Being set in the bug-dominated world of Hollow Knight, players are expected to explore and fight through the fallen kingdom of Hallownest. While traveling through various environments, players will eventually find out how to stop the infection and work toward entering the Temple of the Black Egg. Eventually, the Knight will defeat the actual Hollow Knight and (potentially) the Radiance. The infection is dealt with and the kingdom is able to persist for a little while longer. The player has beaten the game. So now what?
The kingdom itself is massive and filled with various challenges. Be it battling bosses, exploring Hallownest’s various environments, or performing platforming challenges; there are quite a few things the player can do once they beat the game. Most of them involve some form of combat or platforming, but that is pretty standards for a Metroidvania like Hollow Knight.
Collect Charms, Notches, Vessel Fragments and Mask Shards in Hollow Knight
A simple activity, but it can be worthwhile. But scattered throughout Hallownest is a selection of charms that can potentially be useful to the player. They can be found after beating a boss, in secret locations, or bought from merchants. But completing a charm collection is one way the player can spend their time. Each collected charm gives the player the ability to tailor their playstyle and experiment with combat tactics. Similarly, charm notches will allow the players to use more charms if they collect enough of them.
But unlike charms where the Knight has to pick and choose which ones they want to use, vessel fragments and mask shards can give the player permanent upgrades for every 3rd fragment they collect. These upgrades result in the player having a higher soul capacity and health respectively. It should be noted that while some fragments can be found in merchant’s shops or as rewards, most of them are found by exploring Hallownest and completing various platforming challenges. This will have the player going through Hallownest’s various regions as they attempt to make their character stronger.
Find All the Grubs in the Hollow Knight
The player has already noticed this, but all throughout the kingdom there are grubs that have been captured in glass containers. They can be found in every region and for each grub saved the Grubfather in the Forgotten Crossroads will give the Knight a reward. These rewards can include geo, charms, relics, and more.
But if the player manages to collect all of the grubs, then the player will receive the “Metamorphosis” achievement and the Grubberfly’s Elegy charm, which will allow the Knight to send out a nail slash projectile when they are at full health. To make finding the grubs easier, players are recommended to enter the Tower of Love in the City of Tears and fight the residential boss known as the Collector. This will give the Knight a map showing the location of each and every captured grub. Finding each grub will be made incredibly easy after that.
Fight in the Colosseum of Fools in Hollow Knight
Within Kingdom’s Edge lies a colosseum where the player can fight an array of enemies in order to achieve glory, geo, achievements, and other rewards. Forcing the player to defeat several waves of enemies in a changing arena, the Colosseum of Fools represents a massive challenge for the player to overcome in the base game.
It has three trials to choose from, with each trial more difficult than the last. Defeat the arena's challenges and the player will receive a massive amount of geo, pale ore, and a few other rewards. Players are highly recommended to complete the colosseum's trials before completing other challenges like the content found in the Godmaster DLC.
Complete the Delicate Flower Quest in Hollow Knight
It is a bit difficult to locate, but there does exist an NPC quest where the Knight is charged with transporting a delicate flower from the Resting Grounds to the Queen’s Gardens without receiving any damage. Complete this difficult quest and not only will the player receive a rare achievement, but they will also receive a mask shard and the ability to present delicate flowers to certain NPCs throughout the game.
It is a difficult quest all by itself, but it is something players can spend their time on. Plus, it comes with a decent amount of interesting lore for those who are interested in it. But be warned, attempting to complete this quest can easily frustrate some players. With the quest requiring the player to abstain from fast travel, it is not at all uncommon for a player to be forced to retry the quest over and over again.
Traverse the White Palace in Hollow Knight
If the player achieves the awakened dream nail by collecting 1800 essence, then the player can go to the Palace Grounds and enter the sealed dream of the fallen Kingsmould. This will take the player to the White Palace, an area that consists of various platforming challenges. Challenges that, if overcome, will give the player access to a piece of the Kingsoul charm. This charm is a necessary component for reaching some of the game’s alternate endings.
Due to the area’s platforming focus, players are recommended to bring the Hiveblood and Grubsong charms since they will help the Knight regain health after failing platforming attempts. It just makes things a bit more convenient. Certainly more convenient than having to die or return to the nearest bench every time they reach a difficult platforming section.
It should also be noted that there does exist another platforming section in the White Palace if players really enjoy platforming that much. It is called the Path of Pain and it is a hidden location that can be accessed by breaking a certain wall. Just be warned that the Path of Pain lives up to its name. It is so difficult to overcome that the regular White Palace seems easy by comparison.
Attempt to Defeat the Pantheons in Hollow Knight
One of Hollow Knight's free DLCs is called Godmaster, and it adds the infamous Godhome to the game. Requiring the player to find and access the Junk Pit, this DLC is defined by its boss battles. If the player wants to hone their skills on a specific boss they can visit the Hall of Gods and challenge their boss of choice on various difficulty levels.
But the main feature of Godmaster is its pantheons. Consisting of a series of glorified boss rushes, these pantheons will pit the player against an array of bosses back to back. With there being so little time to heal, the player has to have supreme confidence in their fighting ability in order to overcome even one of these pantheons. But once the player defeats the first pantheon, they will then be granted access to another. One with tougher enemies and a set or arenas that have its own hazards like spikes and pitfalls. In some cases, there isn’t even a floor. So not only does the player need to be good at combat, but they need to have decent platforming skills.
In many ways, the pantheons represent the greatest challenge for Hollow Knight players. A challenge that requires the player to be the absolute best if they want to overcome the final pantheon and get a new ending of the game.
Hollow Knight is available on PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and PlayStation 4