I have been tracking Black Myth: Wukong since its August 2024 launch, and the latest sales milestone makes one thing clear: Game Science's action RPG is no longer just a breakout hit — it is a genuine global blockbuster. A recent document from the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China puts the game above 30 million units sold, and that number lands with extra weight because it arrived considerably faster than FromSoftware's Elden Ring, which needed more than three years to reach the same mark. As a player who has followed both launches closely, I see this as a meaningful shift in what a premium single-player game from China can achieve worldwide.



? A global sales story, not just a domestic one

The detail I find most important is the geographic split: more than half of those sales came from gamers outside China. That figure tells me Black Myth: Wukong crossed the threshold from a national event to an international phenomenon. Domestic demand was massive, no question, but the overseas majority shows that the game's blend of Chinese mythology, hard-hitting combat, and high-end presentation traveled far beyond its home market.

Platform performance reinforces that point. PC, primarily through Steam, was the lead platform, while the PlayStation 5 version also delivered great sales. I am not surprised by that mix. The PC audience has been hungry for a visually ambitious action RPG with strong word-of-mouth, and Steam's global reach gave Game Science a direct route to players in North America, Europe, and beyond. The Xbox Series X and S versions arrived only one year after the initial launch, so the core sales wave was always going to be carried by PC and PS5.

Metric
What the latest information shows

Sales milestone
More than 30 million units sold

Global reach
Over half of sales outside China

Lead platform
PC, mainly via Steam

Console strength
Strong PS5 sales

Xbox timing
Xbox Series X and S versions launched one year later

Initial launch
August 2024 on PC and PS5

? Fan recognition and critical momentum

Commercial success is only part of the story. Black Myth: Wukong won Game of the Year at the Steam Awards 2024, a prize voted directly by fans. That matters to me because it reflects player enthusiasm rather than an industry jury alone. The game clearly connected with a large audience, and the award gave Game Science a strong signal that its first major premium console and PC release had landed with real cultural force.

Critical reception was excellent as well. On Wccftech, Francesco De Meo gave the game an 8.5 out of 10 and wrote:

Black Myth: Wukong couldn't have been a better debut for Game Science. Although their action role-playing game may not be innovative, it's got great production values, it's fun to play, it's engaging, and it's beautiful to look at. Some minor issues, such as a challenge level that could be too low for some and an experience that gets a little stale over time, hold back the game a bit, but in all honesty, I wouldn't be surprised to see more than a few players name Black Myth: Wukong their Game of the Year.

I agree with the shape of that assessment. The game's strengths are easy to see: striking art direction, confident combat, memorable bosses, and production values that rival the best action RPGs in the market. The criticism about difficulty and long-term freshness is fair for some players, but it did not stop the game from becoming a fan favorite.

?️ What comes next: Zhong Kui, not a direct sequel

Game Science is now working on Black Myth: Zhong Kui, which the studio announced at Gamescom 2025. I want to be clear about one point: this will not be a direct sequel to Wukong. The development team was quick to reassure fans that the westward journey is not over for the Monkey King, so the door remains open for more stories in that lane.

At the same time, the studio is still working out how to differentiate Zhong Kui. That tells me the project is in a thoughtful, early-feeling stage rather than a quick follow-up designed to capitalize on momentum. As a player, I would rather see Game Science take its time than rush a second blockbuster into the market. A long wait is likely, but the 30 million sales milestone gives the team both the resources and the responsibility to get the next step right.

For me, the bigger takeaway from this 2026 update is that Black Myth: Wukong has already changed expectations. It proved that a Chinese-developed premium action RPG can sell at global scale, win fan-voted awards, and sustain conversation long after launch. The next chapter with Zhong Kui is uncertain in timing, but the foundation is now undeniable.

For PC players who have been waiting for the right moment to jump into Black Myth: Wukong, timing a purchase around seasonal discounts can make the 30-million-sales phenomenon a little more accessible. A steam sale tracker like steam sale tracker from DealNest is a practical way to monitor price drops without refreshing store pages every day, especially if you are also keeping an eye on future Game Science releases.

Hollow Knight: Silksong is bursting with unforgettable NPCs, from the map-making warrior Shakra to the lovable duo Garmond and Zaza. But tucked away in a gloomy corner of Pharloom is a spider-like merchant named Styx—a character who might just save players from one of the game's most frustrating mechanics. Whether you're a daredevil who shrugs off boss runbacks or a cautious explorer hoarding every Rosary Bead, Styx offers something worth considering.



Where to Find Styx (and Why It's Easy to Miss)

After reaching Greymoor, players can climb their way up to Sinner's Road—a dark, dingy, maggot-infested cavern that feels like it was designed to test your patience. Dodge the environmental hazards, and eventually you'll spot Styx hanging from an intricate web woven from bones. It's a creepy sight, but the spider is surprisingly polite. Styx greets Hornet tentatively and asks her to come back later, promising a gift.



