I also think HK1's nonlinearity is way better: It starts linear until you get claws, but then it massively opens up into genuine huge overlapping route variety. SS's 'open up' moment just gives you two linear branching paths into bellhart, and then two linear branching paths into the act 2 locations. It has genuine variety at the beginning of act 2 up until you reach harpoon and unlock the ventricles but thats as far as it goes. From that point on youre mostly just collecting stuff on new dead end areas where the order doesnt matter.
HK1 secret walls and secrets are well placed and occasional. In silksong practically every centimeter in the middle-lategame has some hidden passage or breakable wall to the point its too predictable. And very few of these secrets compare to something like Nosk, Path of Pain, the backer room, GPZ/WK...
Lastly i dont think a single soul disagrees that HK1's version of The Void was much more interesting than SS's
Dream Nail was way more interesting than the Needolin and had combat applications, Dream Bosses were sick. And i think the quest for the Ascended Dream Nail & Void Heart was a much kinoer buildup, Act 3 felt lacking and like it ends too early in its main progression. HK1 is shorter but it feels like a more complete journey, not just Dream No More but the normal ending too. Specially with how the final bosses are unequivocally so much more interesting
Among many other things
>failed tramway
>hidden station (why the fuck is it floating in the air)
>hidden white palace rooms
>mimic grubs
I just like Hallownest so much more. I like silksong and its a worthy sequel but id kill for something with its new variety and speed that still keeps the atmosphere and mystique of the first
...But they really should have done a better job with these alternate crests. 3/6 the crests you find are just HK1's moveset, only Architect has charge attacks, the only crest with more silk skills is HK1 grubberflys elegy.. Thats plain wasted potential!!
2/2

Also I'm gay
2/2

I agree OP, but Silksong is currently the game that /v/ has decided must be defended against all criticism, no matter how minor, so be prepared to be shit on.

>>720412675
1. Pharloom is way more interesting than grey and sometimes green hallownest
2. The game is completely non linear from act 2 onward and even in act 1 you can dick around quite a bit
3. Your gay

>>720412675
I think most of these points are subjective but I respect it. I think I like both, they try to do their own shit but both made me feel like I was exploring a real place.

>>720413460
Make your criticims not about shit taste or shit skill then

>>720413574
>2.
the beginning of act 2 to reach the harpoon sure
after that its really not comparable, having to pick 3 things in different places without either caring about one another isnt comparable. Theres 7 entirely different routes to reach the dream nail

>>720412675
I think Hallownest had a better atmosphere with more memorable events. Nothing in SS hits as hard as chasing Hornet in Greethpath or entering City of Tears for the first time. The Knight is more of a mysterious little adventure, while Hornet has a clear mission during every step of her journey. Both stories have their own different appeals. I think Act 2 is where the game peaks, because you have access to most of your options and avenues. Pharloom is more fun to jump around because Hornet is so nimble with so many different movement and combat options. The game just became a big playground once I unlocked the hookshot and double jump. I also felt like HK's cast (Hornet, Quirell, Zote, etc.) wrapped up in a neater bow. Some characters like Shakra and Sherma felt more front loaded and petered out in act 3.
TLDR: Silksong had better gameplay. Hollow Knight had a better atmosphere and world.

>>720412675
Pharloom is an absolute shithole

Hollownest just feels way more comfy and the world building is just more beautiful and cool and mysterious, Pharloom is pretty nifty and I really like most of the areas and variety but a lot of it just feels like the evil rape building, Hallownest is kind of a evil rape building but pharloom just feels eviler (I’m looking at you bug blightown)

>>720414752
>TLDR: Silksong had better gameplay
debatable
id argue the exploration and sense of mystique is part of the gameplay too
a secret wall in HK is an exciting find. SS spams them so hard

SS had fancier movesets and action, but i think HK1 had individually more memorable bosses and areas. SS had a more fleshed out moveset but worse polish and balance for it by a mile, HK1 had a more basic moveset but made the very most of it. SS also doesnt have a lot of locations similar to HK1's that some people will like a lot, namely
>white palace/path of pain
>colosseum
>getting lost in deepnest

>>720415371
I really like Sands of Karak and Mount Fay, I wish they were longer though.

>>720412675
>>720412725
Hollow Knight 1 was fucking boring. Silksong is better in almost every way.

>>720415767
oh yeah thats one of the things about silksong
I remember thinking the Hive was lacking, and compared to the other areas of HK it stuck out like a sore thumb and was very unexplained. But SS has tons of areas like that, short and usually connected to nowhere else other than its entry point
Similary i dont think its city 'dungeons' (high walls, memorium, vaults) compare to the Soul Sanctum

>>720415371
I had a fun time getting lost in Bilewater for a bit while mucking about pre act 2 but I guess it just can't compare to Deepnest's size

>>720415371
>id argue the exploration and sense of mystique is part of the gameplay too
I think TC factored in character and story when designing the world. The Knight is a blank slate, a vessel for the player. You are supposed to be wandering around and looking for stuff. Hornet is going for the Citadel with a preset goal in mind. She logically has no reason to take a lot of detour. The extra quests and exploration or more for the player's sake. That is why I think Act 2 is an improvement. The Chapel is designed like a big, interconnected city that is built like a maze. Hornet is forced to explore to reach the top.
Moveset wise, I think it is preference. Hollow Knight feels more RPG-like, with notches adjusting your parameters to give different builds like a tank or a mage. Silksong felt more like an action game. The crests change a lot about how you approach combat over anything else. Again, I really love Hornet moves in this game. And I loved how The Knight played. Silksong just needs more stuff to do. Like a Godhome or New game plus. I'm trying to compare it to base HK. Which is hard since this game took 7 years to make.

>>720412675
Pharloom is overdesigned and too busy whereas Hollownest had more open spaces which let you breathe and take in the environment.
It's like comparing a modern WoW zone to a Vanilla one.

>>720412675
>Most of pharlooms' areas outside of act 2 are a total nothingburger in comparison and are so much less memorable
I don't think there is a single area in Hollow Knight outside of Deepnest/City of Tears, Mantis Village that is better than anything Silksong has. Crytsal Peak and Fog Canyon are arguably the most interesting you get and I personally can't stand those areas.

>>720412725
>Act 3 felt lacking and like it ends too early in its main progression
This bothers me the most. Things just sorta start happening in act 3 completely unrelated to the precipitating event with most of those board quests that start appearing. It feels like those could have been better integrated into act 2