time on Mount Fay a tremendous experience.
Hollow Knight‘s platforming always seemed superb to me, but this one is even more spectacular, and climbing this icy colossus (very reminiscent of Celeste, I would say) was a great change of pace, finally focusing more on platforming than combat.
It’s aesthetically unique, allows you to unlock the coveted double jump, features Pharloom’s most majestic beast, Fayforn, and features the most interesting and unique use of Hornet’s movement mechanics to make traversal a delight.
The confrontation with the Pinstress is a valuable bonus as well, but make no mistake: Mount Fay is one of Silksong‘s best areas strictly for the glory of climbing it, leaving everything else as engaging but secondary perks.
8 The Slab
Unexpected Sequences
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Bosses |
First Sinner, Broodmother |
|
Matters of Interest |
Rune Rage, Mask Shard, ‘Passing of the Age’ Quest |
You might be surprised to see The Slab on this list considering it’s not a large area, but the way you access it leads to the most atypical gameplay sequence Team Cherry has ever created.
If you’re like me and get caught by one of their henchmen, you’ll be left without tools and without a needle, forcing you to fight your way out of the prison with a new naked moveset that demonstrates Hornet can also fight with her bare fists (and feet).
I’ll never forget the shock I felt with the cinematic showing our beloved princess snapping her captor’s neck just before reclaiming her possessions, all after an escape experience that also introduces us to the freezing mechanic and gives us a glimpse into the existence of Mount Fay.
As if that weren’t enough, it has one of the best bosses in the entire game (First Sinner) with a rather atypical level structure separated by keys, so not including The Slab on this list seemed criminal to me.
7 Shellwood
The Heir of Greenpath
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Bosses |
Sister Splinter, Shrine Guardian Seth, Nyleth |
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Matters of Interest |
Cling Grip, Mask Shard, ‘Rite of Rebirth’ Quest |
Returning to a more traditional appreciation of Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s world, I spent my first few hours of play waiting for my “Greenpath moment”, which the great Shellwood ultimately granted me.
By this expression, I mean a predominantly natural biome, connected to dozens of zones that will draw me back to it at many points in the campaign, and that forces me to master the platforming to perfection, which completely describes this glorious place.
It offers one of the most important movement mechanics in Hornet’s arsenal, boasts the most bizarre questline in the game, and is visually heavenly, with a perfect art design that truly shows how much work the studio put into detailing everything to the point of absurdity.
The best part is that the final act gives you one last reason to return to Shellwood, which includes one of Silksong’s most difficult and memorable bosses, which also serves as an emotional tribute to a young Hollow Knight fan who was immortalized within the title.
6 Bellhart
The Value of Comfort
|
Bosses |
Widow |
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Matters of Interest |
Needolin, Mask Shard, Crafting Kit, Spool Fragment, Bellhome, Bellhart’s Quest Board |
While Hollow Knight‘s more concrete and straightforward scale made it a solitary adventure with virtually no time for rest, Silksong embraces a rather opposite feeling.
Bellhart arrives not only to further situate the presence of a severe threat to the inhabitants of the land but also to eventually become our home, both metaphorically and literally.
You have memorable NPCs like Pabo, helpful merchants like the blacksmith Plinney and the trader Scrounge, a Quest Board that invites you to explore Pharloom helping everyone, and, of course, the Widow, one of the best bosses in the installment.
It’s where you unlock the Needolin, settle your house, upgrade your needle… Bellhart is the epicenter of our journey through this decaying world, and its iconic aesthetic and utterly divine soundtrack only make it even better.
5 Cogwork Core
A Mechanical Treasure
|
Bosses |
Cogwork Dancers |
|
Matters of Interest |
Spool Fragment, Mask Shard, Melody of the Architects |
Cogwork Core is a rather small area that doesn’t offer much to do, but its brevity contrasts with how devilishly fun it is to navigate through it to obtain the Melody of the Architects.
First, because it features the most White Palace-like platforming sequence in the entire game, and second, because it contains what many believe to be the title’s finest boss: the Cogwork Dancers.
Just because of the presence of this automaton duo alone, it’s impossible not to talk about Cogwork Core as a magical place that’s enchanting to visit, but it’s even more so when we consider that another of the game’s most notable foes, the Second Sentinel, is activated here.
Yet, the icing on the cake is the location’s song. The Cogwork Core theme is easily among the three most notable in Hollow Knight: Silksong, which says a lot considering the soundtrack’s overall impressive quality.
