Ichin didn't let Shinoda Hajime completely defeat the Hornet boss. Instead, he had her stop midway through the fight.
"Okay, that's it for the live gameplay demonstration of the Switch version. As for how to beat this boss, you'll have to figure that out yourselves when the game releases."
Completely ignoring the barrage of comments demanding they finish the fight, Ichin cheerfully instructed Shinoda Hajime to exit the game and switch over to the PC version's interface.
"Before we dive into gameplay, let's first take a look at the game's settings page. Unlike the Switch version, the PC version offers resolution and frame rate settings. For frame rates, the maximum option is 'Unlimited.' Of course, the game doesn't require much in terms of hardware. Most computers can easily run it smoothly at 1080p and 60 FPS. Right now, we've selected a 2K resolution and set the frame rate to a standard 60 FPS.
We've also turned on the frame rate monitoring software so you can clearly see the game's performance."
The specs Ichin mentioned made most of the viewers in the stream chat green with envy.
Seeing those comments, Ichin calmly explained, "No need to be jealous. For regular gameplay, this level of performance is absolute overkill. If your monitor is 1080p, then a 3060 Ti or 3070 graphics card is more than enough. Even for 2K resolution, most games can be run smoothly at 60 FPS. Game developers always ensure their games are accessible to most players' computer specs. Even now, the most commonly used graphics cards on Steam are still the 1050 Ti and 1060. You even see plenty of people using the 750 Ti."
Ichin's statement was true, but it didn't stop everyone from drooling over the studio's high-end hardware.
"Playing _Minesweeper_ on that setup would be buttery smooth!"
"Yep, absolutely! Even _Minesweeper_ would have zero frame drops!"
After throwing out a playful comment in response, Ichin signaled for Shinoda Hajime to start the game.
This time, the showcased area wasn't an early-game location but a mid-game zone called the _Ancient Basin_, which also featured a boss—the _Broken Vessel_.
"Huh? What's this area?"
After quickly loading the save file, Shinoda Hajime looked around the unfamiliar region, confused. "My own save file hasn't gotten this far yet!"
Now completely lost, she had to rely on Ichin's guidance to head toward the _Ancient Basin_.
Seeing the comments, Shinoda Hajime glanced at the translation and immediately fired back, "Yes, I'm part of the development team! But I'm an action designer, you know? Action design! I don't handle map design, so of course, I wouldn't know the way!"
After taking just a few steps, she was suddenly confronted by a charging enemy.
"Ah, I know this monster! I designed its moves... Wait, why is it so fast?!"
"BAM!"
She was hit directly by a leaping strike, losing a health point.
Just as she tried to pull back to assess the enemy's movements, another flying creature suddenly appeared from behind, glaring at her menacingly from above.
"Where the heck did that come from? I didn't even see it!"
Panicking and fumbling with the controls, Shinoda Hajime quickly lost her life and was sent back to the last checkpoint.
Looking at the character that just revived, Shinoda Hajime felt a slight headache.
"Ah~~ This isn't looking good. And it's happening during a livestream, too."
Glancing at the barrage of comments on the screen, she indeed saw a flood of amused messages.
"Argh! I'm not giving up. Let's go again!"
Controlling the protagonist, Shinoda Hajime began her second attempt.
Ichin, of course, was quite happy to see this situation. After Shinoda Hajime successfully passed the spot where she previously died, he began explaining, "Everyone, you don't have to stress too much about being defeated by monsters and respawning at the checkpoint. One of the core aspects of this game is providing players with countless opportunities to learn through trial and error. Failing once isn't a big deal. All you need to do is return to the area where you previously failed and challenge it again. And whatever you lost from dying before? You can reclaim it all."
Progressing steadily forward, Shinoda Hajime defeated monsters one by one. The regular enemies weren't too challenging as long as she was careful, but she still ended up dying once when facing an elite monster, forcing her to restart from the checkpoint.
Throughout this process, Ichin didn't give her any tips. He merely continued explaining the enemies encountered and the various game mechanics.
Finally, after half an hour, Shinoda Hajime reached the boss area of the _Ancient Basin_ and confronted the boss: the _Broken Vessel_.
As soon as the battle began, Shinoda Hajime felt something was off.
"Wait, why are the boss's moves different from how I originally designed them? Ichin, did you change them? Why didn't I know about this?!"
Ichin chuckled and replied, "If I told you, wouldn't it be boring when you play the game yourself? You'd already know all the boss's moves. So, I made some adjustments to the attack patterns of the bosses you designed. That way, even as the designer, you'll have a fresh experience while playing. Oh, watch out—it's coming."
Just as Ichin finished speaking, the boss leaped into the air and dashed over the protagonist's head. Suddenly, an orange, jelly-like bug materialized above the character, dropping down from above.
Thankfully, Shinoda Hajime reacted quickly, launching an attack upward and taking down the summoned creature.
But before she could catch her breath, the boss leaped high once more, drew a weapon from its back, and dove down with a lightning-fast thrust aimed at the protagonist.
"Ah!! I got hit! Why does it have a bit of tracking on its attacks?!"
After surviving for two minutes and using up all her healing energy, Shinoda Hajime finally met her end once again and was returned to the checkpoint.
Although she had managed to hit the boss quite a few times, it was clear she hadn't done enough damage to defeat it.
After explaining to the viewers where this boss appeared within the game's progression, Ichin glanced at Shinoda Hajime. "So, what do you think? Want to try again?"
"Of course! One more time!"
With a loud shout, Shinoda Hajime set off once more.
This time, the viewers finally understood what Ichin meant earlier.
On her way to the boss area, Shinoda Hajime had already memorized the path and all the monsters she would encounter. With fluid, precise dodges and attacks, she defeated everything along the way without losing a single hit point and reached the boss area once more.
Originally, the game had a feature where, upon death, a shadow version of oneself would appear where the player died. Defeating this shadow would allow the player to reclaim their lost soul energy.
However, since this type of game was a first of its kind, Ichin had decided not to include that feature right away. Instead, he planned to add it and other new mechanics and gameplay elements through updates after the game's release.
Ichin had no intention of abandoning _Hollow Knight_ after launch. In fact, he had a ton of ideas for post-game content and extra features he still wanted to implement.
...
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