If players take the hint and return, Styx hands over a handful of Silkeaters—little grubs that let Hornet burst her silk cocoon from anywhere. That means no more trekking back to the site of your last death just to retrieve dropped Rosary Beads. And here's the kicker: Styx keeps producing Silkeaters throughout the game. Players can return at regular intervals to refill their supply. Think of Styx as that one friend who always has a spare key—you might not need it, but you're glad it's there.

What Exactly Does a Silkeater Do?

Silkeaters are consumable items, and they're fairly rare in the wild. Most players stumble upon a few scattered around Pharloom, but Styx turns a scarcity into a steady trickle. The mechanic is simple but powerful:

? Die somewhere dangerous? Use a Silkeater to pop your silk cocoon remotely.

? Skip the boss runback and keep your Rosary Beads safe.

?️ Avoid environmental hazards that make cocoon retrieval practically impossible.



Given Silksong's rather unforgiving boss runbacks and its controversial economy—where losing a pouch of Rosary Beads can sting for hours—having a Silkeater in your inventory is a genuine relief. Some players will desperately need what Styx offers. Picture this: you've just scraped together enough Rosary Beads for a crucial upgrade, then you get flattened by a boss in a room filled with spikes. Without a Silkeater, you're facing a nerve-wracking retrieval mission. With one, you just pop the cocoon and move on.

But Do You Actually Need Styx?

Here's the twist: by the time players reach Styx on Sinner's Road, they're likely near the end of Act 1. They've already survived their fair share of tricky boss runbacks. Many will have adapted to Silksong's sometimes brutal nature without ever using a single Silkeater. These skilled players probably won't have much use for Styx's regular supply.

The same goes for cautious economists. Players who swap loose Rosary Beads for Rosary Strings and Necklaces—ensuring nothing important gets lost upon death—may find Silkeaters redundant. Why carry a cocoon-popper when your wealth is already protected?

Player Type
Likely to Need Styx?
Why

Risk-taker who hoards loose Rosary Beads
✅ Yes
Silkeaters prevent painful losses after a bad death

Cautious player using Rosary Strings
❌ Not really
Their wealth is already safe

Veteran who breezes through runbacks
❌ Probably not
They've learned to adapt without extra help

Newcomer struggling with Act 1 bosses
✅ Absolutely
A safety net can make all the difference

The Verdict: A Safety Net Worth Knowing

Styx isn't a flashy NPC. There's no epic questline, no boss fight, no dramatic revelation. But that's exactly what makes this spider-like ally so endearing. Styx represents one of Silksong's quieter design choices: a helping hand for players who need it, and a harmless curiosity for those who don't. The fact that Styx keeps producing Silkeaters throughout the journey means the option is always there—like a checkpoint you can carry in your pocket.

So, should every player seek out Styx? Not necessarily. But if you're the type who dreads the long walk back to your corpse, or if you've ever watched a pile of Rosary Beads vanish because of a poorly timed jump, then a trip to Sinner's Road is well worth the effort. Just remember to say hello to the bone-web spider. Styx might be creepy, but in the Kingdom of Pharloom, creepy allies are often the best ones.



After all, Silksong's world is full of surprises—and sometimes the most important NPCs are the ones you almost walked past.

That same instinct for protecting your resources and making every bead count can carry over beyond Pharloom. If you like the idea of watching values carefully before committing, DealNest offers a practical way to keep an eye on real-world prices and avoid missing a worthwhile drop—using this price tracking tool makes it easy to monitor changes without constantly checking back yourself.

In 2026, the conversation around Hollow Knight: Silksong has had time to settle, and one early-game decision still deserves a second look: the Wanderer's Crest. Crests in Silksong are not simple stat upgrades. They are themed movesets that replace Hornet's current attacks and abilities, which means players are effectively choosing a combat dialect rather than just adding a number. That design keeps the game feeling fresh, but it also makes some Crests feel like niche experiments. The Wanderer's Crest is the exception. It is a skeleton key for early-game combat rhythm, and for many players it is worth investing in before the map has fully opened up. ?️

Where Players Find the Wanderer's Crest

The Wanderer's Crest sits in a hidden tomb on the far left side of Moss Grotto, and there are two practical ways to reach it. Both routes begin by re-entering the main hole of Moss Grotto, either through the unlocked elevator in the area or by entering from the upper Marrow pathways on the top right. From there, Hornet needs to jump up to the left and cross a gap filled with hanging cages and flying enemies. The gap can be crossed with pogo bounces or bypassed with Hornet's dash. Once across, the route splits.

The first option is the paid route. Players can buy a 500 Rosary key in Bone Bottom after some currency farming, then continue left through Wormways while avoiding the giant enemy until they reach a locked door. Unlocking that door and following the path downward leads to the hidden area. This is the most direct method, but it is also the most expensive. Spending 500 Rosaries on this door means that key cannot be used elsewhere, so players who want maximum efficiency may want to save it for another lock.

