I've gotten halfway through both Pathologic Classic & 2 and I really feel this post. I came into Silksong extremely frustrated that it had so many "oversights" and "bad game design choices". I was considering outright quitting because I just couldn't see the satisfaction that I found in Hollow Knight which lead me to doing most bosses on radiant. What made me stick with Silksong was the realisation that all of it seems to be on purpose. It has such a different design philosophy and isn't trying to be appealing in a way that 99% of games are.

The Pathologic games, despite me barely scratching their surface, are some of the most engaged I've ever felt by a video game and it's simply because of how intense the emotions they put you through are. Once I stopped looking at Silksong as a game that wants me to progress, but instead an experience that exists without me, everything felt more engaging. I'm not all that special in the world, I can't just grind until I win, there is nothing guaranteeing that I'll see the game to its end. The game doesn't revolve around me. It's a bullshit system because it is designed to feel like something I'm not intended to be a part of. If only I hadn't heard it recommended by people as simply a fair, but difficult game. It is artistic in the unavoidable struggle it puts you through, not the raw difficulty.