As a ryonafag it will be challenging not to goon to all the cute noises Hornet makes as she's getting beaten up by all the giant boss bugs...

>>718828810
I don't even remember what my first metroidvania was. Probably Zero Mission, at least that was the first one I actually finished. And I played a fuckton of them since then, with GBA Castlevanias being the only exception.
Hollow Knight was great because it didn't try to wow the players with amazing new ideas or anything like that. Instead, it took the existing ideas and polished them to perfection. That polish is what made it great. And the fact that Silksong was being developed for 7 years with no drama or reboots tells me that these Aussies made something special, something bigger than Hollow Knight but just as refined. And if I'm right, it will easily take the crown.

>>718700437
The visuals are great, the characters are memorable and cool, the world is atmospheric, the map is very well-designed, the gameplay is both very fun to play and fair in its challenge (you don't feel cheated even in the most difficult parts). And it also feels almost effortless in its quality. The storytelling is also top notch, it doesn't drown you in dialogue and LORE, it simply presents you with a world and lets you put the pieces together if you want to as you explore, which is key to a good metroidvania.
It didn't do anything totally unique, it just did everything everyone else did better and more tasteful.