Cut Enemies From Hollow Knight Explained

gamerant.com:

While Hollow Knight already boasts an extensive variety of creatures inhabiting Hallownest that are inspired by all sorts of creepy-crawlies, there are actually several species that never made it into the final version of the game. While content winding up on the cutting room floor is par for the course in game development, Hollow Knight brings with it the added complication of being crowdfunded on Kickstarter, where content from stretch goals never made it to the game if said goals were never reached.

However, with honorable mentions of the odd character getting cut such as snails or shrumals, there is an extensive list of different enemies, bosses, and species being cut for a range of reasons, from simple explanations of not hitting stretch goals to certain enemies disrupting the overall design of the game. With Hollow Knight: Silksong currently in development and anticipation high for its eventual launch, players are wondering if cut content from the first game will find its way into the sequel, whether it's an expanded role for spiders owing to protagonist Hornet's Weaver-lineage or an entire species line of ants that never saw an official release.

Every Fan Theory About Hollow Knight: Silksong So Far

One of the simpler examples of a cut enemy, the Blundering Obelisk was a centipede-like creature that, judging by its description leftover in the game, was intended more as an obstacle than a hostile threat. It states that while it doesn't wish harm, its actions and movements can cause messy outcomes, suggesting the player may have been expected to kill these enemies if only to safely pass by within areas of Hallownest. This could explain why it was cut, as it would have come across as unnecessarily cruel to kill an enemy