Hollow Knight: Silksong causes indie games to delay and change release dates

Multiple indie games have been delayed in the wake of Hollow Knight: Silksong’s release date, but should bigger titles be concerned too?

Hollow Knight: Silksong has been the main talking point of Gamescom 2025 since it started, both because it was playable but also due to the announcement of an actual release date.

Developed by Team Cherry, the Soulslike Metroidvania is a sequel to Hollow Knight, which has sold 15 million copies since it launched in 2017.

The hype around Silksong has increased to an insatiable degree amongst certain circles, due to the lack of updates over the last several years, but after the announcement that it’s less than two weeks away, other indie games are now fleeing in terror to avoid its splash zone.

Following the reveal of the release date, three games have since announced delays. The first is CloverPit, a roguelite slot machine title which was originally slated for September 3, one day prior to Silksong’s drop on September 4.

‘Due to Silksong (can’t wait to play) launching just a day after CloverPit, we decided to delay our release,’ developers Panik Arcade posted on Bluesky. ‘Our new release date is 26th Sept.

‘We poured our hearts into our little game, so we want to give it the best possible shot. Thanks for understanding!!’

This was followed by role-player Faeland, from developer Talegames, which was originally slated for September 9 but is now undated. ‘This wasn’t an easy decision,’ they note. ‘We’ve poured years of work and love into Faeland, and we want to make sure it arrives at a time when it can receive the attention and care it deserves.

‘We’ll be sharing a new release date very soon. Thank you so much for your understanding and for being with us on this journey, it truly means a lot.’

The other title hit by the Silksong shockwave is Aeterna Lucis from Aeternum Game Studios, a sequel to Aeterna Noctis. The Metroidvania was originally planned for September 2025, but is now being pushed back to 2026.

‘The game is already finished, and we will use this additional time to keep polishing it, refining every detail, and making sure it delivers the perfect experience our community deserves,’ Aeternum wrote. ‘We know this change disrupts many of our strategies, but we are confident that with your support we can overcome this major challenge.’

Despite the upheavel however, the developer isn’t upset with Team Cherry, adding: ‘We also want to take this opportunity to thank Team Cherry. There’s no need to wish them luck – we know Silksong will be a success and a masterpiece.

‘Instead of rivalry, what we feel is gratitude: thanks to them, the Metroidvania genre is more alive than ever and, in fact, they were one of the main inspirations that led us to create Aeterna Noctis and the entire saga now in development.’

The big question is whether Hollow Knight: Silksong will impact games beyond the indie sphere. On the same day, action adventure title Hell Is Us is set to launch, while Bloober Team’s Cronos: The New Dawn is set to drop a day later.

Although both are much bigger budget than Silksong, they don’t necessarily have the same visibility, in what is a rare example of an indie game sucking all the air out of the room instead of a triple-A title.

This sweep of delays is reminiscent of the tactical dodges to avoid the launch of GTA 6 in May next year. Which may even be the reason for the Switch 2’s unusual June release date, when GTA 6 was originally thought to be coming out this year.

However, while GTA 6 will certainly make life extremely difficult for other triple-A games that are released near to it, indie games will likely find it easier to coexist.

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