10 Games to Play After Finishing Hollow Knight: Silksong

It’s almost hard to believe that Hollow Knight: Silksong is actually real and has been playable for several weeks already, after having waited for so long without much news over the years. Living up to its long expectations in more ways than one, SIlksong makes use of the best aspects of the Metroidvania and soulslike genres while adding its own unique touch into the mix.

While the core elements of Hollow Knight are still as strong as ever in Silksong, several differences make it feel like an entirely new genre rather than a direct sequel, taking influence from plenty of other gameplay types. Whether you’re looking to scratch Silksong‘s itch after beating it or simply want to take a break before jumping back into the experience, there are plenty of games that fans of the legendary indie release are sure to enjoy.

Bloodstained: Ritual Of The Night Offers A Classic Metroidvania Experience

Developed by one of the creators who worked on the original Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, the similarly named Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is the perfect example of what great Metroidvania games should be.

While it takes a more traditional approach to the genre than Hollow Knight: Silksong’s dynamic mix of gameplay and worldbuilding, the focus on exploring its creatively designed environments and progression systems makes it a fantastic offering for fans of the Hollow Knight series. Learning heavily into RPG mechanics with plenty of customizable builds and secrets to discover, it’s an easy recommendation for what to play next after beating Silksong.

Have A Nice Death Is Aware Of Its Indie Inspirations

With a similarly hand-drawn art style that’s even more grim than the original Hollow Knight, Magic Design Studio’s action roguelike Have a Nice Death takes plenty of cues from Team Cherry’s influential franchise. In Have a Nice Death, you take on the role of an overworked reaper whose employees are spreading chaos in the underworld. This morbidly comedic setting will see you destroying waves of ravenous employees to save your foiled vacation plans.

Even if the roguelike gameplay loop is much different than Hornet’s Metroidvania-inspired adventures, the similarities between their tight combat, visual art style, and unique NPC interactions are hard to ignore. Have a Nice Death even has its very own Hollow Knight reference of its own during a notable character interaction with its protagonist, directly referencing Hollow Knight’s protagonist.

Rain World Perfectly Captures Silksong’s Haunting Atmosphere

A post-apocalyptic environment in Rain World

With even more unforgiving platforming and hopeless combat encounters than Silksong, Rain World offers a survival experience that borders on horror with its vulnerable player characters. Attempting to survive in a brutally hostile world where practically everything is out to get you, you’ll have to survive by finding food and resting points while avoiding deadly predators and flooding rains.

While the prey-like survival gameplay of Rain World might not fit in with most players’ expectations after SIlksong, it can still provide a charming gameplay experience through its isolated environments and offering an equally unforgettable atmosphere.

Hades Has Silksong’s Charm With Even More Characters To Love

Hades promo art featuring Zagreus and the Hydra in the background.

While it’s a bit hard to recommend a more traditional roguelite to fans of Silksong’s progressive exploration mechanics, HADES is easily one of the most standout offerings from the genre as a whole. In Supergiant Games’ critically acclaimed RPG, you play as the son of Hades, trying to escape the underworld and uncover the long-held secrets of Olympus.

The isometric roguelike gameplay doesn’t have the same cryptic worldbuilding or secret areas to uncover, but there’s plenty to latch your teeth into with its expansive dialogue paths and refined combat experience. Balancing a character-driven story and an incredibly addictive gameplay loop in one, HADES and its 2025 sequel are the perfect follow-up for Silksong fans craving even more replayability.

Ori And The Will Of The Wisps Is Well Worth Your Time

Ori comforts a sleeping owl in the arms of Sein in Ori and the Will of the Wisps. A spider-like creature stands next to the group, watching the owl sleeping peacefully.

Even if there is much less focus on traditional mechanics like combat in Ori and the Will of the Wisps, its emotional story is an easy recommendation for fans of Hollow Knight, or even those with a passing interest in the genre. Receiving overwhelmingly positive reviews for its gorgeous visuals and excellently crafted puzzle-parkour gameplay, Moon Studios’ sequel to the original Ori and the Blind Forest tells a similar release story to Silksong.

Improving on the weaker aspects of its predecessor by enhancing combat and making platforming more precise, Will of the Wisps is a fantastic indie sequel that takes the experience to even greater heights, much like Silksong‘s evolution of the Hollow Knight gameplay formula. It doesn’t focus as much on encounters and high-adrenaline fights, but the uplifting tone of the world is a fresh change of pace after finishing Silksong‘s story.