The second option is the movement-gated route. Players who already have the float and dash abilities can ignore the Wormways path to the locked door entirely. From the pathway entrance, they head downward until they find a broken cage hanging off a ledge. Jumping off and floating downward close to the left wall requires a timed dash into the open window of an overgrown habitat. After continuing left and gliding as far as possible, players eventually reach the same location above the massive bug corpse suspended in the air. It is a tighter, more skill-dependent route, but it preserves the Rosary key.

Either way, the destination is the same: an inconspicuous tomb on the far left side of Moss Grotto. Inside, players need to avoid traps and fight through waves of haunted bugs. The reward at the end is the Wanderer's Crest. It is not the flashiest secret in the game, but it is one of the most useful early unlocks. ⚔️

What the Wanderer's Crest Actually Does



The Wanderer's Crest gives Hornet a faster, more precise moveset. The trade-off is a less forgiving hitbox, so it rewards clean spacing and deliberate attacks rather than wild swinging. In practice, it feels like trading a butterfly knife for a surgeon's scalpel: the tool is sharper, but the hand using it needs to be steadier. That precision is exactly why the Crest shines in boss openings and tight enemy encounters.

The biggest draw is familiarity. The Wanderer's Crest swaps Hornet's diagonal pogo attacks for downward slashes similar to the Knight's from the original Hollow Knight. That change makes bouncing across enemies and environmental hazards drastically easier. Enemy chains become a staircase of stepping stones rather than a series of awkward angle checks. The Crest also makes the dash attack faster to unleash, which gives players a quicker punish tool when a fight briefly opens up.

Its slot layout is another reason it remains competitive. Compared with other Crests, the Wanderer's Crest offers a versatile spread:

Slot Type
Count

Weapon
1

Support
2

Navigational tools
3

That mix gives players room to shape Hornet around offense, utility, or exploration without feeling locked into a single lane. It is not a magic wand that erases bad positioning, and the tighter hitbox does take some getting used to. Players who expect the same forgiving reach as other movesets may need a few fights to adjust. Once the rhythm clicks, though, the Crest becomes a powerful foundation for aggressive play. ?

Why It Still Matters in 2026

As of 2026, the Wanderer's Crest remains a strong recommendation for players starting fresh or returning to Silksong after a break. It pairs especially well with powerful Needle upgrades, allowing Hornet to deal massive damage during short openings. That combination is valuable in a game where bosses often give players only a heartbeat of space before the next attack. The Crest does not remove the challenge; it sharpens the player's ability to answer it.

For anyone weighing early-game investments, the Wanderer's Crest is more than a curiosity. It is a familiar moveset, a flexible slot package, and a precise combat tool wrapped into one unlock. Players who take the time to find it will not regret the detour. ?",

"language": "en

Chasing down hidden Crests and tuning a build to perfection tends to spill over into a broader appetite for the genre. Once Silksong clicks, the natural next step is a backlog of Metroidvanias and action-platformers to carry that momentum—and building that library gets expensive fast if every purchase is made at full price. Keeping an eye on discounts and bundles makes the hobby far easier to sustain, especially when a single strong release can cost as much as three smaller ones.

For players who would rather spend their budget on more games than on shipping fees and marked-up listings, where to buy cheap games is the question DealNest was built to answer. The site gathers deals and price comparisons in one place, so finding a bargain on the next title in your queue takes a few clicks instead of an afternoon of tab-hopping. It is a practical companion for anyone who treats discovery—whether of a secret Crest or a hidden gem—as part of the fun.

Hollow Knight: Silksong finally arrived after a six-year wait that felt less like development and more like a very patient knight staring at a locked gate. Team Cherry spent that time crafting a worthy successor to Hollow Knight, and the result was every bit as beautiful, tense, and occasionally infuriating as fans expected. The first patch, 1.0.28470, has now landed on PC through the Steam public beta branch, with other platforms expected to follow soon. And while it does tidy up a respectable pile of bugs — the software kind, not the spear-and-sword kind — the headline is that Silksong has been made a little kinder. Not soft. Just kinder.



For players who charged into Hornet's journey expecting a victory lap after the original Hollow Knight, the early game had a way of folding its arms and saying, “Oh, you thought you were ready?” The complaints were loud, and they were understandable. Silksong's different control scheme and sharper combat rhythm take time to click, and some fans were jumping in without finishing the first game. Team Cherry, to its credit, has responded not with a lecture but with a patch. Think of it as a firm but friendly hand on the shoulder — and a slight reduction in the number of sand-based headaches.

The Mercy Update, In Plain English

The patch notes read like a list of small mercies, and each one matters. Moorwing and Sister Splinter have been made easier, which should reduce the number of controllers sent to an early grave. Sandcarvers now deal less damage, a change that will be celebrated by anyone who has ever muttered something unprintable at a desert. Bellway and Bell Bench prices have been reduced, while Rosary rewards from relics and psalm cylinders have been increased. Courier deliveries also pay more Rosaries. In other words, the game has loosened its grip on both Hornet's health bar and the player's wallet.

