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Team Cherry's Silksong upholds the unique narrative style from the original title, scattering bits of lore and character development across the landscape. Once everything is connected, the transformation from a apparently straightforward beginning to a deeply significant ending is striking. Similar to the overall experience, the story is grander in scope and more refined than its forerunner, built upon a powerful core concept and a significant revelation.

However, the word "Nearly" is key. There is one major issue: the development team seem unable to decide about whether the main character is Hornet or the person controlling her.

Editor's Note: This analysis contains heavy spoilers for both the standard and true endings of Silksong.

The Pilgrimage of Hornet

The adventure begins with the protagonist captured and caged. A group known as the Weavers captured her on the bidding of the deity Mother Silk, from whom Hornet is partially born. After escaping, she encounters a band of travelers and begins her ascent. Her path takes her from the dark underworld filled with remains of the fallen up towards the Citadel, home to Pharloom's corrupt religious caste. Along the journey, she witnesses the cruelty and suffering endured by the exploited masses in the name of religion—laborers who toil unto death, dissenters imprisoned for their beliefs, and more.

Lace and the Central Conflict

Lace, also created by the deity's own silk, is likewise ascending to the stronghold. Her plan is to awaken her mother, seek vengeance on the ministers who imprisoned her, and seize control. Hornet's arrival changes everything. In the standard ending, she usurps the deity. In the true ending, Hornet imprisons the deity, battles the Void, frees Lace, and sees Mother Silk give herself up so they may go free.

Thematic Foundations

Silksong is, at its heart, a tale of journey. It is modeled after medieval pilgrimages and allegorical dramas, with a critical look at institutional faith. The protagonist's path—through hell, navigating a purgatorial layer, and ascending to enlightenment—directly parallels Dante's The Divine Comedy. That Renaissance masterpiece follows a protagonist through hell, purgatory, and heaven on a quest for spiritual transformation, which is the essence of Silksong.

One can even draw connections to the Christian ritual, albeit out of order. Hornet is captured and divested, stands trial, endures a tortuous ascent, and is temporarily entombed in the void. In essence, the game invites contemplation on faith, the soul, and change, all of which are vital for grasping the ending.

Backstory of the Weavers

Delving into the lore of the Weavers reveals that the belief system and culture once championed by the deity has become corrupt. Her children forsook her path, and a caste of self-serving ministers seized control the temple, twisting its doctrines for their own gain.

Hornet, as a part-Weaver descendant of the deity, was pre-ordained to follow her will, whether she wanted to or not. Thanks to her upbringing by Herrah, Hornet was raised outside from the Weaver drama and encouraged to be independent, which is why Mother Silk imprisons her at the start—to force her to fulfill her Weaver responsibilities.

Endings and Meanings

If Hornet defeats Mother Silk in the standard ending, she takes her power and ascends to divinity. The fact that this is not the true ending indicates that Pharloom's troubles would continue—Hornet would have merely replaced one corrupt deity for another. By solving everyone's problems, players access the final chapter and the true ending.

Like any significant journey, this one ends with revelation. The protagonist's realization is that she can now live free of the hereditary burden in her lineage and decide her own fate. Her rival, reminded of love's power, freed from selfishness, will likely restore the kingdom as a fairer society. In the true ending, faith is abolished, and all can live autonomously.

As a conclusion to the pilgrimage, it is an exceptional piece of meta-storytelling that perfectly aligns with the inspirations it draws upon. It communicates players that the sole path to a better society is to show compassion. Few games use interactivity to convey this theme so effectively, and the creators deserve credit for this innovative approach.

A Central Dilemma

Despite the strength of its final message, the development team struggled to support this theme throughout the game and, crucially, to tie it to the adventure's heart: the heroine.

The message might be for the player, but the story is about her. When a narrative features a main character who speaks and thinks independently, she must be the primary subject, and her actions and growth should convey the themes. Even in symbolic stories, the main character's purpose are usually clearly defined to avoid confusion.

Yet, Hornet does not learn or change on her journey. Her only goal is to return home. The conflict between free will and fate only surfaces in the Act 2 boss fight and some hidden lore. If players complete all requirements to reach the true ending, an supporting figure comments on Hornet's compassion, but he is talking to you, not her.

Lack of Character Development

This approach would have been fine in the first Hollow Knight, where the protagonist is a blank slate. Hornet, however, is her own person, a focused warrior with a clear purpose. If she is made to choose actions against her nature—such as aiding the helpless—there should be some friction. One would anticipate her to complain, act gruff, or at least respond. A brief complaint when initially assisting, later expressing concern that her actions do good, would work.

When first asked to assist the oppressed citizens, Hornet responds with apathy, treating it as a low priority. Even if the user decides to assist, she forms no bond with any of them. There is no change, no shift in perspective. It is remarkable that the player would show such care, but not Hornet. The game provides little justification to think she would.

Underutilized Supporting Cast

Hornet's interactions with characters like the Caretaker were the ideal chance to develop her personality and strengthen the message without obvious explanation. Most of these end up being purely decorative, just padding the runtime. This problem stems from both the characterization of the heroine and the random placement of the supporting cast.

Garmond is essentially a lovable, doddering old fool—there for atmosphere but playing no crucial part. Others, like the certain NPCs, represent different ideologies outside the Citadel's norms, a concept that aligns with the message but is never developed.

Aside from Lace and Sherma, one of the only characters with a thread through the entire game is The Green Prince, thanks to a tragic romance. While compelling, it leans heavily on a problematic cliché and feels disconnected from the central plot. Taking it out would have little impact on the protagonist's arc or the core message.

A Passive Protagonist

The apparently arbitrary distribution of focus makes subplots feel unfinished and added hastily. The largest error, however, is that the heroine is shown as largely inactive in almost every situation. The few times she speaks up, her remarks are terribly bland, such as offering clichéd advice to another character. Even more direct remarks on the core themes would have linked her more closely to the game's ideas. Instead, she is merely a passenger—in the passenger seat of her own story.

Acknowledging the Achievement

Despite these problems in storytelling, there is still much to respect for what the team accomplished. Rare titles synthesize so many influences into a set of themes so strong and layered that they are literally embedded into the environment itself. If the next project from the studio is larger and improved, one can only hope that those enhancements include the fundamentals of storytelling as well.