Yesterday, IGN unveiled that Hollow Knight: Silksong will be playable at an Australian museum in September 2025, and they shared a sprite sheet from the eagerly awaited game, sparking a flurry of reactions online.

"In what situation [is] making a sprite of naked Hornet necessary?" one commenter pondered on a Reddit thread analyzing the exclusive sheet.

Among the numerous images of Silksong's protagonist, Hornet, which depict her in various battle-ready and relaxed poses, there is one particular sprite that has caught everyone's attention. It shows Hornet casually carrying her cloak under one arm. (You can see a close-up below, or view it on the original sheet on the right-hand side, just under the uppermost ring):

A close-up of the controversial sprite, located on the right-hand side of the original image."What kind of situation in-game calls for her to remove her cloak and hold it like she's an exhausted dad returning from work? This is cursed," remarked one Redditor.

"Is this real???? There’s no way this is a sprite that is going to be in Silksong. Is that just what she looks like????" another speculated, while a third exclaimed: "IN WHAT KIND OF SITUATION WOULD THEY EVEN NEED THIS SPRITE?"

The conversation then took a more playful turn.

"So, we don't have to bother making a mod," one user asserted, while another quipped: "We're going straight to ESRB 18+ for this one."

"HORNET PUT YOUR CLOAK BACK ON THAT'S SO INDECENT WHAT THE HELL," another thread's original poster admonished, prompting responses like "This looks so wrong," and "this is completely unnecessary."

"I do not like this," another user declared.

While the most likely explanation might be that players will have the option to upgrade or change Hornet's cloak, for now, fans are free to let their imaginations run wild.

Hollow Knight: Silksong 2025 Screenshots

View 5 ImagesTeam Cherry’s sequel is one of the most anticipated games globally, consistently topping the Steam wishlist charts. Silksong made a brief appearance at Nintendo’s Switch 2 Direct last month, and soon after, Team Cherry confirmed the 2025 release window, much to the delight of its patient fanbase. With the game set to be playable at Australia’s national museum of screen culture, ACMI, starting September 18, some speculate a potential launch around August, though nothing is confirmed yet.

Silksong will be part of a video game exhibition called Game Worlds at the Melbourne museum, which will also feature displays exploring the game’s design and artistic direction.