Silksong season is in full swing.
The game is so addictive! Exploring the map becomes the best thing about it. I just can't stop playing it!
Last week, I said that a game should give you something to do, and not be just a story (easier said than done).
After a few hours of playing Silksong, I noticed my pattern of behaviour.
I check the map and I ask questions:
Where can I go?
Where did I fail to proceed?
What was in that place?
Why did I put this pin here?
No, seriously... WHAT WAS IN THAT PLACE?
Of course, sometimes I remind myself (briefly) that I still can't reach some place. But sometimes I find that I can proceed. And then... find a boss. And try to beat him. Only for him to beat me. And I try again. And eventually I win. And discover new locations, and maybe even new skills. Which leads me to check the map. And asking questions.
I can do this all day.
You know what I usually think of when watching my backlog? What can I do to make it smaller?
But sometimes I play a game, which leads me to the conclusion: I don't want to stop playing.
I had that with Breath of the Wild. And now I know that I had that with both Hollow Knights.
You know, games you don't want to end, and you enjoy every minute of them.
When I play them, I feel like an explorer, Hallownest/Pharloom tourist if you will. I play these games with all my senses.
No moon logic, no walkthroughs (usually).
I figure things out by myself. I test strategies against enemies. I search the map.
And this leads me to the question:
Is this mindful gaming? Am I in the moment?
What this is - is a game design success.
You wish you could make games like these!
I know I do!
But all the accolades aside, I gotta admit, Team Cherry did a lot of work for Silksong to look and feel… like nothing has changed since the first Hollow Knight. Of course, new bugs, new movements, new story, new maps, and so on - all that was made from scratch. 7 years later. 7 years of design, creating art, and balancing. And it doesn’t disappoint! As I expected, Silksong is a Hollow Knight game ;-)
@mindfulgamer should add his input here :D
Is cool when games manage to do this! When devs manage to make games like this.
I felt like this when I played Tunic. Every discovery felt like it blew my tiny mind and I didn’t want to stop figuring things out and discovering.
I know I’ll never get to play that game for the first time again and have those feelings, so now waiting for my son to be old enough to appreciate it so I can hopefully watch him have all those feelings too!