Few indie titles have drawn industry attention like Hollow Knight: Silksong. Developed by Team Cherry, it has reshaped expectations for game pricing, accessibility and cultural impact in the global gaming industry.
One of the most interesting details was the $20 launch price. In a market where $60-$70 has become extremely common for AAA releases, Silksong’s affordability shocked many. The pricing reflected Team Cherry’s philosophy of accessibility, showing that high quality experiences do not require insane costs. “For how much time and effort Team Cherry put into the game, selling it for $20 seems way underpriced. I think price is part of the reason it’s so popular,” said senior Grant Cabay.
The low price point has challenged assumptions about how much games should be worth. Players compared Silksong’s vast content, hand-drawn art and intricate gameplay to titles that cost more than three times as much, such as the Madden games. This difference sparked discussions on fairness, profit and long-term sustainability of having low prices for larger gaming corporations and other indie games.
After the release, downloads for the game skyrocketed in comparison to previously released indie games. Steam, Xbox, PlayStation and even Nintendo websites all experienced temporary crashes as millions of users attempted to download the game simultaneously, some games even taking hours to days to download.
The sheer amount of sales in a short amount of time exceeded what large gaming corporations are able to accomplish. Team Cherry, a small studio consisting of only three individuals, achieved this level of attention and commercial success through their hard work and dedication to the game.
The game sold millions of copies in just a few days; the number could have been larger if it weren’t for the store crashes. The performance made Silksong one of the most popular games this year, proving that large companies do not own the gaming world.
By trying to get more people to buy the game with a $20 price, Team Cherry reached a larger audience, including younger players and those who refused to pay $70 for new titles or videogames in general. “The fact that the price is only $20 supports the fact that game companies don’t have to overcharge games to be successful,” said senior Atharva Anthati.
Gamers praised Team Cherry’s approach, viewing the launch as proof that small studios could challenge how the gaming industry is today. Developers will likely study the success of Silksong’s pricing, timing and quality to see how their games can adopt these attributes. “Silksong has proven that indie studios can continue to succeed after having one successful game,” said Anthati.
Hollow Knight: Silksong was more than just a sequel, it was a model of how pricing, quality and player hype can affect sales of both major gaming corporations and small indie games.
