So this game looked great when it came out, but ive been waiting for it on the switch, and now that I have it and love it, I've hit a bit of a roadblock after 4 hours of playing. I got the air dash, and have spent hours wandering aimlessly, finding the occasional bench or merchant, but no new abilities. I havent quite grown sick of it yet, but my complete lack of progress makes me wonder if the entire game will be like this, or if I'll discover some "a-ha" moment where I can progress further again. I guess im just wondering if anyone of my skil level (OK to meh) used a guide or not.

While those kind of "Where the hell do I go now" moments are certainly nothing new to this type of game, I found getting around in Hollow Knight to be more of a chore compared to a lot of other games like it that I did enjoy. Being lost is one thing, but the feel and pacing of the platforming felt tedious to me. Once I realized I was getting more frustrated by the exploration rather than enjoying it, I would turn to a guide just until I got to the next big area. I also seem to remember a guide helping with some significant stuff near the end of the game that I probably would have missed out on had I not used one.

Obviously, this genre is in many ways satisfying because of those "a-ha" moments you mentioned. It really comes down to how much you're enjoying yourself during those lost lulls. For me, I wasn't enjoying it too much, but I didn't want to stop playing entirely either. So a guide helped move things along a bit for me.

I didn’t need a guide to finish the game but needed one to get 100%. I’m surprised people get stuck that much in this game, as soon as you get to the city there’s always more than one path you’re equipped to go through.

I wouldn’t know how to help you in your situation, a guide is not needed but Hollow Knight is a slow moving game. I was patient with it, but if you’re feeling frustrated a guide will make the game better for you.

I never used a guide but I got stuck for a looong time at several points. I probably spent hours just wandering around rechecking every place and this was at launch before they patched in map markers and shit. When I hit a wall like that I just put on podcasts to keep myself from getting too bored and try random shit until I discover what to do.

I'm glad to hear this is a common occurrence in this game. I stopped playing it after a few hours because I was expecting a more modern Metroidvania that at least points you in the direction of where to go next. I also don't like the world much, so I was getting very little out of exploring only to find more gross stuff. I didn't use a guide, because I didn't get the impression there was much of a story, so if the gameplay wasn't doing it for me I figured it was best to just move on.

Ok I found my way. i got the wall-jump and all of a sudden the dozen photos of my in-game map i took with my phone all opened up. This is on track to be one of my favorite games.

I was able to find almost every area without using a guide. When I filled everything in and was facing the final boss, I decided to look up a few things to see if I missed anything, such as the Grimm Troupe and other minor NPCs.

If I got stuck at a point, I would just look on my map for an area that I hadn't been to or it looked like there was supposed to be something there. Occasionally I would hit the same "you don't have this ability" roadblock multiple times in a row before I realized I was putting off the area that the game was obviously trying to guide me to. But several times I would just explore and continue to find new areas, constantly remembering the locations that I couldn't go to yet.

I love that there's no exact "mainline" path for this game and every other path is "optional" for the most part until you finally get the item you need to progress. Too many times in a lot of videogames it can become confusing on which path is the main path and which is the optional one, causing me to pick the main one and lock myself out of the optional path. Games like this are perfect for me.

Despite being a metroidvania game it's actually incredibly open. Just pick a direction and keep walking, I didn't feel lost once in my entire playthrough. Eventually you'll get to the point where you need to look at the map to see which areas haven't been fully explored but that is much later in the game.

I'm replaying it on my Switch, and I am amazed at how well they have made it so that you should not be stuck going through the main path. It's been a while, so I have forgotten a lot myself, which means I too felt I was aimlessly wandering for a bit after getting the dash. But there are clues to follow, sometimes very obvious ones, to get to where you need to be. I have seen several I missed the first time I played it. Specifically how you are guided through the early game by Hornet, and also one that I need to spoiler out: After opening the way to the Mantis Lords, I decided to try and save up the remaining hundreds of Geo to get the lantern first. Going back you run into Quirrel, telling you that fight might be hard so you should go to the city and upgrade your nail. The first time I played through this I did not run into him, and I did not upgrade my nail first. The Mantis Lords fight was fucking hard, but after a few tries I got it. And it was so damn exhilarating! That was one of many moments that made me fall in love with this game.

Anyway, one tip I can give is this: they have added purchasable map tokens. Get those, and mark areas that you know you could go back to, places that interest you specially. Other than that, wander. Get good at fighting. Fill in the map. Gather Geo. You will eventually get where you need to go, and if you like the atmosphere as much as me none of it will be a waste.

Just check for paths on your map that you haven't taken yet. If you double tap the map button it brings out a map that show every area you've been in and how they connect. I've only really been stuck once in my 14 hours of gameplay so far and it was just me not noticing I had a path I never went down.

ive been trying not to use a guide but ive had some serious "what the fuck do i do now" moments that ive lacked the motivation to search across the map to find out (though honestly this could probably be avoided with a more liberal usage of the map marker system). plus, if i ever go a day without playing games, my sam elliott swiss cheese brain forgets literally everything about where id left off and so im kinda left wandering around aimlessly without consulting a guide.

I used a guide after finishing the game once, just to get the 100 % ending. I prefer not using guides, but I like butting my head against a wall for however long it takes to break said wall though. That being said - if the game is more enjoyable to you if you're using a guide then hell yeah go for it. I've used guides for other games before where I prefer it. It's all about enjoyment

I've finally been playing through on Switch. I felt like I was trapped in The City of Tears (area name) and used a guide briefly to figure out where I needed to go. I just don't really have the time or patience these days to walk back and forth looking for the one way out or the next place to go.

I "beat" the game without looking anything up, saw i was at 94% completion, then i did bring up a guide to find out why my ending was bad and where some key points to visit were. Amazing experience in my all time top 10 now for sure

I used a guide a couple of times when I found platforming challenges I didn't like to make sure if it actually held a good reward.

It basically never does.

I havent but i think im going to. I want to beat this, but i dont have/want to put 60+ hours into it either.

I think the only time I consulted the internet was finding where all the pale ore was since that has a pretty big impact on gameplay. I'll probably look up where the next expansion starts and where/how to get the best ending.

No, but this is exactly why I haven't finished this game yet and don't know if I will. I've spent so much time going from one side of the map to other looking for the one path that actually leads to progress. Then when I get there and realize I don't have the ability to move forward its rinse and repeat until I happen to stumble upon the way forward. I like Metroidvanias a lot but usually, games with this many paths don't make it this much of a chore to traverse. There's a lot I like about Hollownight but this makes me like it quite a bit less.

I think the biggest thing to remember about the game is something Patrick Klepek said about it on an episode of Waypoint Radio: For better or worse, Hollow Knight is a game that's willing to let you get all the way through it without ever finding some hugely important (arguably necessary) areas or features.

For example, a person might get 3/4 through the game before finding the characters that upgrades their weapon or sells additional charm notches or teaches new attacks. Hell, a person could conceivably finish the game without finding them (though it would be a lot more difficult).

@bbalpert: I never even found the tram pass and I spent 36 hours playing through that game.