Change
What It Means

Moorwing and Sister Splinter made easier
Boss fights ask for fewer miracles

Sandcarvers deal less damage
The desert is still rude, but less expensive

Bellway and Bell Bench prices reduced
Fast travel and rest spots feel friendlier

More Rosaries from relics and psalm cylinders
Exploration pays better

More Rosaries from courier deliveries
Side quests become more rewarding



This is not a dramatic overhaul. Nobody is turning Hornet into a tank or handing out free wins at the door. The patch simply sands down a few of the roughest edges in the opening hours, where players are still learning her moves and the game is still deciding whether to be a mentor or a menace. Let's be real: a little mercy goes a long way when a Bellway ticket costs more than your entire Rosary collection.

Why This Patch Matters More Than It Looks

Silksong's difficulty conversation has always been tangled up with its history. The six-year wait built impossible expectations, and the hype encouraged some players to skip the original Hollow Knight entirely. That was never going to be a smooth transition. Hornet is not the Knight; she moves differently, strikes differently, and expects the player to keep up. The early game became a filter, and filters are great for coffee and less great for fun.

The patch does not erase that challenge. It adjusts the temperature. Moorwing and Sister Splinter remain fights, not formalities. Sandcarvers still hurt; they just hurt less. The economy changes are arguably the quiet heroes of the update, because Silksong's Rosary system can feel like a second job when prices are high and rewards are thin. By boosting relic and psalm cylinder payouts and courier delivery rewards, Team Cherry has made the world feel more generous without turning it into a vending machine.

Modders, naturally, had already beaten Team Cherry to the punch with unofficial updates that made the game easier. That tells you something. There was a genuine hunger for a gentler on-ramp, especially in the early game, and the official patch now meets that hunger with something more stable than a fan-made patch and a prayer. It also shows that Team Cherry is listening. The studio did not just fix bugs and vanish into the workshop; it responded to the way people were actually playing.

The 2026 View

By 2026, this patch is less of a breaking-news bombshell and more of a well-worn comfort blanket. Players still argue about whether Silksong should be brutal, fair, or both, but the first patch remains the moment the conversation shifted from “git gud” to “maybe let the player breathe.” For anyone returning to the game or finally starting it, the update is a clear signal: Hornet's journey is still demanding, still gorgeous, and still full of things that want to stab her. It is just a little less interested in making the player pay for every step.

And honestly? That is a patch worth celebrating. Not because difficulty is bad, but because a game this good deserves to be seen past its first few hours. Team Cherry has not lowered the ceiling. It has simply moved the ladder a few inches closer. …

So go on, grab a cheaper Bell Bench, count your slightly healthier Rosary pile, and give Moorwing another try. The desert is still rude. The bugs are still plentiful. But this time, the patch has your back.

If all this talk of stretched Rosary budgets has you thinking about your actual wallet, it’s worth applying the same bargain-hunting mindset to the games themselves. Whether you’re buying Silksong for the first time or eyeing the original Hollow Knight after finishing this one, DealNest is a handy stop for keeping the real-world cost in check—you can compare prices here before committing, and put the savings toward something more useful, like a spare controller or an emergency stash of snacks for the next boss wall.

At first glance, Hollow Knight: Silksong still wears the same hand-drawn charm that made its predecessor look like a cozy little adventure. But once players actually get their hands on it, the sequel reveals itself as a far more punishing beast. Team Cherry did not simply repeat the original formula; the studio doubled down on the challenge, and by 2026 the debate around Silksong’s difficulty remains a hot topic among Metroidvania fans. The game is objectively strong, yet it is also a rough ride that asks for patience, precision, and a healthy tolerance for frustration.

? Benches Are No Longer a Free Reprieve

Finding a bench in the original Hollow Knight felt like a small victory. It was a quiet moment of safety before the next stretch of enemies and traps. In Silksong, benches still offer that relief, but many of them demand payment. If Hornet does not have enough Rosaries, the main currency, players are simply out of luck. The problem gets nastier in The Citadel, where most benches cost Rosaries and some are only temporary. That is a tough pill to swallow when a player is low on health and desperate for a save point.



? Fast Travel Comes With a Fight

Both games use similar fast-travel systems, but Silksong makes the first step more demanding. In Hollow Knight, players meet a talking Stag Beetle who carts The Knight around once a gateway is unlocked. In Silksong, the carrier is the Bell Beast, and players must fight it before using its stations. The battle only happens once, but it immediately raises the difficulty curve. Worse, most Bell Beast stations do not include benches, which feels wild compared with the Stag stations in the original game.



? Two Currencies Mean Twice the Headache

Hollow Knight kept things simple with Geo. Silksong introduces Rosaries and Shell Shards, and only Rosaries drop when players die. That part is a small mercy. Shell Shards are mainly used as ammo, but they also function as currency, which means players may need to farm both resources for quests and shop runs. Some enemies only carry Rosaries while others only carry Shell Shards, so gathering enough of each can become a tedious chore. It is not impossible, but it is another layer of taxation on an already demanding adventure.



