Thanks to its Metroidvania design and its Souls-like combat,Hollow Knightwields an impressive array of spells and abilities to help the player handle terrain and enemies alike. Gathered throughoutHollow Knight, these skills can often be just the edge players need to beat a particular boss, or it could open up new pathways deeper into the world of Hallownest. Other abilities might even expand the game’s story for players, with some remaining entirely optional.
Some spells and abilities that were planned forHollow Knightnever made it into the final version of the game. However, unlike othercut content such as stretch goal areasthat were dropped due to insufficient funding, the skills that were taken out ofHollow Knightseem to have been casualties of standard development. Whether these abilities didn’t gel with the game’s overall design or were reworked to better fit the game, withHollow Knight: Silksonganticipated to release in the near future, fans are hopeful that some scrapped ideas might find their way to Hornet.
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Backdashing
One ofHollow Knight’searliest abilities isdashing through the “Mothwing Cloak.“The cloak allows players to dash a short distance, useful for traversing large gaps or to get close to (or distance oneself away from) enemies while in combat. A later upgrade to the ability called “Shade Cloak” renders the player immune to certain enemies, attacks, and obstacles. However, early beta footage shows that the player would have had the ability to dash backward. According to Team Cherry, this was cut to help streamline combat and keep a consistent flow.
Tyrant’s Fist
Among the many spells a player can pick up throughoutHollow Knightis the “Desolate Dive,” which players can collect afterdefeating the Soul Masterto help access blocked-off areas by breaking through the floor. An earlier version was apparently called “Tyrant’s Fist,” and early in-game descriptions reveal that this spell was virtually identical to the Desolate Dive. It seems the spell might have been renamed in order to better convey the general mechanics, but hints at its previous incarnation could be alluded to by the dream variant boss Soul Tyrant.
Dream Diving
Hollow Knighttook many interesting directions in terms of its design, but one of its more outlandish mechanics was the Dream Nail, which radically changed the storytellingHollow Knighthad been relying on until that point. While vital for certain parts of the game, such as achieving the “best” ending, it added a unique dimension toHollow Knightwhere players could get brief insights into every enemies' or NPCs' thoughts, as well asbattle new Warrior Dreamsand alternative versions of previously defeated bosses.
However, initial intentions for the Dream Nail were far grander than what they wound up being. Early versions of the game and released descriptions demonstrate that players would have been able to not just read minds, but literally dive into them. These dreams were supposedly going to be influenced by each individual character’s own personality, sometimes even providing threats, puzzles, or challenges to overcome. It also would have served as another means of learning aboutthe history of Hallownest, how the infection took hold, and revealed more about the Pale King.
While it would be interesting to see the Dream Nail return inSilksong, from current gameplay footage it’s unclear if dreams will even factor into the game. Team Cherry could be aiming to establishSilksongas a more independent entity, which might mean finding a new angle away fromHollow Knight’smetaphysical mechanics.Given players are already anticipating a storyline centering around the Weavers andthe secrets of Pharloom, it doesn’t seem likely that another Dream Nail will return.
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Swimming
Perhaps the most inane-seeming cut skill,Hollow Knightwas originally going to have swimming mechanics. While the final version did enable the player to tread water and cross certain areas, the original plan would have seen the Knight diving below the surface. It’s uncertain how extensive these aquatic areas ofHallownestmight have been, but examining its map and how water factors into its design demonstrates there was potential there, from the Royal Waterways to the lake above the City of Tears, even all the way out tothe Kingdom’s Edge.
Of all the abilities that ought to make a return inSilksong, swimming is arguably at the top of that list. As other abilities were reworked or cut to refine the previous game’s combat mechanics and movement options, swimming is the one skill that would make sense to include for expandingSilksong’s scope.Currently, no water portions of Pharloom have been shown in early trailers, but this doesn’t rule out the possibility that Team Cherry isplanning this for a new biome.
Hollow Knightis available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
