Australian Gaming Triumph: Hollow Knight Sequel Crashes Global Stores
Adelaide-based Team Cherry's Hollow Knight: Silksong launch overwhelms global gaming platforms, showcasing Australian indie gaming excellence with over 100,000 players in first half-hour.
Team Cherry's Hollow Knight: Silksong causes unprecedented demand across global gaming platforms
In a remarkable display of Australian gaming success, Adelaide-based Team Cherry's highly anticipated Hollow Knight: Silksong caused multiple digital storefronts to crash on Thursday due to overwhelming demand, demonstrating the growing influence of Australia's thriving tech ecosystem.
Global Platform Outages
The launch at 15:00 BST saw major gaming platforms, including Steam, Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox stores, struggle under unprecedented user traffic. Steam's outage tracker recorded peak issues of 3,750 user reports, with disruptions lasting approximately two and a half hours.
Record-Breaking Success
Despite the technical challenges, which mirror recent digital platform launches in Western Australia, Silksong achieved remarkable success. Within just 30 minutes of launch, Steam recorded over 100,000 concurrent players, showcasing the franchise's massive appeal since its 2017 debut.
Team Cherry's Innovation
The success highlights the innovative spirit of Australia's indie game development scene. Team Cherry, a three-person studio, has created a distinctive gaming experience that has sold over 15 million copies worldwide, demonstrating how digital innovation can capture global markets.
"The fact that people keep discovering Hollow Knight suggests that it hasn't fallen out of date," said William Pellen, Team Cherry developer. "We were making something that was to our tastes, and that meant that we were making things that were slightly different."
Cultural Impact
The game's unique art style and gameplay mechanics have established a new benchmark in the indie gaming industry, with its fantasy world of fighter insects resonating with players globally. The sequel's focus on the character Hornet has already garnered critical acclaim for its innovative approach to the genre.
Jack Thompson
Reporter based in Sydney, Jack covers climate issues, migration policies, and Australia's Indo-Pacific strategy.