S4: Tools, not Power

Hollow Knight makes progression joyful by granting new tools, not merely strengthening the ones you have.

"Toolbox" by florianric is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Hollow Knight, released 2017, developed by Team Cherry, available on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch. This is a 2D game in which you navigate dark caverns by climbing, jumping, and dashing around obstacles, as well as fighting knight-like foes and fantastical monsters.

Day 2: My eyes have adjusted to the darkness. I am using a sturdy nail as a sword to protect myself against the soldiers and bandits that frequent these caverns. I have found one burly guard protecting the entrance to where I think I must go next. I have battered his shield with the trusty nail, but to no avail. He is too powerful.

Day 7: I have learned new skills, acquired magics, and powerful charms, that have turned me into a formidable inhabitant of these foul caverns. I still have my nail as my primary weapon, but my new talents have elevated its effectiveness. I scaled the wall looming before the burly guard, darted over his head, slammed down into the ground to stun him, then inserted the nail between his plates, outside of the reach of his shield. He hit the ground with a thud and at last I progressed. This new cave is filled with wonders. I shall not waste further time with this journal.

The common urge is to give the player a bigger sword, a faster car, or a fire bolt with a bit too much smolder. Too many games assume the player craves a power fantasy, but forget that power without challenge is tedium involving more flashy weaponry. Players love to be creative. The feeling of cleverness is perhaps the greatest gift a video game can convey.

Sure, Captain America is charming, but secretly we all want to be Loki or Deadpool.

In the deepest depths of Hollow Knight’s bug underworld, raw might alone is not sufficient to overcome the powerful and the wicked. Dangerous obstacles must be outwitted, incredible foes outfought, and gigantic worms outrun.

Hollow Knight sidesteps and dashes away from the trope of “more power!” to focus instead on the gift of new tools. Its focus on Tools, not Power, breathes life into every moment of the game.

As you defeat mighty bosses, discover secrets, and explore caverns, your character gains new abilities, such as the ability to slam into the ground (to cause damage and unveil new pathways), dash long distances (to outmaneuver enemies or reach new areas), climb and jump off walls (to outmaneuver enemies or reach new areas), or double jump (to outmaneuver enemies or reach new areas). You then equip Charms to enhance and modify these abilities further, which makes them even more integral to your approach to solving problems.

Raw power, as a means of progression, is narrowly focused on combat. A bigger sword kills enemies more efficiently, but does not help you explore. It is a focused, but ultimately limited reward. Furthermore, raw power does not help you grow in skill or evolve as a player.

To illustrate this point, think about a challenging encounter in which you could add more power. Assuming the game is balanced and the knowledge required to succeed available, I posit figuring out a solution to the encounter is more satisfying than playing the encounter with a bigger sword. Solving the lock is more rewarding than breaking down the door.

Tools, in comparison, apply to everything in the game. Revisiting a previously explore area with Dash feels fresh, because your minute-to-minute traversal has a new rhythm. The Dash makes previously challenging segments easier, but also opens up new, more challenging areas that put your use of dash to the test. Dash can be used in environmental puzzles, such as outrunning dangerous worms, or outpacing a timer to reach a secret reward. But also, like power, it makes combat more fun. Instead of a perfectly timed dodge, you can now dodge over an enemy to stab them from behind. You dash ahead to the creature lobbing spears at you before dashing back to the slower, melee focused opponent.

Tools, therefore, form new pathways in the player’s brain. They help them explore every facet of the game and constantly reconsider how they approach common challenges. Tools allow the player to do more, more regularly, and players will appreciate it because this is fun.

Tools make the player feel clever. Power gets old. The next time you’re thinking about adding a shotgun, consider adding a grappling hook instead.

The One Cool Thing

Keeping players engaged for five, ten, fifteen, or even twenty hours is incredibly challenging. Trust me when I say that most players do not finish most single-player stories. There are many reasons for this, but one might be that the game does not remain interesting, and one reason for that might be that too few games embrace the notion of Tools, not Power.

Hollow Knight takes about thirty hours to conclude a majority of its content, which is a long time. But, because its tool-first approach is so pervasive and engaging, it means that exploration, traversal, puzzles, and combat, are all constantly being filtered through a broad pool of possibilities.

Power is a flashy, cinematic approach, but it’s a cheap win to grasp. It doesn’t respect how smart, engaged, and creative players really are. It’s a scratch-off ticket when there are escape rooms that exist instead!

Tools reward interactive creativity, which are two of my favorite words to use alongside the noun “video game.”

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Preview for Next Time

Hollow Knight is a very challenging game, so you’ll either be filled with adrenaline or terror that the next post will focus on the incredibly challenging Celeste. This game is very tough, yes, but it is excellent, often on sale, and you do not have to play long to follow along with my next post.

Edited by Joshua Buergel