Note there are some mild spoilers below, nothing too major.
I’m just wrapping up my first HK play through and I have some thoughts. First, this game is a masterpiece and I appreciate that 3 people made it. Most of my life I played Zelda games, about 4 years ago I got into Souls(like) games. This is my first Metroidvania game.
I’d describe HK as peaks and pits with mostly peaks. If I were to make a tiered list it’d be all S or D tier. I was genuinely worried that a 2D game would get boring and I couldn’t have been more pleasantly surprised.
The peaks are the map, OST, characters, lore, bosses, and scenery.
I went into HK with no guides or knowledge, just raw fun. I got to about 95% and started looking for answers and following guides. I’m currently at 108% just need to grind the pantheons.
Looking at the pits, I wish areas were more interconnected, I spent probably 50% finding new areas, 40% back tracking, and 10% on bosses themselves. In total I’m sitting at about 70 hours of playtime, meaning about 30 hours of just running back to places I’ve already been :(
I wish there was a better travel mechanic, I firmly think that any bench should be warp-able after a certain point in the game. Or unlimited warping gates. Or both.
I wish that there was a better use of currency. The bank is a hilarious outcome but I wish it were replaced by something more usable. I think there is way too much late game grinding whether it be backtracking or geo farming.
I wish there were other disposables or upgrades you could buy like giving a grease to your nail or a projectile you could throw as a weapon. I appreciate the simplicity yet elegance of the combat but the currency is the lost piece on me.
All-in-all I’d rank this in my top 10, maybe even 5 favorite games. I’m hoping for a less grinding experience in Silksong.