Blasphemous Has A Darker Take On Hollow Knight’s Formula

The Penitent One from Blasphemous stands in front of ruins.

Its inspiration comes primarily from games like Dark Souls and the original Castlevania series, but the oppressively nightmarish world of Blasphemous has plenty of the same DNA that went into Silksong‘s creation. With more grounded combat that has plenty of stylish weapons and abilities to unlock, Blasphemous offers more methodical gameplay than the more expressive Silksong.

With an incredibly creative art style and setting dripping with personality, the cryptic lore, secret endings, and hidden secrets of Blasphemous have plenty of rewards for players willing to put in the effort to find them. Even if the darker world is a bit more limited in scope than Silksong‘s expansive world of Pharloom, it’s still an excellent experience that got an ambitious upgrade with its 2023 sequel.

The Dark Souls Trilogy Laid The Framework For Silksong

Gravelord Nito in the Dark Souls intro cutscene.

While it’s easy to compare Silksong using its Metroidvania inspirations, it’s arguably even closer to that of the original Dark Souls trilogy. Taking place in a similarly dilapidated kingdom being haunted by undead remnants of the past with uncaring rulers, both the punishing boss-focused gameplay and cryptic worldbuilding are clearly inspired by FromSoftware’s game design.

Although Team Cherry puts plenty of its own spin on the concept, the shared mechanics like returning to your death to obtain lost upgrade resources and bonfire-style checkpoints in the form of benches are practically interchangeable.

You’ll still have some adjusting to do, as the gritty 3D atmospheres of Dark Souls are a stark contrast to Silksong‘s vibrant locales. All the same, if you’re even a passing fan of Silksong and its legendary boss fights, then FromSoftware’s RPGs, like the GOTY-winning Elden Ring, are well worth trying out.

Nine Sols Builds Upon Some Of Hollow Knight’s Best Aspects

The key art for Nine Sols featuring the protagonist next to a blue butterfly.

While the gameplay and story of Nine Sols aren’t hugely reminiscent of the classic Hollow Knight experience, the well-received indie game is an absolute gem that any Silksong fan should experience. Offering a more linear, focused story rather than an open world, the heavy focus on parrying enemy attacks and its challenging boss encounters are incredibly rewarding once you get the hang of things.

With more precise boss battles and a world that excellently combines sci-fi and fantastical mythology into a coherent mix, the mysterious and brutal world of Nine Sols is just as alluring as Silksong‘s haunted kingdom.

Dead Cells Will Put Your Combat Skills To The Test

Dead Cells Main Character with Artwork of Nearly Every Collaboration with Other Games like Blasphemous, Hollow Knight, Etc.

If you’re looking for something with a more combat-heavy focus after Silksong and don’t mind an experience with a much lighter story, then Dead Cells is another easy recommendation to make. As one of the best roguelikes on the market, Dead Cells has practically endless replayability with its fluid combat and fast-paced gameplay loops, with later challenges that can stump even the most skilled players.

Dead Cells has also had several indie collaboration updates in the past, with the original Hollow Knight’s skin and weapon offering the same pogo-style attacks available for free in its item pool.

Rewarding constant adaptability and precision rather than brute forcing every challenge, Dead Cells has a much greater focus on carefully crafting a build on the fly as opposed to Silksong‘s tool system. Even if there’s much less of a narrative focus in Dead Cells, there is still plenty of background worldbuilding and external media that can enhance the overall experience.

It’s Hard To Top The Original Hollow Knight Itself

Hollow Knight main character leaning up against a wall with his weapon at his side.

Thanks to the exponential growth in popularity since its announcement, it’s clear that a large proportion of Silksong players have never had the chance to experience its groundbreaking predecessor. While some of the art and combat mechanics can feel stiffer than Silksong‘s evolved style, there’s a reason it’s still praised as one of the best indie games of all time, let alone the Metroidvania genre.

With a similarly massive interconnected world with precise combat and an unwieldy amount of secrets to discover, the original Hollow Knight still holds up incredibly well after all this time.

If you’ve beaten Silksong and can’t wait for the next major update, replaying or experiencing its predecessor’s world of Hallownest for the first time is an easy decision to make, especially with its plethora of post-launch content that even surpasses Hollow Knight: Silksong in some ways.