Silksong Developers Address Review Bombing Concerns Regarding Chinese Translation

Hollow Knight: Silksong has encountered significant backlash from players in China, primarily due to issues related to its translation for that market. The development team has acknowledged these concerns and is working on a resolution.

Upon its release, Silksong experienced tremendous success, crashing multiple retail platforms and breaking player count records for its predecessor within minutes. The game has received an abundance of favorable reviews on Steam across various regions.

However, the situation differs sharply in China, where the title is undergoing a review bombing campaign. Expert critiques of the translation have been harsh, with one analyst likening it to a “high-school drama club’s Elizabethan improv night.”

Significant Negative Feedback on Chinese Version

Review metrics on Steam illustrate a concerning disparity. While the game enjoys overwhelmingly positive reviews in most regions, the Chinese localization shows only 38% of nearly 32, 000 reviews categorized as positive. This stark contrast signals major dissatisfaction among Chinese players.

The root of the negative feedback stems from the subpar translation of the dialogue. Despite the characters communicating in gibberish, the narrative is conveyed through textual elements. Consequently, the inability to comprehend these texts hampers players’ understanding of the storyline.

Artwork featuring Hornet, the main character in Hollow Knight: Silksong — Team Cherry

Translation authority Loek van Kooten underscored the translation issues, declaring the dialogue Silksong’s “real final boss”in a detailed blog post. In it, he retranslated samples back into English to showcase the challenges posed by the original text, including complex phrases such as: “With nary a spirit nor thought shalt thou persist, bereft of mortal will, unbent, unswayed…”

Team Cherry’s Commitment to Improvement

The concerns raised by players have not gone unnoticed. Team Cherry’s marketing and publishing lead, Matthew Griffin, publicly acknowledged the negative feedback and assured the community that enhancements to the Chinese translation were forthcoming.

In an update shared via social media, Griffin stated: “To our Chinese speaking fans: We appreciate you letting us know about quality issues with the current Simplified Chinese translation of Hollow Knight: Silksong. We’ll be working to improve the translation over the coming weeks. Thanks for your feedback and support.”

To our Chinese speaking fans: We appreciate you letting us know about quality issues with the current Simplified Chinese translation of Hollow Knight: Silksong. We’ll be working to improve the translation over the coming weeks. Thanks for your feedback and support.

— Matthew Griffin (@griffinmatta) September 5, 2025