4 Greymoor
Rejoicing in Prowess
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Bosses |
Moorwing, Crawfather |
|
Matters of Interest |
Spool Fragment, Reaper Crest, Thread Storm, Halfway Home |
I think I’d need an entire article to talk about my love for Greymoor, because it seems to be among the areas Team Cherry has spent the most time on and, undoubtedly, one of the largest they’ve ever created.
If you consider the number of special encounters that can take place here, such as those with Shakra, Garmond and Zaza, and the Flea Caravan, as well as the upgrades you can unlock, like the Reaper Crest and Thread Storm, it’s easy to see how the studio thought of this place as a significant location for our journey.
Moorwing, the area’s boss, also fuels said impression, as it’s the first major difficulty wall you’ll encounter and will help you master essential concepts like pogoing and aerial combat, which are indispensable in the future, showing you this isn’t just Hollow Knight 2.
With its relentless rain, its connections to numerous areas in the four cardinal directions, and its superb platforming sections and minion ambushes, Greymoor is a place where every step leads you to discover something new and interesting, as its content density is really vast.
3 Far Fields
Incredible at the Beginning, Incredible at the End
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Bosses |
Fourth Chorus, Savage Beastfly, Gurr the Outcast, Skarrsinger Karmelita |
|
Matters of Interest |
Mask Shard, Tool Pouch, Drifter’s Cloak, ‘Fastest in Pharloom’ Quest |
Aside from audiovisual or emotional appreciation, what typically characterizes the areas of a Metroidvania are both the new mechanics and the bosses, and few places surpass Far Fields in these aspects.
Whether you pass through here in the first act or the third, this forested place always offers you reasons to return, coinciding with Shellwood in focus but surpassing it due to its sheer size.
When you look at the number of bosses it contains (including the best and worst in the entire game, which is funny) and remember the special sequences they hide, such as the lava escape or Weavenest Cindril, it’s irrefutable that Far Fields is part of Silksong‘s highest peaks.
Flying through the air currents with the Drifter’s Cloak, being annoyed at having to pay rosaries every time you want to enter Pilgrim’s Rest, finding out what the ant target practice is all about… From basic to advanced, every hour here is packed with hype.
2 Whispering Vaults
Interactivity Everywhere
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Bosses |
Trobbio, Tormented Trobbio |
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Matters of Interest |
Cogheart Piece, Mask Shard, Pale Oil |
All my hours with Hollow Knight: Silksong made me feel like I was experiencing a vastly improved version of Hollow Knight, though it was only when I reached the Whispering Vaults that I finally understood everything.
The Citadel in general stands among the best areas in the genre’s history, but this one in particular stands out for me for a factor that has never characterized the franchise and has now become a hallmark: the interactivity with the environment.
Moving the crates that block paths and making movement and exploration a puzzle in itself is simply masterful, motivating creativity in ways I didn’t think possible in order to discover every nook and cranny of the place.
Its enemies are demanding, it has a couple of upgrades like a Mask Shard and a Pale Oil, the NPCs that inhabit it are intriguing, and it has the most hilarious, charismatic, and spectacular gameplay adversary in Trobbio, so I would never hesitate to include Whispering Vaults on the podium of this list.
1 Choral Chambers
The Heart of the Citadel
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Bosses |
n/a |
|
Matters of Interest |
Cogheart Piece, Mask Shard, Pale Oil, ‘Great Taste of Pharloom’ Quest, ‘Silk and Soul’ Wish, Songclave’s Quest Board |
From what I’ve discussed with friends and colleagues, and from what I’ve seen on the internet, I believe there’s a silent consensus about Choral Chambers being the best area in Hollow Knight: Silksong, and I agree.
Some sensations are impossible to explain, and I personally can’t find words to describe the emotions that ran through me the first time I entered this place and heard its soundtrack, also the most notable in the game.
Every secret, ornamental piece, character, platforming section, mission, quest, enemy, and so on that makes up this beautiful but nostalgic place is positioned and developed with almost overwhelming perfection, serving as the cornerstone of one of the best maps ever seen in video games.
Even the thematic coherence of charging absurd amounts of money for each mechanism, or the presence of an exclusive fast travel feature that had to be closed because regular bugs kept dying inside, is further proof of Choral Chambers’ superiority.
Furthermore, Songclave is a masterful HUB, where you connect with memorable NPCs like the Caretaker and Sherma, which grows with our presence, rising as the last bastion of defense against the Grand Mother Silk’s curse… Everything about this area is magnificent, so its first place is immovable.
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Author: 360 Technology Group
