Why Hollow Knight Silksong Took Seven Years

Introduction: From Anticipated Sequel to Internet Mythos

In the vast, interconnected realm of gaming culture, few phenomena are as simultaneously hilarious and painful as the wait for Hollow Knight: Silksong. What began in 2019 as one of the most hotly anticipated indie sequels ever conceived has since transcended its status as a mere video game. It has become a legend, a benchmark for development cycles, and most famously, a ubiquitous internet meme.

For seven years, a community has been born from a shared experience of anticipation, hope, and eventual, resigned humor. The phrase ’Silksong News’ now triggers a Pavlovian response of both excitement and skepticism among gamers. But how did we get here? How did a game from the small, dedicated team at Team Cherry morph into the gaming equivalent of waiting for Godot? This is the story of why Hollow Knight: Silksong became more than a game—it became a meme.

The Genesis of Hope: How Silksong Was First Revealed

To understand the meme, you must first understand the overwhelming wave of excitement that started it all. The original Hollow Knight (2017) was a masterpiece. From developer Team Cherry, it was a stunningly crafted, densely packed Metroidvania that far exceeded its Kickstarter promises. It cultivated a massive, dedicated fanbase hungry for more.

The announcement for Silksong was, in hindsight, too perfect. It was initially planned as DLC for the original game, but the scope ballooned so dramatically that Team Cherry decided to make it a full-fledged sequel. The February 2019 reveal trailer was a siren’s call: a faster, more vertical combat system, a new protagonist (Hornet), over 165 new enemies, and a completely new kingdom to explore. The response was euphoric. The game was even announced for a release on PC, Mac, Linux, and Nintendo Switch.

And then... silence.

The Four Pillars of the Silksong Meme

The transformation from ’highly anticipated game’ to ’enduring internet joke’ wasn’t instantaneous. It was built on a foundation of four key factors that fueled the community’s descent into meme-filled cope.

1. The Agony of Radio Silence

The most significant catalyst has been Team Cherry’s notorious, almost monastic, communication strategy. After the initial burst of information in 2019 and a deep-dive blog post later that year, the updates slowed to a trickle and then vanished entirely.

Their last official blog update was on their website in 2019. Their last major tweet was in 2021. This vacuum of information is the primary engine of the meme. In the age of constant updates, live service games, and developer livestreams, Team Cherry’s silence is an anomaly. It left fans with nothing but their own imaginations, which quickly turned to humor to fill the void.

2. The ’Any Day Now’ Cycle of Hope and Despair

The meme is perpetuated by a cyclical pattern of hype and letdown. Every major gaming event—Summer Game Fest, Nintendo Direct, The Game Awards—becomes a potential stage for Silksong’s re-emergence. The cycle is predictable:

1. Rumors swirl ahead of a major showcase.
2. The community hypes itself into a fervor on Reddit, Twitter, and Discord.
3. The event happens. Silksong is no-shows.
4. The community collectively sighs and responds with self-deprecating memes.

This cycle has repeated itself dozens of times over the years, hardening the fanbase’s resolve to expect nothing, yet hope for everything. The phrase ’It’s definitely going to be at the next one’ is itself a meme.

3. The Masterpiece That Was Hollow Knight

You can’t have a seven-year wait for a sequel if the original wasn’t utterly brilliant. The enduring quality of the first game is what makes the wait so poignant. New players continue to discover and fall in love with Hollow Knight every day, joining the ranks of those waiting for Silksong. The memes are a testament to how much people care. The jokes aren’t born from malice but from a deep, aching desire to experience another world as rich and compelling as Hallownest. The longer the wait, the higher the expectations climb, fueling both anxiety and humor.

4. The Community’s Descent into ’Cope’

In internet parlance, ’cope’ refers to the mechanisms people use to deal with a disappointing reality. The Silksong fandom has become a master architect of cope, and their creations are the memes themselves. This has taken many forms:

• The ’Yahoo!’ Meme: A screenshot of Hornet saying ’Yahoo!’ from an early build became a stand-in for any fake or desperate ’leak.’
• ’Source: I made it up’: A common caption used to mock the endless, baseless rumors that circulate before every gaming event.
• Youtuber Leth (’The Silksong Guy’): Team Cherry’s former PR and marketing manager became a singular focal point for the community. His monthly ’Silksong News’ videos, which often contained no news, became a beloved ritual. His catchphrase, ’See you next month!’ is both a promise and a meme.
• Fake Release Dates: Joke announcements for dates like ’February 31st’ or ’Yesterday’ are common.

The community isn’t just waiting; it’s actively entertaining itself by satirizing its own wait. The memes are a social bond, a way to say, ’I’m still here, waiting with you.’

Beyond the Meme: Why the Wait Might Be a Good Thing

While the memes are born from frustration, there’s a strong undercurrent of understanding. Most fans recognize that game development, especially for a small, perfectionist team, takes time. Rushing a game as anticipated as Silksong would be a disaster.

The radio silence, while agonizing, suggests the developers are heads-down, focused on creating their vision without external pressure. They aren’t promising features they can’t deliver or crunching to meet a arbitrary deadline. The legacy of Hollow Knight grants them this patience. The memes, in a strange way, are a form of support—a way for the community to vent its anticipation without turning toxic. It’s a shared inside joke on a global scale.

Conclusion: The Meme Will Live On Until Release Day

The saga of Hollow Knight: Silksong is a unique chapter in gaming history. It’s a story about how a community’s passion can transform into a self-sustaining culture of humor and patience. The seven-year wait (and counting) has been frustrating, but it has also been incredibly creative.

The memes are a testament to the impact of the original game and the burning desire for the sequel. They are a language of shared experience, a way to cope with the unknown. And when Silksong finally does release—whether it’s tomorrow or in another seven years—the eruption of joy will be monumental. The memes will shift from ’where is it?’ to ’it’s finally here,’ and a new chapter for one of gaming’s most patient communities will begin.