Hollow Knight Officially Returns In Surprise New Halloween Release

Published Oct 1, 2026, 8:43 AM EDT

Ewan is Deputy Editor for ScreenRant's gaming section. He still quite hasn’t gotten out of his mid 00’s emo phase, and knows more about The Legend of Zelda and Doctor Who than is probably healthy.

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While Hollow Knight probably wouldn't be at the very top of my list of perfect games to play around Halloween, it does make sense. Team Cherry's critically acclaimed metroidvania is frequently unsettling and draped in gothic style. Its sequel, Silksong, is perhaps even scarier and altogether more frustrating, which doesn't really have anything to do with the point I'm making, but I never miss a chance to say Silksong is too hard.

While we patiently await the confirmed DLC for Silksong, the world of Hollow Knight has made an unexpected return just in time for Halloween as part of a huge new crossover with some of the biggest names in horror, cementing the indie darling's place in history.

The Knight, the mute hero from Hollow Knight, is officially being added to Fortnite during the Fortnitemares Halloween event that officially kicked off today (October 1). Other famous franchises joining the crossover event include Hazbin Hotel, Predator, Five Nights at Freddy’s, Beetlejuice, and Nightmare on Elm Street. With so many horror icons, it'll be nice to take a breather and chill on a bench with The Knight, who is not to be confused with Hollow Knight, in much the same way Zelda is not the playable character in (most) The Legend of Zelda games.

For those that don't really play Fortnite, a Sidekick is basically a smaller character who follows you around during games, but is not a playable character. They're basically just a fun cosmetic with no real gameplay bonuses. Other notable sidekicks available in Fortnite include Spyro The Dragon, Tails, Super Meat Boy, Groot, and Mr Poopybuthole. Do you ever think maybe this game has access to too many IP?

Anyway, Fortnitemares will run for the whole of October, ending on November 1 when the final season of Chapter 7 begins. The special new Hollow Knight-themed sidekick should be available in the Item Shop soon if it isn't already, so be sure to check it out when you can.

If that's not quite enough Hollow Knight for you, you might also want to turn your attention to a recently released Hollow Knight-inspired metroidvania that's already cemented itself as one of 2026's best-reviewed games.

Well Dweller is a dark new metroidvania, "full of charming characters living in a wretched kingdom", and it has some pretty obvious Hollow Knight inspirations. That's not to say it doesn't have its own identity, mind you. All I'm saying is if you really love Hollow Knight and Silksong, you'll definitely get a kick out of this new game. There's even a free demo available on PlayStation 5, or you can play the full game free if you have an Xbox Game Pass subscription. If you're looking to fill the Hollow Knight-shaped hole in your life, you could do a heck of a lot worse. Or you could just go look at The Knight in Fortnite, I guess.

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