Silksong surged past 562,000 concurrent Steam players on Sep 6, 2025, while the original Hollow Knight — released eight years earlier — simultaneously climbed to about 85,000 concurrent players, marking fresh peak activity for both titles.
Key Takeaways
- Silksong exceeded a 562,000 concurrent-player mark on Steam shortly after launch.
- Developed anticipation after seven years and a $20 price point helped drive Silksong’s spike.
- The eight-year-old Hollow Knight reached roughly 85,000 concurrent players at the same time, about four times its prior peak in 2022.
- Silksong has no critic Metacritic reviews yet due to the lack of advance copies; fan scores and Steam ratings are already public.
- Current Metacritic user score for Silksong is 8.9 and its Steam positive rating sits near 82%, versus Hollow Knight’s approximately 90% positive on Steam.
- Players note Silksong’s higher difficulty compared with Hollow Knight, a common comment in early reviews.
- Both titles continued to add thousands of players in the hours after these counts were posted.
Verified Facts
On Sep 6, 2025, Silksong’s concurrent Steam playercount moved past 562,000. That level is especially notable for a $20 indie sequel that had been anticipated by fans for seven years.
At the same time, Hollow Knight, first released eight years prior, registered around 85,000 concurrent players — a substantial increase versus its previous high from 2022. Reports indicated that Hollow Knight’s spike represented roughly a fourfold rise over that earlier peak.
Metacritic shows that Silksong had no aggregated critic reviews at publication time because advance copies were not distributed to reviewers; however, user-submitted fan scores were appearing, with an 8.9 average on Metacritic’s user rating page. On Steam, Silksong’s positive review percentage was near 82%, compared with Hollow Knight’s roughly 90% positive rating.
Early player feedback has repeatedly mentioned that Silksong feels more challenging than Hollow Knight. While some players flagged difficulty as a complaint, many others cited it as a welcome evolution of the series’ design.
Context & Impact
The simultaneity of both titles climbing in concurrent-player counts highlights how a major sequel launch can revive interest in its predecessor. In this case, Silksong’s release appears to have driven new players back to Hollow Knight or encouraged returning players to replay the original.
Silksong’s performance places it in contemporary Game of the Year conversations alongside other high-profile releases of 2025, including Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Blue Prince, Death Stranding 2, and Donkey Kong Bananza. Strong launch activity can sustain a long tail of sales and engagement for both the new release and the older title.
From a market perspective, a half-million-plus concurrent player peak for a modestly priced indie title is commercially significant: it can boost digital storefront visibility, increase word-of-mouth, and drive additional revenue through related merchandise and DLC opportunities.
Official Statements
No official broad public statement from Team Cherry or the Silksong publisher was available at the time of writing; developer comments, if issued, will be recorded in follow-up coverage.
Team Cherry / Publisher (no public comment)
Unconfirmed
- Predictions that Silksong might reach or exceed 600,000 concurrent players over the weekend remain speculative.
- The precise cause of Hollow Knight’s surge (for example, whether a discount or promotion triggered the increase) has not been publicly confirmed.
Bottom Line
Silksong’s launch has produced exceptional concurrent-player numbers for an indie release, and that momentum has coincided with a renewed peak for Hollow Knight. Verified figures point to unusually high engagement for both titles; how long those peaks last will depend on player retention, word-of-mouth, and any post-launch updates or promotions.