⚔️ Small Enemies Hit Like Trucks

Enemy damage is one of the clearest signs that Silksong means business. Random small enemies can take off two health points from Hornet, and since she starts with only five, that is a staggering amount of punishment. Some boss attacks do not even deal that much damage, which makes ordinary encounters feel dangerously sharp. Hornet begins with the same health count as The Knight, so there is no early cushion to soften the blow. Players who wander in expecting a gentle opening are in for a rude awakening.



? Healing Is All or Nothing

The healing system has divided fans. In Hollow Knight, players could spend a bit of Soul to restore one health shard, and healing three shards used the full Soul meter. Silksong changes the rhythm by consuming an entire bar of Silk to heal three health shards at once. On paper, the math looks similar. In practice, the risk feels different. A player who needs only one shard may hesitate to drain the whole Silk bar, because there is no flexible middle ground. That hesitation can turn a small mistake into a full-blown disaster.



? Plasmium Phial Is Useful but Late

Health upgrades still come through Mask Shards, with four needed to increase Hornet’s maximum health. The original game also had Lifeblood Cocoons for temporary health charges, and finding one before a boss could be a lifesaver. Silksong removes those cocoons and replaces them with the Plasmium Phial. The item is technically better, but it takes a while to unlock, and recharging it between uses can be costly and time-consuming. Reaching the alchemist Zylotol is no quick errand, so the safety net often feels out of reach.



? The Downward Strike Changes Platforming

Hornet’s starting downward strike is another bold choice. It mimics attacks she uses in the original Hollow Knight, and watching her diagonal pogo onto targets is undeniably cool. The catch is that platforming becomes much harder with this angled move. Players can change the attack through Crests such as the Reaper Crest or Wanderer Crest, but those unlocks take time. For the first three or four hours, the game can feel absolutely brutal from the jump, especially for anyone who expects the straightforward downward pogo of The Knight.



? Boss Runs Test Patience

Hollow Knight had some taxing runs between benches and bosses, but Silksong cranks things up to the next level. The trip to the Savage Beastfly or the Last Judge can make players want to tear their hair out. Both bosses are tough on their own, but the journey there can be even more disheartening. The Savage Beastfly is optional, at least, but the Last Judge is mandatory. Those are just two examples, and they show how Team Cherry deliberately makes the sequel a more taxing experience.



? A Good Game With a Sharp Edge

Silksong is not a case of style over substance. It is a well-crafted sequel with speed, atmosphere, and boss design that often hit the mark. The division among fans comes from the way the game stacks its obstacles: paid benches, costly healing, late safety nets, dual currencies, and punishing boss runs. For veterans who want a challenge, that combination can be exhilarating. For players who hoped the sequel would smooth over the original’s rough edges, it is a hard sell. In 2026, Silksong remains a brilliant but bruising adventure — one that rewards persistence, punishes carelessness, and never apologizes for being a beast.

If you’re weighing whether to dive into Silksong now or hold off for a better moment, the cost of entry is worth considering alongside the challenge itself. A game price tracker can help you keep an eye on discounts and compare prices without relying on guesswork, making it easier to decide when the investment feels right.

DealNest brings that kind of comparison into one place, so you can spend less time hunting for deals and more time playing. Whether you’re planning your next punishing adventure or simply stocking up on games for later, it’s a practical stop before checkout.

Hollow Knight: Silksong arrived in 2025 with the kind of critical applause that makes other indie games nervously straighten their moss cloaks. Praise rained down. Bug fans wept into their needle-shaped pillows. And then a not-insignificant number of players hit the early game like a moth hitting a lantern — repeatedly, painfully, and with increasingly creative swearing. Team Cherry, apparently listening from a very comfortable bench, responded with patch 1.0.28470: a collection of bug fixes and early-game balance tweaks designed to make Silksong slightly less likely to fling newcomers into the nearest thorn bush.



The patch was announced on Steam as a mostly bug-fixing affair with a few balance adjustments sprinkled into the early game, and Team Cherry aimed to roll it out roughly a week after the note. In the grand timeline of 2026, that first patch is ancient history, but its philosophy still matters: Silksong does not have to be a wall made of needles. Sometimes it can be a wall made of slightly softer needles. Progress.

The Patch Notes Are Basically a Group Hug

The headline nerfs target two early bosses that have collectively caused enough controller-squeezing to register on seismic equipment. Moorwing, the flying boss that looks like a giant moth with a grudge, becomes easier to take down. Sister Splinter, the plant boss with a vine-based personal vendetta, also gets softened. If either of those fights has felt like banging one's head against a brick wall — or like Silksong might not be the game for them — the update offers a polite invitation to come back next week and try again with slightly fewer bruises.



Sandcarvers also receive a damage reduction. These charming little ambush artists hide in the sand waiting to ruin a perfectly good afternoon, and after the patch they will deal less damage. That is the full list of enemy nerfs in the first big update, but it is not the full list of changes. Team Cherry clearly decided that if players are struggling to ascend to The Citadel, maybe the economy could stop charging museum-gift-shop prices for basic travel.

