Hollow Knight: Silksong — Gameplay, Challenge and PC Requirements
Hornet's exploration and combat, the extra Steel Soul challenge, and Windows requirements—then choose the right store licence.
Quick answer
Silksong follows Hornet through an interconnected 2D kingdom, combining exploration, acrobatic combat and crafted tools. Team Cherry describes over 200 enemies; Steam also advertises over 40 bosses and an additional Steel Soul challenge after conquering the kingdom. Choose it for that combination, not just its art style. This is a researched overview, not a hands-on review.
Team Cherry describes a connected world of grottos, forests and citadels. Hornet explores it while fighting, finding allies and uncovering the reason for her capture. Her movement and attacks are acrobatic, with silken abilities and crafted tools supporting the journey.
The useful choice is exploration plus combat versus combat alone. If discovering routes and places is part of the appeal, the connected-world structure matters. If you only want a sequence of fights, look at gameplay showing travel between encounters as well as boss highlights before deciding.
What does the advertised challenge tell you?
The official site describes more than 200 enemies. Steam advertises more than 40 bosses and Steel Soul as a further challenge after conquering the kingdom. Those are publisher descriptions, not our count of mandatory fights or a completion requirement.
Decide whether practising movement and combat is something you want to spend time on. Enemy and boss totals cannot tell you how often you will retry a particular encounter. Watch an ordinary encounter as well as a successful boss run; use that to judge the kind of input and attention you want to give the game.
Windows requirements: compare the whole tier
Steam publishes the following Windows tiers. Check processor, graphics and available storage together, especially on an older laptop. Meeting the RAM figure alone is not a useful substitute for checking its graphics hardware.
Scroll sideways to compare every column.
Silksong Windows requirements — Steam, checked October 22, 2026
Component
Minimum
Recommended
Operating system
Windows 10 21H1, build 19043 or newer; 64-bit
Windows 10 21H1, build 19043 or newer; 64-bit
Processor
Intel Core i3-3240 or AMD FX-4300
Intel Core i5-3470
Memory
4 GB RAM
8 GB RAM
Graphics
GTX 560 Ti (1 GB) or Radeon HD 7750 (1 GB)
GTX 1050 (2 GB) or Radeon R9 380 (2 GB)
Storage / graphics API
8 GB available / DirectX 10
8 GB available / DirectX 10
Game choice and licence choice are different
First decide whether you want the exploration-and-combat combination and whether your device is suitable. Then check which store and device access you need. Owning one version is a reason to inspect your existing entitlement before paying again.
Use the linked PC/Xbox licence guide for Play Anywhere and the labelled Microsoft Store offer. This Windows requirements table describes the Steam listing; it does not establish another seller's activation terms.
Sources
Team Cherry: Hornet, interconnected world, abilities and enemy scale
Steam: boss and Steel Soul descriptions; Windows requirements, checked October 22, 2026
Platform and purchase choice
Choose your Silksong licence
Compare existing access, Play Anywhere and the labelled Microsoft Store PC/Xbox offer.