The highly anticipated Hollow Knight: Silksong launched today, September 4th, but its debut was met with significant technical difficulties across various platforms. Players reported problems on Steam, including an inability to launch the game or even add it to their shopping carts. Similar issues were observed on the Nintendo eShop, PlayStation Network (PSN), and Xbox, including Game Pass. Despite these hurdles, the game quickly soared in popularity, attracting over 100,000 concurrent players on Steam within its first 45 minutes.
This immediate success surpassed the original Hollow Knight`s all-time peak of approximately 72,000 concurrent players.
Adding to the launch woes, Silksong`s store page briefly disappeared from the Steam homepage, and some users reported complete inability to access the Steam store itself—an uncommon occurrence for a game launch, typically seen during major sales events.
While widespread, these problems weren`t universal, with many players successfully purchasing and downloading the game. Reports of eShop issues on Switch 2 and Game Pass persisted, though Game Pass subscribers could often initiate downloads remotely via Xbox.com.
The mixed experience suggests that “your mileage may vary,” but the rapid rise to 75,000 concurrent Steam players within 10 minutes, then 100,000 in 45 minutes, underscores the massive demand for the title.
The immense pre-release hype for Silksong stemmed from its protracted development cycle, leading many to believe its release might never materialize. However, the game has finally arrived, drawing a massive influx of players.
As previously confirmed, Silksong is priced at $20 across all platforms, with a complimentary upgrade available for original Switch owners transitioning to Switch 2.
What is Hollow Knight: Silksong?
Hollow Knight: Silksong is the much-anticipated sequel to Team Cherry`s critically acclaimed 2017 title, Hollow Knight, which sold over 15 million copies. Initially conceived as DLC for the original game, its scope expanded significantly, leading to its development as a standalone game. In Silksong, players control Hornet in a vibrant 2D platforming world, encountering new enemy types, challenging bosses, and exploring vast regions like the expansive Greymoor area.
Why did Hollow Knight: Silksong take so long to come out?
According to Team Cherry founders Ari Gibson and William Pellen, Silksong`s extended development wasn`t due to being `stuck in development hell.` The immense success of the original 2017 game provided the Australian studio the freedom to craft the sequel at their preferred pace.
Gibson clarified to Bloomberg that the project was `always progressing,` emphasizing that as a small team, game development naturally takes considerable time, and there were no major controversies delaying it.
A primary reason for the delay was its initial conception as Hollow Knight DLC. Regarding the studio`s silence on development updates, Gibson explained that frequent communication would have amounted to little more than stating, `We`re still working on it.`
Pellen further added that their focus was solely on developing the game, rather than `bugging people` with non-updates.
Although Silksong was once targeted for a pre-June 2023 release, a date Pellen states the team `genuinely believed` they would hit, it ultimately did not materialize.
The wait could have been even longer, according to Gibson, who noted that Team Cherry`s development approach allowed ideas to rapidly become tangible game elements. While this was enjoyable, it also introduced challenges.
Gibson recalled a point where he had to `stop sketching` new ideas because the rapid implementation meant that every concept risked extending development to an unmanageable `15 years.`
Is Hollow Knight: Silksong on Game Pass?
Hollow Knight: Silksong is a day-one release for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers. For those without a subscription, the game can be purchased directly for $20.