Hollow Knight: Silksong - The Story Behind the Insanely Long Wait For a Game We Demoed in 2019

It’s go the caller normal, unfortunately, to hold years for a follow-up to our favourite games. While the realities of modern crippled improvement mean studios are moving harder than ever to conscionable ever-higher standards, that hasn’t stopped projects similar Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto 6, Valve’s Half-Life 3, and particularly Team Cherry’s Silksong from becoming the unwitting faces of the industry’s lengthening timelines. That past 1 is astonishing due to the fact that erstwhile it was archetypal announced, it didn’t look similar the sequel to Hollow Knight was each that acold away.

Months turned into years, and until precise recently, it felt similar we were nary person to Silksong than we were successful 2019, backmost erstwhile we played a hands-on demo of the mystical sequel. In the years since, Silksong has achieved meme status, wherever fans don clown constitution and wigs aft each caller Nintendo Direct oregon Xbox Developer Showcase fails to bring them person to the promised sequel. How did we get here? And conscionable however overmuch person are we to the fabled Silksong release?

Silksong Was Originally Supposed to Be DLC

Australian-based workplace Team Cherry archetypal launched Hollow Knight connected Kickstarter backmost successful 2014, hoping to unafraid capable backing to crook its 2D Soulslike+Metroidvania fusion crippled jam prototype into a full-fledged game. After gathering its archetypal backing target, Team Cherry revealed further agelong goals that promised caller quests, bosses, and, eventually, a 2nd playable quality named Hornet. Those backing targets were met, and truthful improvement began connected expanding Hollow Knight.

Concept creation for Hornet erstwhile she was archetypal announced arsenic a DLC character. Credit: Team Cherry

As promised, Hollow Knight’s 2017 motorboat was followed by a bid of DLC drops. The Hidden Dreams, The Grimm Troupe, and Gods and Glory added caller brag fights, quest lines, accelerated question mechanics, and much to the basal game. But what astir the 2nd playable character? Where was Hornet?

Then, connected February 14, 2019, Hollow Knight: Silksong was officially announced. In a blog station and developer diary, Team Cherry explained however plans for Hornet had rapidly evolved. Initially, the developers debated whether to adhd her arsenic a 2nd protagonist that players could power to during the main run oregon to marque her the prima of a standalone chapter. Eventually, the ideas for Hornet grew truthful large that Team Cherry decided to rotation the DLC disconnected into a afloat sequel.

The program was present to archer a marque caller Hornet-focused communicative successful an wholly caller kingdom. She would person a precise antithetic playstyle – overmuch much nimble and acrobatic than The Knight, who is slower and heavier successful comparison. She would request each her velocity and dexterity erstwhile going up against Silksong’s implicit 150 caller enemies and bosses.

Fans of Hollow Knight rejoiced, and Team Cherry capitalized connected the excitement for Silksong quickly…

We Even Played It

Even though Team Cherry ne'er announced a merchandise date, nary of america expected Silksong’s unveiling would beryllium the commencement of a six-year-plus hold to get to the sequel. The aforesaid twelvemonth arsenic the announcement, Team Cherry was all-in connected promoting Silksong, revealing a formed of NPC characters via an day blog station successful March 2019, earlier showcasing a playable demo astatine E3 2019.

Not lone did we astatine IGN spot the demo ourselves astatine E3 that year, but our precise ain Tom Marks played it. In his preview, helium wrote, “Hollow Knight is 1 of my favourite games ever, but I deliberation Silksong has the imaginable to beryllium adjacent better.”

The demo was astir 20 minutes agelong and took spot successful a new, fiery country filled with respective caller enemies and 2 brag fights. I caught up with Marks for this communicative to inquire him if, astatine the time, the Silksong demo seemed similar a crippled that would beryllium acceptable successful a fewer years, oregon if it felt acold from finished.

“It didn’t consciousness six years away,” Marks tells me. “You [could] archer it wasn’t the last version, but based connected the vertical portion I played, it felt truly polished.”

This demo would aboriginal beryllium taken to PAX Australia 2019 and shared with attendees determination arsenic well. Generally erstwhile a crippled shows up with a playable physique astatine aggregate events, things are closing successful connected the decorativeness line, and truthful we were each wholly unaware of the world that awaited.

As the publicity run progressed into 2020, Team Cherry selling and publishing pb Matthew “Leth” Griffin began revealing caller NPCs connected the authoritative Hollow Knight Discord server arsenic a reward for fans solving a assortment of riddles. And successful that December, determination was a full-on screen communicative successful Edge Magazine contented #354 with caller details, screenshots, and an enlightening interrogation with Team Cherry co-directors Ari Gibson and William Pellen that discussed deeper, much intricate levels and offered a glimpse into Hornet’s mysterious story.

Silksong Goes Into Hiding

The frenzy of Silksong quality successful the contiguous aftermath of the sequel’s announcement would soon springiness mode to a agelong winter. Team Cherry went vigor soundless passim 2021, and fans spent the twelvemonth waiting for immoderate motion of a merchandise date. A 2020-2021 merchandise model was anticipated, acknowledgment to a fewer accidental messaging blips that sent the rumor mill turning.

In September 2019, for instance, the authoritative Silksong Steam leafage was abruptly updated with a June 12, 2020, merchandise date. Later, Team Cherry would corroborate it was conscionable an accidental placeholder date. Just a mates of months later, connected August 20, the Silksong logo appeared successful an authoritative Nintendo UK tweet that read, “Take a look astatine immoderate upcoming games headed to Nintendo Switch this twelvemonth and beyond.” It wasn’t instantly wide that Silksong belonged firmly successful the “beyond” class – we’d yet to larn that expecting it anytime soon was folly.

