Hollow Knight: Silksongmay not have a release date just yet, but it remains a highly anticipated sequel. Those who have seenSilksong’s screenshots and trailersor played the demo can ascertain noticeable changes that, for better or worse, set the game apart from the previous title. While the community is mostly happy with the alterations, the replacement of the ever-popular Grubs has received mixed opinions.
Regardless of the delay in its release,Hollow Knight: Silksongstill has a shot at a bright future, as it is clear that Team Cherry has dedicated time and effort to its development. The game’s anticipation is partially the result of the main protagonist being the charming enemy-turned-ally fromHollow Knight, Hornet. The character will be traversing an entirely new world much larger than that of the previous game, discovering new enemies, tools, and more along the way. One of those discoveries that can be seen through the playable demo is the Fleas, adorable creatures touted as the alternative toHollow Knight’s darling Grubs.
Who or What Are Silksong’s Fleas?
Matthew “Leth” Griffin, head of marketing and publishing forSilksong, introduced the Caravan after members of theHollow KnightDiscord server solved his cryptic riddle. Based on the information and GIF released, the Caravan is a group of NPCs that resemble a stranded circus troupe. The flying creatures seen in the GIF have been deemed as Fleas, small fuzzy insects found throughout the unexplored world of Pharloom. As Hornet, players will traverse areas and encounter the Fleas, presumably sending them to the Caravan for safety. While there are manycomparisons between the originalHollow Knightcharacter andSilksong’s Hornetin exploration and gameplay, it appears that the winged insects are meant to act as the future title’s version of the Grubs.
Why Players Should Care About Silksong’s Fleas
Much like the Grubs, Fleas will be scattered throughout in either easy-to-spot or difficult-to-reach locations, patiently waiting to be saved by the main protagonist. Since the two already share several similarities,Silksong’s Fleas could borrow a variety of behaviors from Grubs (although nothing is confirmed yet):
With the depth ofHollow Knight’s story and lore, the developers link the similarities between the Grubs and the Fleas. Given that the world of Pharloom is vast, there can be areas used to house items or characters that can provide further details on the Fleas. Whether it’s directly through dialogue or subtly via visual interpretation remains to be seen and will be answered onceSilksongis released.
One change that Team Cherry can make to improve rewards for collecting these bugs is through the Caravan. Those who played the previous game know that the achievements for collectingall ofHollow Knight’s charmsand mask shards can only be attained by rescuing every Grub. After doing so, the player must traverse long distances to reach the area where the Grubfather happily showers the Knight with rewards without any dialogue.Silksongcan take a different approach by allowing Hornet to interact with the NPCs of the Caravan to obtain prizes. It also creates the opportunity for a feature that lets the player view what can be obtained, giving more incentive to explore and find the adorable insects.
While the Grubs still shine as an element of the originalHollow Knight, the Fleas can carve out their own niche inSilksong. WithSilksonggetting more encouraging updatesregarding its release, there is hope that the new creatures will have the qualities that will make them just as adored asHollow Knight’slovable green caterpillars.
