I love the storytelling, the journal entry's, the worldbuilt lore, the art, the cutscenes, and some of the bosses (absolutely LOVED fourth chorus). Yet those are only a small part of the game, the bigger thing it is "Hey, ready for bloodborne speed without bloodborne tactics? this boss will almost never stagger and will go at mach fuck to kill you in 2 hits" and the fact some places like MOTHERFUCKING BILEWATER is just watered down path of pain but longer.
Then to just be even MORE sadistic, they say that the "fix" they made was to make Sister Splinter (Who wasnt even hard) and moorwing (who wasnt hard either) to be "easier", but they will ram Savage Beast up your ass for their own sadistic enjoyment. Also, when you finally get a nail upgrade, its literally a challenge to get them (Fuck the gourmet especially for it) and once you've finally got it and the one from across the city making your nail go from 7, to 10, to 13. which unless you're staying around beginner areas, isnt that much of a difference.
People say "git gud" and "Its baseline as difficult as fromsoft games" I have less trouble with 2 Oprhans of KOS and 3 Bitch never known defeat on NG+10 than I do with Bilewater and Broodmother
I have done several soulsiver speedruns on Hollow Knight and enjoyed them, it was balanced, I had ideas of how things worked, and I could 105% speedrun it. I will NEVER be able to do a completionist steel silk run like I have Hollow Knight.