Source Gaming had the opportunity to chat with Team Cherry Co-Directors Ari Gibson and William Pellen to talk about the critically acclaimed Hollow Knight to get some background on the team’s thinking. It turns out that the initial plan for Hollow Knight was the create a “very small” Metroidvania and it wasn’t until the success of the Kickstarter that they realised they could go expand and create the indie masterpiece that we have now. The duo also said that they were debating lowering the Kickstarter goal just days before it went live as they weren’t sure if they were going to achieve it.
Okay, so switching gears a little bit here. With the Kickstarter, I believe you guys raised around like AU$58,000?
William: Yeah.
To us, that kind of seems like a pretty modest budget considering what the game achieved and how it’s grown. So whenever you set your initial goal, which was even lower than what you guys got, was that really a number you guys were comfortable with? In a“we can do everything we want now” kind of way?
Ari: Yeah, it was a number we were comfortable with for the scale of game that we intended to make at the time. So, the goal that we set was something like AU$35,000.
William: Yeah, we were debating it before the kickstarter. I think we changed it up from like AU$30,000 a few days before it went live. We were debating that for a while.
Ari: But that number was to create a Metroidvania that was very small. It was really like a small thing.
William: Like two hours or something.
Ari: And then the success of the campaign allowed us to make it a level bigger. And then because of funding that we got entirely from that campaign, it allowed us to work for a period of two years, essentially, and that allowed the game to get bigger again.
Nobody cares about this game clearly. Should’ve come out two years ago. Dreadful.
This is about an incredibly successful game that’s been out for years you weird reactionary goon
No one asked or cares. Back to Reddit :)
Crazy to think how something as epic as Hollow Knight started with such humble plans! Just shows how passion can grow into greatness. While waiting on Silksong, I’ve been hooked on Subway Surfers Mod Online — nonstop fun and perfect for quick breaks! 🚀🎮
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It’s always fascinating to hear about the humble beginnings of games like Hollow Knight. The fact that Team Cherry initially aimed for such a small scale project but ended up creating a modern Metroidvania classic really shows how powerful community support can be through platforms like Kickstarter. Their story is a reminder of how indie passion, paired with just enough funding, can lead to something truly impactful. I actually wrote a piece on indie game development journeys over at https://thespikegame.com/ worth checking out if you’re into behind-the-scenes stories like this.
It’s always inspiring to hear about the humble beginnings of games like Hollow Knight. Team Cherry originally set out to create a small-scale project, yet with passion, persistence, and the power of community support through Kickstarter, they transformed it into a modern Metroidvania classic. Their journey perfectly illustrates how indie creativity—combined with just enough funding—can result in something truly extraordinary.
I actually wrote a piece exploring similar indie game development stories over at . If you enjoy behind-the-scenes looks at how great games come to life, it’s definitely worth checking out.
t’s inspiring to see how Hollow Knight grew from a “very small” idea into a masterpiece just because the Kickstarter succeeded. Team Cherry’s honesty about almost lowering their goal shows how uncertain early development can be. Their journey is a great reminder that creativity can expand when support arrives at the right time. Anyone interested in enhancing their own creative projects—especially visuals—might also appreciate tools like Lightroom Pro. Helpful resources can be found at https://lightroomzone.com.
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