“How big is Silksong compared to Hollow Knight?” depends on what you measure. You can look at the size of the map, the amount of content (enemies, bosses, systems), how long it takes to finish, or even the game’s download size. Each tells a slightly different story — and some are far more useful than others.

“Bigger” can mean different things

There are a few practical ways to size up a Metroidvania:

  • Content volume: total enemies, bosses, safe points, systems, and areas.
  • Time to finish: main ending vs. full completion.
  • Map footprint and density: how much space and how it’s filled.
  • File size: the storage footprint on your device.

Only the first three meaningfully reflect scope. File size is a poor proxy, especially for 2D games that can vary wildly in asset compression.

Headcount: more of almost everything

Team Cherry has stated that Silksong features over 200 enemies, over 40 bosses, and roughly 100 benches (save/rest points). For comparison, Hollow Knight launched with over 140 enemies, over 30 bosses, and about 51 benches. On content alone, Silksong clears the original’s base game by a sizable margin.

Two caveats:

  • Bench counts don’t translate neatly into map size. A sequel often places safe points more frequently to reduce backtracking friction.
  • Hollow Knight grew substantially after launch with free content updates; any base-game comparison should note that post-launch additions expanded it further.

What achievements imply about playtime

Steam achievements offer a useful, if indirect, signal about intended length. Hollow Knight included speed-run targets like finishing in under 10 hours (and 5 hours), plus a 100% in under 20 hours challenge. On the Silksong Steam page, you’ll find a parallel set: a finish-under-5-hours target, and a 100% completion in under 30 hours challenge.

Those thresholds don’t define average playtime, but they are a strong hint at scope. The jump from a 20-hour to a 30-hour 100% target suggests Team Cherry expects a fuller run of Silksong to take materially longer than the original’s base game.

Traversal changes raise the “density” bar

Hornet moves faster and more acrobatically than the Knight, and the world is built to match that pace. That matters for perceived scale: a physically larger map can feel smaller if you move quickly; conversely, a world that’s denser with hazards, verticality, and multi-path arenas can play longer than its footprint implies. Early community impressions also point to a bump in encounter complexity and damage values, which can extend time-to-master even if room-to-room distance doesn’t explode.

Don’t use file size as a yardstick

Silksong’s download footprint being a little smaller than Hollow Knight on some platforms doesn’t mean the game is smaller. Compression settings, sprite atlases, audio encoding, and engine pipeline changes can cut gigabytes without trimming a single room. It’s routine for sequels — particularly 2D titles — to ship “more game” in fewer gigabytes thanks to better tooling and asset workflows.

Base game vs. everything-after

Hollow Knight’s base game is the fairest comparison point. By raw content metrics (enemies, bosses, benches) and the more generous 100% achievement timer, Silksong lands as the larger of the two at launch. If you compare Silksong’s day-one package to Hollow Knight with all post-release content, the gap narrows — and will likely shift again if Silksong follows a similar update path.

So how big is it, practically?

  • Content: Clear increase over Hollow Knight’s base game across enemies, bosses, and rest points.
  • Playtime: Achievement targets imply roughly a longer 100% route than the original’s launch state; main endings still support fast clears.
  • Feel: Faster traversal and higher encounter density mean the game “uses” its space differently — expect more complexity per area, not just more rooms.

If you’re choosing by scope alone, Silksong is at least as large as Hollow Knight’s base game and, by multiple signals, larger. If you’re choosing by how that size plays, Hornet’s speed, new systems, and more frequent benches point to a sequel that invests its scale in encounter variety and route density rather than simply stretching the map.

Tip: For a sense of each game’s targets and feature set without spoilers, skim their product listings on Steam — Silksong and Hollow Knight — and note the achievement thresholds. They’re often the cleanest official hints at intended run lengths.