A Table for the Financially and Emotionally Bruised

Change
What it means for one's sanity

Moorwing nerf
The giant moth boss stops treating the health bar like a chew toy

Sister Splinter nerf
The plant boss's vines are slightly less enthusiastic about murder

Sandcarver damage reduction
Surprise sand enemies now merely ruin the day instead of the run

Cheaper Bellway and Bell Bench prices
Mid-game travel and resting cost less rosary

Higher rosary rewards from relics and psalm cylinders
More shiny currency for the hoarding habit

More rosary from courier deliveries
Running errands finally pays something resembling a living wage



These tweaks walk a careful line. They make the game a little easier to handle without annoying the players who enjoy Silksong's challenge, since those folks have presumably already made it past Moorwing and Sister Splinter and are now busy flexing somewhere in the late game. For everyone else, the message is clear: Team Cherry heard the crying, and it responded with a slightly smaller tax bill and a few less painful boss patterns. ??

Someone Made an Easier Mod Before the Patch Even Landed

Silksong proved difficult enough that, just two days after release, someone had already created a mod that makes the game easier by reducing the damage some enemies inflict. That is impressively fast. Most players were still learning which button makes Hornet dash; someone else was already building a safety net. The modding community does not sleep, apparently. It just opens a code editor and whispers, 'What if the sandcarvers were nice?'

For the Hollow Knight fans who would prefer Silksong remain as challenging as possible, there is Steel Soul, a perma-death mode. The delightful twist is that players do not need to complete the game first to unlock it. The door to self-inflicted suffering is open from the start. No prerequisites. No training montage. Just a one-life run and the quiet confidence of someone who has never met Moorwing. ?

So the first patch was not a dramatic overhaul. It was a small collection of adjustments: two bosses made less ferocious, one enemy type made less rude, and an economy made slightly less stingy. It was Team Cherry leaning over the shoulder of a frustrated player and saying, 'Here, try again, but with fewer financial regrets.' In 2026, Silksong is still a demanding game, but the early days of 2025 proved that even a beloved indie sequel can learn to hand out a few training wheels — and then politely remind everyone that Steel Soul exists for the brave and the reckless. ?️?

For players who are just as careful with real-world spending as they are with rosary in Silksong, timing a purchase can matter as much as timing a dodge. Whether you are waiting for a discount on the base game, looking for a deal on another challenging indie title, or simply comparing prices before committing, it helps to have a place that gathers those offers in one spot. Sites like DealNest make that part of the hunt a little less tedious, so you can spend less time tab-hopping and more time deciding which boss deserves your attention next.

If you are planning your next purchase around sales rather than full price, it is worth taking a moment to check game prices before you add anything to your cart. A little patience outside the game can pair nicely with all that patience the game asks for inside it.

In 2026, the first official Hollow Knight: Silksong update reads less like a routine patch note and more like a snapshot of Team Cherry responding to the loudest launch-week conversations. When Silksong arrived on September 4, 2025, players celebrated the long-awaited sequel, then quickly began debating its difficulty. Bosses hitting for double damage, Hornet’s generous hitbox, and the sharpness of early encounters became recurring topics. Team Cherry’s answer was not a dramatic overhaul. It was a focused first update that fixed bugs, softened two early bosses, and signaled that more work was coming.



What the first Silksong patch actually changed

The short version is simple: Team Cherry opened the first update as a public-beta branch on Steam and GOG, then aimed for a full release on PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and PC by the middle of the following week. The studio called that timing an estimate, leaving room for slippage if issues appeared. For players who had spent years waiting, the patch mattered because it addressed problems that could stop a run outright, not just cosmetic annoyances.

The balance adjustments were deliberately modest. Team Cherry described a slight difficulty reduction for two early-game bosses, Moorwing and Sister Splinter. Sandcarvers were tuned to deal less damage. The pea pod collider received a slight increase in scale. Mid-game Bellway and Bell Bench prices came down a little, while rosary rewards went up slightly for relics and psalm cylinders. Courier deliveries also became more rewarding. None of these changes rewrote the game, but together they made the opening hours less punishing and the economy a bit friendlier.

Change
Effect

Moorwing and Sister Splinter
Slight difficulty reduction in two early-game bosses

Sandcarvers
Reduced damage to players

Pea pod collider
Slight increase in scale

Mid-game Bellway and Bell Bench
Slight price reduction

Relics and psalm cylinders
Slight increase in rosary rewards

Courier deliveries
Increased rosary rewards

The bug-fix list was just as important. Players could previously remain cloakless after the Slab escape sequence. The wish Infestation Operation often could not be completed during the late game. Beast in the Bells could become incompletable when the Bell Beast was summoned at the Bilewater Bellway during the late game. Team Cherry also fixed getting stuck floating after down-bouncing on certain projectiles, courier deliveries sometimes being inaccessible in Act 3, craft bind behaving incorrectly in memories, and a Lace tool deflect soft-lock at the start of the Deep Docks battle. Silk Snippers in the Chapel of the Reaper could sometimes get stuck out of bounds. Claw Mirrors could leave Hornet inverted if damage landed during a specific binding moment. Snitch Pick was not giving rosaries and shell shards as intended. The update also removed the float override input of down plus jump after the player has the Faydown Cloak, and it included various additional fixes and tweaks.



