One hundred hours later you’ve finished playing Hollow Knight: Silksong, Team Cherry has given us another brilliant adventure, with DLC on the way too, you might be wondering what to play after or to take a little break from the world of Pharloom. What do you play next? The post-game void is settling in, you’re wanting more but also something a little different. You’re looking for another game that makes you cry and scream like Hollow Knight. After a game full of wonderful characters, varied environments and brilliant game play with such satisfying movement. So what can you play next?
Sea of Stars
Want more world and characters?
Sea of Stars is a turn based RPG so while the combat doesn’t resemble Silksong, if you are looking for a complex world full of fantastic characters, small towns and brilliant boss design. This is a great one to dive into next. Another big long game, another world to dive into. In Sea of Stars you play as Valere and Zale, solstice warriors carrying the powers of the moon and the sun. Save the world from an impending evil as you have been training for. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, there’s side quests so you can go off an explore the world throughout the adventure, decisions you make will effect the development of places you’ve been or will go to. Much like the world of Pharloom, there is plenty to explore. If you want another big world, with charismatic characters and a truly stunning soundtrack.
Available on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch Consoles – check it out here.
Tunic
Want to save another huge world?
This is what I can only describe as a brain hurts game, in the best way. In Tunic, you play as a little fox who is questing through the realm. This game has it’s own language system and not one that is recognisable. Everything is encoded, apart from the scattered pages of the game handbook. Throughout the world are pages, like the booklets you used to get in game boxes explaining the controls, some of the lore and hidden secrets in the game. Piecing together the map, the booklet and solve the mysteries of the world is so engaging. Some players sat and fully decoded the language (this is not necessary, I didn’t do this) but you can if you’d like an extra puzzle.For a mix of the world from The Legend of Zelda and brutal combat of Silksong and Souls-likes – this is the perfect next adventure for you.
Available on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch consoles – check it out here.
For more insights on Tunic, check out The Game of Nerds ‘Is it worth it even if you suck – Review’
Celeste
Want more complex movement?
If you haven’t played Celeste by 2025, what have you been doing?
This era of indie games, Celeste is a real gem that should be recommended to everyone. The platforming is the star of the show, this game has no combat but increasingly challenging platforming. You play as Madeline who to challenge herself and her anxiety she’s decided to climb a mountain – standard quarterlife crisis. The battle with the platforming really has you fighting in a similar way to Madeline throughout the game’s narrative. There’s loads of accessibility settings, so everyone can experience the mountain and Madeline’s story. This game is brutal but a beautiful story, with stunning pixel art.
Available on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch consoles – check it out here.
Nine Sols
Want more brutal combat?
Nine Sols is probably the most like Hollow Knight on this list. Nine Sols is a tech world melded with myths. With people to save, and to defeat your godly siblings. This genre bending world is full of fantastic platforming and some truly brutal combat. Once you get the hang of it, you’re in, but it has that Souls-like feel of being one-hit killed in the starting zone. Seikro fans will be buzzing to have a new parry mechanic to master in Nine Sols. It’s punishing but such great fun, and the narrative rewards and characters you meet make every death worth it.
Available on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch consoles – check it out here
Animal Well
Want to solve more world and mind melding puzzles?
Animal Well took over the indie game world earlier this year, with thousands of players across the internet finding secrets and hidden tricks within the game. Items and tools galore can be found revealing the secrets of Animal Well. If you love solving the puzzle rooms and using items to complete Wishes in Silksong, Animal Well is a great game to play next. Full of platforming challenges and clever puzzles for you to solve in your own way.
Available on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch consoles – check it out here.
Metroid: Dread
Want more Metroidvania?
The genre’s name sake is never a bad place to look for your next Metroidvania experience. Metroid has never been a huge hitter for Nintendo, but with a growing fan base for the genre, Metroid is starting to get the recognition it deserves. Metroid Dread is the latest entry in the franchise, this sidescrolling platforming adventure, while the progression is more linear than Hollow Knight, it’s a great palette cleanser if you want a little break from the open world of Pharloom.
When you’re wanting more metroidvania goodness, why not go to the source?
Available on Nintendo Switch family of consoles – check it out here
With so many games to play this year, you’re truly spoilt for choice, but if after Silksong there’s a specific itch you need scratching, and your backlog is looking intimidating, these are games that might’ve gotten lost in the backlog. I am loving Silksong, and I’m dying for the DLC but that post-game void is ROUGH! Nothing feels quite right, but hopefully one of these fills the Hornet shaped hole in your heart.
