In this review

The big picture

Hollow Knight invites you into an interconnected underground kingdom and allows being confused about it to become part of the entertainment. Team Cherry's single-player adventure, first released on PC on 24 February 2017, combines exploration, new abilities and demanding action. You gradually learn where things connect and how to handle what lives there. Admiring the hand-drawn world is easy; getting comfortably around it involves a little more personal development.

That distinction matters. The melancholy atmosphere can attract someone looking for a peaceful wander, while the bosses may have prepared an entirely different itinerary. Hollow Knight suits players who enjoy turning uncertainty into knowledge and awkward encounters into something they can manage. It is less accommodating if your ideal exploration game treats every missed turn as a service failure and apologizes with a large arrow.

Reasons to look closer

Interconnected exploration makes remembering a route useful, charms and abilities support different approaches, and four included content packs broaden the adventure without requiring a separate shopping expedition. Newer console upgrades offer further options for existing owners. The main attraction is learning a place deeply enough that once-confusing passages become familiar, preferably before you've developed an elaborate theory about why every tunnel looks like the one you meant to take.

Navigation is something you participate in

The official description includes purchasable maps, a compass, a quill and pins. That's an important clue about expectations. Finding your way has its own tools and decisions rather than being an invisible convenience always supplying the perfect answer. Your understanding of the kingdom grows alongside your character's capabilities. Recognizing a connection can therefore count as progress even when nothing dramatic has appeared in the equipment collection.

That can be satisfying if you enjoy leaving questions open while investigating somewhere else. A route you can't yet use becomes a possibility to remember. It can also be tiring after a long break, when the previous session's brilliant intention has vanished and you're staring at a passage with the confidence of someone who has entered the wrong meeting. A modest aim helps: investigate one branch or resolve one navigational question. Every visit needn't end with a major story development to have been worthwhile.

A different charm won't do the dodging for you

Charms change the Knight's capabilities, while movement and spell options broaden what you can attempt. That gives experimentation a practical purpose. Another arrangement may better suit your approach to movement, attacks or a difficult situation. It's a useful layer of choice for players who like preparing a plan as well as executing it.

The action still expects participation. Dodging, dashing, fighting and confronting bosses remain central, so build flexibility shouldn't be sold as a loophole around learning. Someone who enjoys adjusting a setup and practising it has two connected reasons to persist. Someone hoping statistics will eventually handle the unpleasant parts alone should be more cautious. The charms can change what you're capable of; they can't sit you down and explain why you keep making the same questionable movement decision.

Included doesn't mean compulsory

The Voidheart console package includes the original game and four content packs, which Team Cherry names Hidden Dreams, The Grimm Troupe, Lifeblood and Godmaster. Their additions include quests, bosses, abilities and refinements. For a new buyer, it's useful that the game's expanded history doesn't have to be reconstructed as a list of essential extra purchases.

For a player, the breadth needs a sensible interpretation. Extra challenges give enthusiasts more room to develop, but value doesn't require exhausting absolutely everything. You can enjoy the world and decline an optional pursuit that exceeds the amount of difficulty you want that week. An included challenge is an invitation, not a summons. The people who want to investigate every last possibility have plenty to pursue; everyone else is allowed to retain other interests and a reasonable relationship with their evening.

The scenery and the resistance belong together

The hand-drawn creatures and melancholy surroundings are part of the appeal, but separating them completely from the demands would misrepresent the game. Exploring an unfamiliar place has more weight when movement and encounters ask something of you. The resulting tension can make discovery rewarding for the right player, while making another wish that the beautiful underground kingdom offered a less confrontational guided tour.

That is a matter of fit rather than a failure to appreciate the art. Approach Hollow Knight because you want its setting and its learning process together. Having enough patience for a difficult passage and enough curiosity to investigate a new route are more relevant starting resources than simply liking the screenshots. There is no need to confuse admiring a world with signing up to everything it might ask of you.

Check the upgrade before buying the kingdom again

Current PC releases support Windows, macOS and Linux, with the PC game Verified for Steam Deck. Switch, PS4 and Xbox One versions remain available. Crucially, Team Cherry announced upgraded Switch 2, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions on 5 February 2026. These are genuine upgraded versions, not merely the older releases running through backward compatibility. The current PlayStation listing displays 6 February, a storefront date distinction from the developer's announcement.

The developer advertises higher frame rates, resolutions and additional effects, with free upgrades for existing Switch, PS4 and Xbox owners. Some PS Plus catalogue users had reported entitlement issues, so check what your own account offers. PC updates also added wider aspect-ratio support. Those claims aren't independent benchmarks. Choose around your controls, screen and existing ownership, then decide whether learning this demanding kingdom sounds rewarding. Bring curiosity, patience and whatever mapping equipment you can sensibly acquire. Confidence in knowing the way is more convincing after you've checked it.

Sources

Information checked on 16 October 2026. Features, platform compatibility and editions can change.

  1. Team Cherry: Hollow Knight official site ↗World, challenging action, hand-drawn art, soundtrack and four content packs.
  2. Team Cherry on Steam: Hollow Knight ↗Original release, PC operating systems, exploration, maps, charms and Steam Deck compatibility metadata.
  3. Nintendo: Hollow Knight – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition ↗Native Switch 2 edition, original Switch selector, February 5 2026 release and presentation enhancements.
  4. PlayStation: Hollow Knight Voidheart Edition ↗PS4 and native PS5 availability, single-player mode and included content.
  5. Xbox: Hollow Knight Voidheart Edition ↗Xbox One, Xbox Series and PC availability, mapping and charm features.
  6. Team Cherry: Hollow Knight arrives on Switch 2, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S ↗February 5 2026 new-console versions, free upgrades and PC aspect-ratio improvements.
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