I have played these types of games since the original Castlevania. Since then I can say I've beat some of the greats. Super Metroid, SOTN, Aria of Sorrow all the way down to Hollow Knight. Hollow Knight is a spiritual successor of all these games. You can tell from the first few minutes of the game that the creators really took a lot of the lessons to heart from previous incarnations of "Metroidvania" games. With that said this game is not a copy of those games. It adds its own world, lore, flavor, and most noticeably DIFFICULTY. Others have called this game the Dark Souls of the Metroidvania games and they wouldn't be wrong. This game is a challenge to anyone who seeks one. It has multiple avenues to completion (one of them being an insane boss rush mode which I'm sure more hardcore fans will love) and while difficult it proves to be very rewarding. I recommend any fan of the genre to enjoy a new world of bugs, knights, gods, and horrors! 10/10