"Everything Shown Today Will Be Playable successful the Next 12 Months"

It wouldn’t beryllium until astir different 2 years had passed that we would spot Silksong again. On June 12, 2022, Xbox aired its yearly summertime Games Showcase, which premiered, among different things, a marque new, minute-long trailer for Silksong. But portion it revealed caller gameplay, areas, and bosses, the trailer didn’t see a merchandise date. It did, however, denote that Silksong volition beryllium playable time 1 connected Xbox Game Pass.

This mightiness person been capable for fans if it weren’t for an unfortunate follow-up connection from Xbox.

After the showcase, the authoritative Xbox Twitter relationship posted, “Everything you’re seeing contiguous is playable implicit the adjacent 12 months.” Given Silksong was 1 of the games contiguous successful the showcase, this was rightfully taken arsenic a merchandise model for the game.

“So you’re telling maine SIlksong is retired wrong the adjacent 12 months?” asked 1 idiosyncratic connected Twitter. “That’s precisely what we said,” Xbox answered.

Oh boy.

That's precisely what we said.

Silksong Gets an Official Delay, Without Ever Getting a Release Date

To beryllium fair, it did look similar Team Cherry’s program was to merchandise Silksong wrong 12 months of the Xbox Games Showcase. This overmuch was confirmed by Team Cherry’s Matthew Griffin, who shared connected Twitter successful May 2023 that Silksong was planned to beryllium released successful the “1st fractional of 2023.”

However, Griffin added that unfortunately, “development is inactive continuing. We’re excited by however the crippled is shaping up, and it’s gotten rather big, truthful we privation to instrumentality the clip to marque the crippled arsenic bully arsenic we can. Expect much details from america erstwhile we get person to release.”

So, without ever announcing a merchandise date, Silksong received an authoritative hold from Team Cherry.

Silksong Becomes a Meme

In the years since Silksong was archetypal announced, a batch has changed successful the games industry. The COVID-19 pandemic meant that in-person events were temporarily paused, with immoderate events similar E3 present seemingly gone for good. In spot of those accepted events, assorted integer showcases from the likes of Geoff Keighley, Xbox, PlayStation, and adjacent yours genuinely present astatine IGN, arsenic good arsenic countless others, were created to capable the void of E3.

This meant determination were present dozens of imaginable caller showcases wherever Team Cherry could stock much accusation astir Silksong. Every caller indie crippled showcase, Nintendo Direct, oregon immoderate fig of different shows had the imaginable to uncover a caller Silksong trailer, preferably 1 with a merchandise date. And with each caller showcase that failed to present the goods, fans began to dainty Silksong’s lack arsenic a moving joke.

Anyone who follows the games manufacture connected societal media volition apt admit the astir fashionable Silksong meme: Anytime a institution posts astir an upcoming crippled showcase, determination volition beryllium astatine slightest 1 representation of the Knight from Hollow Knight oregon Hornet from Silksong successful a clown wig and make-up, indicating that the poster is acceptable to consciousness similar a fool erstwhile Silksong inevitably fails to appear.

A fashionable online meme wherever Hollow Knight waits foolishly for Silksong news. Credit: u/GaelSK

Fan creation of the Knight oregon Hornet successful clown regalia is present ubiquitous. It signifies the folly of wanting to larn much astir Silksong. The rainbow-colored wig and clown chemoreceptor person go the unofficial azygous for Silksong fans aft years of suffering. “Will determination beryllium Silksong astatine the caller Nintendo Partner Direct?” fans situation to ask. “Absolutely not, you clown,” the beingness responds.

And conscionable to beryllium the beingness is besides successful connected the joke, the archetypal clip Silksong received an authoritative listing connected the Xbox store was connected April 1, 2024. April Fool’s Day.

Light astatine the End of the Tunnel

Team Cherry confirmed aggregate times passim 2024 that Silksong would not beryllium appearing astatine immoderate of that year’s biggest shows. It was not contiguous successful immoderate of 2024’s E3-replacement Summer Showcases, and Geoff Keighley confirmed that Silksong would not look arsenic portion of Opening Night Live astatine Gamescom 2024. Team Cherry besides skipped back-to-back Nintendo Directs that year, some the August 2024 Indie Direct and the Third-Party Partner Direct.

However, 2025 has been a antithetic story. The twelvemonth began with a instrumentality posting connected the authoritative Hollow Knight subreddit that they ran into Silksong co-director Ari Gibson. According to the fan, Gibson joked astir determination not being a sequel yet, but that determination would beryllium much to stock “soon.”

That was nary bluff. On March 19, 2025, Xbox published a caller ID@Xbox blog highlighting its ongoing commitments to merchandise large indie games, including Silksong. And a fewer weeks later, during the April 2 Nintendo Direct, Silksong re-emerged successful the show’s sizzle reel with a 2025 merchandise window.

Silksong made different quality during the announcement for the upcoming ROG Ally X handheld, wherever the crippled was seen concisely moving connected the Xbox-branded device. Team Cherry’s Matthew Griffin aboriginal confirmed successful the authoritative Hollow Knight Discord server that Silksong’s merchandise is not tied to immoderate peculiar console and the sequel is inactive slated to beryllium released “before vacation [2025].” And present we cognize that Silksong volition beryllium playable astatine the Xbox booth astatine Gamescom. This volition beryllium the archetypal playable demo for the crippled since 2019.

While Silksong was a no-show astatine the astir caller Nintendo Partner Direct — cue the clown memes — it does consciousness similar we’re yet going to get the elusive Silksong, six long, achy years aft it was announced that the DLC character, Hornet, volition beryllium starring successful her ain game. Maybe we tin commencement removing the clown constitution from our faces erstwhile and for all.

Matt Kim is IGN's Senior Features Editor.