Hollow Knight: Silksong wastes no time. Within the first hours, many players report getting three‑shot by early enemies and bosses while juggling tighter platforming and longer runbacks. If you bounced off or you’re just curious why it feels harsher than the original, here’s what’s different — and how to make it manageable.

First, the baseline is higher

Silksong opens closer to where Hollow Knight eventually landed. Early foes and hazards often deal two masks of damage, while you start with five masks and a light kit. Hornet’s heal restores three masks at once, but it consumes a full silk spool and locks you in place briefly. That tradeoff matters: take two hits (down to one mask), heal back to four, and you’re still two mistakes from death if another two‑damage attack lands. Less topping off, more “find a safe window and commit.”

Two changes soften that equation later: Hornet can heal midair, and her mobility lets you create those windows more reliably once you learn attack tempos. But early on, the math feels unforgiving — by design.

Movement is faster — and trickier

Hornet is quicker, with a ground sprint and snappier dash, and that speed is the point. Encounters are built around quick entries and exits, not face‑tanking. Platforming leans into angles and momentum: the classic straight‑down pogo becomes a 45‑degree dive that arcs forward. You’ll be asked to chain multiple dives over punishing pits long before the midgame. If Hollow Knight taught you to wait and react, Silksong often asks you to move first, then correct.

Bosses hit harder and occupy more space

Early bosses throw larger area swipes, multi‑directional dashes, and arena hazards that punish greedy strings. Some encounters spawn adds or layer escalating phases that test crowd control as much as pattern recognition. None of this is inherently unfair, but the combination of higher damage, smaller healing windows, and faster pacing compresses the margin for error — especially before you’ve internalized Hornet’s movement cadence.

Runbacks and the economy raise the stakes

Death never wipes your save, but benches can be a hike away, and some are locked behind payments. Losing rosaries on a double death can delay map purchases, stations, or tool upgrades. That loop — longer runback, fewer tools, repeat — is where difficulty feels like tedium. The level design does hide plenty of shortcuts; they’re worth hunting early to turn 90‑second runbacks into 20‑second sprints.

Tip: many runbacks are built to be sprinted. Learn a clean line, ignore enemies, and trust Hornet’s acceleration — you’ll often beat aggro timers and projectile windups.

Why Hollow Knight experience can hurt (at first)

Muscle memory transfers only partway. If you reflexively trade hits expecting to heal one mask at a time, you’ll burn silk you can’t spare. If you play passively and wait for generous punish windows, the fight will out‑pace you. Silksong rewards:

  • Short, disciplined hit confirms (one or two pokes) over long strings
  • Frequent repositioning — dash early to space out big swipes
  • Using tools as active damage or denial, not just utility

There’s no easy mode — and one harder one

Silksong doesn’t include a conventional difficulty slider. A hidden Steel Soul setting exists for permadeath runs, but that’s a self‑imposed challenge, not a ramp down. Team Cherry has acknowledged early spikes: the studio said it would slightly reduce the difficulty of two early bosses (Moorwing and Sister Splinter) in an upcoming patch. If you prefer a more gradual curve, that change should help the first act feel less like a wall.

What changed under the hood

  • Health and healing: Early attacks frequently deal two masks. Healing is chunked (three masks per cast) and silk‑gated, with a short vulnerability window. Air‑healing expands options once you spot safe vertical moments.
  • Damage pacing: Many enemies soak more hits. The intended counterbalance is heavier use of tools and silk arts for burst damage or control.
  • Platforming geometry: Diagonal dives replace straight‑down pogos in core routes. Precision matters; so does learning the dive’s forward carry.
  • Resource friction: Paid benches and the rosary loss penalty make mistakes cost time and currency, especially if you skip exploration detours.

Ways to adapt (that don’t feel like cheese)

  • Fight on a clock, not a bar. Count a pattern, take one or two safe pokes, then reset position. Avoid “just one more” greed — that’s the two‑mask punish.
  • Spend silk proactively. Tools that clear adds or zone an area often save more health than a late heal. The best offense is the heal you no longer need.
  • Air‑heal with intent. Look for moments when the boss commits to a ground or recovery animation. Jump, heal, and drift to safety; don’t heal where you’ll land back into damage.
  • Sprint lines, not fights, on runbacks. Plot a path that avoids aggro cones and projectile arcs. Treat the runback like a micro‑platforming challenge to master.
  • Sequence break (a little) with exploration. If a fight feels like a brick wall, detour for benches, stations, or tool upgrades. Even small survivability or utility gains change the calculus.
  • Use safety nets for rosaries. In‑game items exist to protect currency on death; slot them while learning a gauntlet to keep progression moving.
  • Take real breaks. Fatigue magnifies greed and tunnel vision. Coming back fresh often turns a 20‑try boss into a five‑try clear.

Is Silksong “too hard”?

It’s undeniably more demanding in most dimensions that matter: damage taken, encounter speed, platforming precision, and the time cost of mistakes. It’s also built around a faster, more expressive moveset that expects you to use sprint, tools, and air‑space as part of your baseline kit. If you approach it like late‑game Hollow Knight — measured, patient, and charm‑driven — the sequel will feel hostile. If you accept the early sting and lean into Hornet’s tempo, the curve flattens as your toolkit expands.

The better litmus test is this: do you enjoy learning short, repeatable sequences, and does failing fast feel productive rather than punitive? If yes, Silksong’s first act will land as a brisk boot camp. If not, you may prefer to wait for early‑game tuning updates or to map out optional routes before pushing bosses.

Bottom line: Silksong isn’t difficult for difficulty’s sake, but it does put its foot down early. Treat its speed as the solution, not the problem, and the sequel starts to play fair.