Hollow Knight: Silksong vs Replaced
One gives you 28 hours of silk-slinging combat and a budget price; the other asks 11 hours for pixel art and a story, with weaker fighting.
Updated 15d ago
Hornet's pogo-and-dash silk kit moves better than the original's, and 40 hours at $20 is absurd value — unless you bounce off punishing boss timing.
Buy Replaced for its gorgeous pixel-art and atmospheric storytelling, if you can tolerate lackluster combat.
By the numbers
Prices checked Oct 9; they move faster than we refresh, so confirm on the store page.
Recent-review figures are Steam's own last-30-days window, read Oct 9.
| Measure | Hollow Knight: Silksong | Replaced |
|---|---|---|
| Value | ||
| Price now | $19.99 Microsoft Store | $19.99 Microsoft Store |
| All-time low | $14.99 | $14.99 |
| Cost / hour | $0.71/hr $19.99 · 28 h main story | $1.89/hr $19.99 · 11 h main story |
| Off its low | +33% low was May 2026 | +33% low was Jul 2026 |
| Main story | 28 h | 11 h |
| Health Hollow Knight: Silksong wins on player health | ||
| Steam reviews | 90% 425k reviews | 85% 10k reviews |
| Recent reviews | 91% 3k votes · vs 90% lifetime | 89% 531 votes · vs 85% lifetime |
| Peak players | 12,546 Sep 2026 · ↑ 2% MoM | 322 Sep 2026 · ↓ 17% MoM |
| Launch peak | 3% of Sep 2025 launch peak · as of Sep 2026 | 9% of Apr 2026 launch peak · as of Sep 2026 |
| All-time peak | 462,134 Sep 2025 | 3,547 Apr 2026 |
| Support | ||
| Last patch | 7 months ago | 4 months ago |
| Patch cadence | 0 in last 90 days | 0 in last 90 days |
| Steam Deck | Platinum | Platinum |
Shared scale — same months across the bottom, same player-count axis up the side, so the two lines are directly comparable. A shorter line means a younger game.
What players say
Patterns from long-haul reviewers, taken from each game's verdict. Not live sentiment — each side is dated below.
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Hornet's silk-tool kit—pogo, wall-cling, and the needling dash—keeps veterans experimenting well past hour 100, with the movement system called smoother than the original.
from our August 2026 verdict
Replaced
The hand-painted pixel-art and atmospheric world design is what keeps players coming back, even past 20 hours.
Combat pacing feels repetitive after a few hours, with bullet-deflect mechanics and limited enemy variety wearing thin.
from our May 2026 verdict
Key differences
Which one is for you?
Pick Hollow Knight: Silksong if
- You loved Hollow Knight's map-reading and dead-eyed bug charm
- You want a 40-hour exploration game on a budget
- You own a Switch and prefer boss fights with clear telegraphs
Pick Replaced if
- Hand-painted pixel art and cinematic 2D animation drive your purchases
- You want a short slow-burn sci-fi story about AI consciousness
- You don't need deep combat to stay engaged in a platformer
Bottom line
Pick Silksong if you want 28 hours of punishing, rewarding combat for under a dollar an hour; pick Replaced if you'll trade weak fighting for pixel-art atmosphere and an 11-hour story.