Bloody Hell, Silksong's Been Out Five Minutes And Speedrunners Are Already Blowing Holes In Reality
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Speedrunners are already tearing apart *Hollow Knight: Silksong* barely 24 hours after launch, discovering game-changing skips and movement techniques like 'Sprintsong' and advanced pogoing, proving the game is a speedrunning goldmine from day one.
Right, so you know that feeling when you've been waiting for a game, oh, say, since the dawn of time itself, and then it finally drops? And you think, 'Ah, blissful hours of exploration await!' Well, apparently, the speedrunning community heard 'blissful hours' and translated it to 'time to rip this digital universe a new one, immediately.'
I've been tinkering with the latest buzz surrounding *Hollow Knight: Silksong* – which, fair dinkum, hasn't even had time to properly cool down from its launch – and bloody hell, the dedicated folks out there are already treating it like a digital wrecking ball. They're not just playing it; they're dissecting it, prodding it, and making it do things Team Cherry probably didn't even know it could do. We're talking game-changing skips and movement techniques that are, quite frankly, wizardry.
Now, for those of us who appreciate the art of a game being bent to a player's will, this is utterly fascinating. Less than 24 hours post-launch, and a select few in the *Hollow Knight* Discord server – essentially the secret dojo for digital ninjas – are already sharing clips that are laying the groundwork for what will undoubtedly be a brutal, beautiful competition to see who can make Hornet dance the fastest. It’s like watching a bunch of alchemists turning lead into gold, only the lead is game code and the gold is pure, unadulterated speed.
One of the most immediate, mind-bending discoveries revolves around movement. Forget your standard sprint, mate. Players have already stumbled upon a technique that allows Hornet to zoom across the landscape at speeds that would make a regular sprint look like a gentle stroll through a haunted forest. The trick? A seemingly simple, yet incredibly effective, jump-dash repetition. You leap, you dash, you repeat, and suddenly, you're practically teleporting horizontally. It's been affectionately dubbed 'Sprintsong' by some, and frankly, I reckon it's a perfect name. It’s the kind of subtle manipulation that seems small on its own, but in the cutthroat world of speedrunning, these tiny milliseconds accumulate into game-defining strategies.
But wait, there's more! Remember the iconic 'pogoing' from the original *Hollow Knight*? That delightful technique where you'd bounce off enemies with your downward attack to gain extra height or cross otherwise impassable gaps? Well, it’s back, baby, and just as gloriously exploitable. Players like SkysThLimit – big shout-out to them for their early pioneering spirit – have shown how easily you can bait flying enemies to specific ledges early in the game. Then, *boom*, a well-timed downward attack turns an enemy into a spring-board, granting access to rooms and areas that were clearly designed to be reached much, much later. It's like finding a secret staircase hidden behind a bookshelf on day one of moving into a new castle.
This isn't just about showing off; it's about fundamentally altering the game's intended path. These early aerial skips, combined with the new horizontal dash technique, are already painting a picture of *Silksong* runs that will look wildly different from a casual playthrough. And let's not forget, *Hollow Knight: Silksong* reportedly has an achievement for beating the game in under five hours. Without these sorts of exploits and movement tech, that achievement would be a true Herculean task. With them? It's still hard, don't get me wrong, but suddenly, it feels within the realm of possibility for the truly dedicated.
What's particularly fascinating is how these new discoveries build on the legacy of the original *Hollow Knight*. The first game was a speedrunner's paradise, a canvas for intricate movement and sequence breaks. Team Cherry, whether intentionally or not, seems to have infused *Silksong* with that same DNA, giving Hornet her own unique set of tools that, in the right hands, become instruments of glorious chaos. It speaks volumes about the depth of their design when a game can be both a beautifully crafted narrative experience and a playground for competitive deconstruction.
This early rush of discoveries isn't just news; it's a glimpse into the future meta of *Silksong*. Every clip shared, every new skip found, every movement tech perfected in those Discord channels is a building block for the ultimate speedrunning strategy. It’s a testament to the insatiable curiosity of the gaming community – always wondering 'what happens if…' and then going out and *making* it happen. It’s the player base, mate, pushing the boundaries, finding the hidden magic, and reminding us all that sometimes, the most interesting stories in gaming aren't just what the developers create, but what the players *discover*.
And honestly, that's what I love about this scene. It's raw, it's competitive, it's collaborative, and it's happening in real-time. It’s a bit like watching a bunch of mad scientists in a lab, except their lab is a brand-new digital world, and their experiments are making that world sing. The *Silksong* speedrunning saga has only just begun, and I, for one, can't wait to see what other reality-bending tricks they pull out of Hornet's cloak next. It's going to be a wild ride.
Tags: Hollow Knight Silksong, Speedrunning, Gaming Community, Indie Games, Movement Tech
Original article: Eurogamer