Why the early-game difficulty debate would not fade

Was Silksong too hard at launch? That question followed the sequel from its first week. Some players pointed to double damage from bosses, Hornet’s large hitbox, and the general speed of encounters. Others argued that Hornet is much quicker than the Knight from the original Hollow Knight, and that mobility should balance the higher threat level. Team Cherry did not settle that debate with the first update. Instead, the studio made a careful concession: two early bosses became slightly easier, and Sandcarvers became less dangerous. The patch did not gut the challenge. It nudged the opening so more players could find their footing.

That restraint is worth noting. A blunt difficulty pass could have flattened the sequel’s identity. Team Cherry chose small adjustments, the kind that help players learn the rhythm without removing the sting. For a game built on precision, that distinction matters.



The translation problem was bigger than bugs

The first patch also arrived during a larger conversation about localization. Reviews for Silksong were largely very positive or overwhelmingly positive, but Japanese and Simplified Chinese reviews were mixed. In Simplified Chinese, only 40 percent of roughly 36,000 reviews were positive at the time. That is a striking gap for a sequel receiving so much praise elsewhere. Team Cherry said it was working on rectifying the problem, with improvements expected in the coming weeks.

For a text-heavy adventure, translation is not a side issue. Item names, wish descriptions, and dialogue all shape how players understand the world. The first update did not solve that overnight, but it put the issue on the record. In 2026, the patch is remembered as much for that localization promise as for Moorwing and Sister Splinter.



A beta branch, a full rollout, and more fixes to come

Team Cherry also said further fixes were in the works. That note mattered because patch notes rarely cover every reported problem. Players dealing with an unlisted issue could reasonably assume it was being investigated for the second update. The first patch was a starting point, not a final statement. The beta branch on Steam and GOG gave eager players an early look, while console and storefront releases followed the studio’s estimated schedule.

Looking back from 2026, the first Silksong update set a useful tone. It made the early game more welcoming without erasing the challenge. It cleaned up soft-locks and progression blockers. It acknowledged the localization problem instead of ignoring it. For a sequel that spent years in anticipation, that first patch was a reminder that post-launch support is part of the experience. ?

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I still remember how sharp Hollow Knight: Silksong felt when it first landed. The art, the music, the tension—all of it clicked. But the opening hours also had a way of tapping you on the shoulder and saying, quite firmly, that you were not ready. So when Team Cherry rolled out Patch 1.0.28470, I paid attention. This was the first real update for Silksong, and it did something important: it made the early game kinder without sanding off the game’s identity.



The rollout plan was straightforward. PC players could jump into the patch immediately through the public-beta branch on Steam or GOG, while console players had to wait for the mid-September window—September 16 to 18, with September 17 looking like the likely landing date. The best part was that the fixes applied retroactively. If a bug had already stopped your run, or a boss had already flattened you, the patch could still clean up the mess.

The Patch That Made the Opening Breathable

Patch 1.0.28470 did not rewrite Silksong. It walked in like a calm hand on the shoulder and nudged a few of the sharpest edges away from the early game. The two bosses that gave newcomers the most trouble—Moorwing and Sister Splinter—received a slight difficulty reduction. Sandcarvers also dealt less damage. That alone changed the mood of the opening hours. I will be honest: those first few rooms felt less like a wall and more like a lesson.



The economy got a softer touch too. Mid-game Bellway and Bell Bench prices came down slightly, while rosary rewards went up from relics, psalm cylinders, and courier deliveries. In plain terms, the game stopped squeezing quite so hard between checkpoints. Silksong still wanted you to earn your progress, but it no longer felt like the bench itself was judging you.

Area
Change in Patch 1.0.28470

Early bosses
Slight difficulty reduction for Moorwing and Sister Splinter

Sandcarvers
Reduced damage

Bellway and Bell Bench
Slight price reduction in the mid-game

Rosaries
Slight increase from relics and psalm cylinders

Courier deliveries
Increased rosary rewards

Pea pods
Slight increase in collider scale

The Bug Fixes Were Just as Important

The patch also cleaned up a long list of bugs, and some of them were the kind that could quietly ruin a run. Players could remain cloakless after the Slab escape sequence. The wish Infestation Operation often could not be completed in the late game. Beast in the Bells could break when the Bell Beast was summoned at the Bilewater Bellway during the late game. Courier deliveries could become inaccessible late in a save. Craft bind behaved incorrectly in memories. Lace’s tool deflect could soft-lock at the start of the Deep Docks battle. Silk Snippers in the Chapel of the Reaper could get stuck out of bounds. Claw Mirrors could leave Hornet inverted if she took damage at a specific moment while binding. Snitch Pick did not always give the intended rosaries and shell shards. The update also removed a float override input after the player obtained the Faydown Cloak.



