Everyone’s Disappointed Hollow Knight: Silksong And Sports Story Weren’t At Nintendo Indie World

Another Nintendo Indie World presentation means another opportunity for Hollow Knight: Silksong and Sports Story fans to have their hopes dashed against the indifferent rocks. Today’s Nintendo Indie World featured a slew of cool-looking games, some of which are out today, but not two of the most anticipated indies that have been missing-in-action for some time.

Hollow Knight: Silksong, a sequel to the beloved action metroidvania game, was first announced in 2019, but since then updates have been sporadic and infrequent. It may seem longer because every time Nintendo announces a showcase, and especially an indie showcase like Indie World, the community gets its hopes up. This time those hopes were partially fueled by a recent statement given by developer Team Cherry at its acceptance of a 2021 Unity Award.

“We’re honored that Hollow Knight: Silksong won the 2021 Unity Award for the most anticipated game, and hugely appreciate all of the fans who support us as we work on the game. Thank you so much. We’re looking forward to the day we can share the game with you all. It can’t be too much longer, surely!”

Granted, it’s not Team Cherry’s fault that it made a cheeky comment about the wait and then shortly after Nintendo announced an Indie World. But this is a game that fans have been pining after. Our own Jordan Ramée wrote it a love letter! So some disappointment is to be expected.

Similarly absent has been Sports Story, the anticipated follow-up to Sidebar Games’ RPG Golf Story. After originally targeting a 2020 release, it has slipped into a nebulous “TBA” window. The most recent update was last year, assuring fans that development is ongoing.

As mentioned, both games were absent from the Nintendo Indie World Showcase. This isn’t exactly confidence-inspiring in either case. But the year is young, and both studios have plenty of time left to give more news if either or both are indeed coming this year.

In fact, we don’t actually know for sure if either one will be shown at an Indie World Showcase, as they may have both passed a certain degree of indie notoriety that will put them on the main stage. If that’s the case, we could see more from them at a Nintendo Direct, the streaming presentations reserved for Nintendo first-party and bigger third-party releases. Or they could pair up with one of the indie collective presentations that began to populate after E3 went on hiatus during the pandemic.

And since June is coming, those larger presentations may be on the way soon. Keep up with our Not-E3 Press Conference Schedule for more on when you can see tons of presentations on upcoming games.