Whole sections of the map are locked behind easy - to -
miss destructible walls, and one of its three possible endings can be achieved without even dipping a toe into most of the game's optional areas — my favorite area of which is called the White Palace, where Hollow Knight basically transforms into Super Meat Boy with a long series of increasingly difficult platforming sections through mazes of spinning saw blades.
Endlessly running around searching for something you
missed - a hidden switch here, a crack in a
destructible wall there, or a great big Shawshank Redemption-esque tunnel hidden by a pin - up poster - will either drive you to quit, or stoke the fires of your perseverance into a white - hot inferno that'll have your eyes burning and the wax dribbling out of your ears.