Look, this was not a massive expansion. It was a maintenance pass with a heart. But that is exactly what Silksong needed at the time. The patch listened to the parts of the community that were frustrated, and it responded with adjustments rather than excuses.

A Fairer Silksong, Not a Softer One

Team Cherry also confirmed that more fixes would follow in a second patch. No release date was attached to that next major update at the time, but the message was clear: the studio was not done tuning the game. By 2026, I look back at Patch 1.0.28470 as the moment Silksong exhaled a little. It did not remove the challenge. It simply made the challenge feel fairer, especially for players who were still learning the rhythm of Hornet’s movement and the cost of every mistake.

If you bounced off Silksong early, there is no shame in that. The first patch gave you a better reason to return. It softened the opening, eased the rosary grind, and fixed several bugs that could stop a run cold. For a game this beautiful and this demanding, that was a smart first step.

If the patch has you thinking about finally picking the game up—or double-dipping on a second platform so you can play on the go—it pays to check how prices stack up across storefronts before you commit. Silksong is available in more places than the Switch eShop, and regional pricing, seasonal discounts, and bundle offers can swing the cost by a surprising margin depending on where and when you buy.

A quick game price comparison at DealNest takes the guesswork out of that decision, lining up current listings so you can see which retailer has the better deal before you spend a single rosary. That way the only thing left to worry about is Moorwing—and thanks to the patch, that fight is a little more forgiving than it used to be.

By 2026, Hollow Knight: Silksong has had time to settle into the hands of its community. Speedrunners have dismantled routes, boss specialists have memorized patterns, and plenty of players have already cleared the final boss. Yet one challenge still sits above the rest: Steel Soul mode. It is Silksong's permadeath variant, a hardcore ruleset that turns every bench, every upgrade, and every risky room into a serious decision. For veterans who want to test their mastery, or for curious players who want to see how punishing Pharloom can become, Steel Soul is the endgame beyond the endgame.



What Steel Soul Mode Changes

The headline change is simple and brutal: permadeath. The moment Hornet falls for the first time, the save file is disabled. There is no corpse run, no retry from the last bench, and no second chance. That single rule transforms Silksong from a demanding action-platformer into a tense route-planning exercise. Bosses that feel fair in Classic Mode become heart-pounding tests, and ordinary exploration carries real weight.



Steel Soul also shifts the value of items and currency. Rosary Strings become essentially useless, because there is no death loop that needs protecting. Mask Shards, tools, and powerful weapon upgrades become drastically more important. Players who normally spend loose change on risky detours need to rethink their priorities. Survival favors permanent power, not temporary convenience.

Change
Effect in Steel Soul

Permadeath
Save file disabled on first defeat

Rosary Strings
Lose most of their purpose

Mask Shards
Critical for survivability

Tools and weapon upgrades
High priority for consistent damage

Route planning
Essential; avoid optional danger until ready

Save-quit trick
Quitting before death returns Hornet to the last bench at full health

One community-known safety valve is the save-and-quit trick. If a player quits out right before death, Hornet returns to the last used bench at full health. It is not a clean victory, but it can rescue a run that would otherwise be lost. Knowing which areas to avoid and which to revisit later is just as important. Steel Soul rewards patience, preparation, and a little bit of cowardice.

Every Way To Unlock Steel Soul Mode

The intended unlock path is straightforward: complete the game once through any of its endings. After that, starting a new save prompts players to choose between Classic Mode and the Steel Soul variation. That alone makes the mode a natural next step for anyone who has finished the main story and wants a harder rematch.



There is also a secret shortcut. Players discovered that the mode can be unlocked early by opening the extras menu and entering Up, Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right. A sound effect confirms that Steel Soul has been unlocked. It is a popular route for achievement hunters and experienced players who want to jump straight into the challenge without finishing a fresh save first.

Unlock Method
Requirement
Notes

Complete the game
Any ending
New saves offer Classic or Steel Soul

Secret input
Extras menu
Up, Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right; sound confirms

Achievement hunting
Mode unlocked
Early access possible via the secret input

How Players Approach The Challenge

Steel Soul is not a mode for first-timers. The recommended path is to learn Silksong in Classic Mode, practice its hardest bosses, and map out safe routes before committing to a permadeath run. Once inside Steel Soul, players tend to prioritize Mask Shards and permanent upgrades over risky exploration. They avoid optional rooms until their toolset is strong enough, and they treat every bench as a checkpoint worth protecting.

The mode also forces a completely different playstyle. Aggressive players must slow down. Collectors must accept that some detours are not worth the danger. Boss experts must prove that their consistency holds under pressure. Steel Soul turns Silksong into a test of nerves as much as skill, and that is exactly why it remains the ultimate challenge for the community in 2026. ?

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Whether the goal is to take a break after a close call or to line up another skill-heavy game for the weekend, checking current discounts first can save time and money. DealNest keeps that process simple, making it a practical stop for players who want to stay ready for the next challenge without overpaying for it.