Steam Pricing Expert Critiques Hollow Knight: Silksong’s $20 Tag, Urging for a Higher Price Point

We’re deep into the age of fluctuating game prices, and it seems to be paying off for some developers. The Napoleonic Soulslike, Valor Mortis, launched at $40 and has already recouped its costs through initial sales. Meanwhile, Star Wars Zero Company, priced at just $50 on PC, has surpassed 1 million units sold. However, indie developers at the lower end of the pricing spectrum face tougher challenges, especially with titles like Hollow Knight: Silksong setting an almost unattainable standard.

“Hollow Knight kind of annoyed me,” pricing expert Cassia Curran shared. “I thought, ‘Oh god, please price it higher. $24.99 would have made a significant difference for many studios with similar games.’”

Despite its massive success, Team Cherry only increased the launch price of Silksong to $20, a mere $5 bump from the original Hollow Knight’s low debut price in 2017. As one of the top games on Steam in 2025 and a strong contender for Game of the Year against AAA titles, Silksong has raised expectations for other $20 games.

“There’s definitely a lot of downward pricing pressure, especially with the influx of similar titles these days,” Curran noted. She offers a tool for developers to analyze effective pricing strategies on Valve’s platform, encouraging them to consider the pricing of their closest competitors in the same genre. If you can’t justify why your roguelike or metroidvania should be priced higher than your most successful peers, you’re stuck with the price ceiling they’ve established, regardless of whether it’s viable for your project.

Earlier this year, we saw this with Tribute Games’ Scott Pilgrim EX, a retro pixel art beat-em-up that debuted at $30. Many Steam users hesitated at that price, leading to disappointing sales, even though it was a solid homage to River City Ransom. In contrast, Yacht Club Games released Mina the Hollower, another retro adventure, at just $20 and found greater success.

Now, with the surge of vibe-coded games flooding the market, the landscape is more unpredictable than ever. The sheer volume of titles hitting Steam each year has made it increasingly difficult to stand out and justify a premium price. Indie developers also face the challenge of competitors using generative AI to create indistinguishable knock-offs shortly after launch. This concern has prompted several studios to abandon open playtests and free demos on Steam.