Shovel Knight
Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope, the hero's perspective, was released March 14, 2014. Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows, alternate perspective from a chaotic-neutral boss, came out as a free update in September 17, 2015. Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment, a prequel from one of the boss's perspectives, came out as a free update in March 3, 2017. Then they decided to "rebrand" the series with a new name. Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove is a combination of these three games with a promise of a free update of Shovel Knight: King of Cards , yet another prequel with alternative perspective, in the future (which will also have Shovel Knight Showdown).
When I was doing the math, at first I found it rather unfair that the original kickstarter price for (all of) Shovel Knight was $10 for PC or $15 if you wanted the WiiU or 3DS versions when its currently $25 in Steam. It gets even more ridiculous knowing that the package deal for whole thing is going to go up to $40 after they finish the last update. That's why I was really happy to know they marked it down 50% to $12.49 until May 22nd. I also like the fact they made a nifty Shovel Knight amiibo that adds a little fairy to help you out and a really cool 3-pack amiibo set coming at the end of this year. But is it all really worth it?
Shovel Knight is a combination of a lot of different games. It takes the style of Mega Man where you travel to 8 different stages to fight 8 different bosses. You travel along a map (at least the first two games) in the style of Super Mario Brothers 3. Food, items, and upgrades are burrowed in each stage like that in Castlevania. You can input cheat codes. The primary game from the hero's perspective does have a few things not contained in the others. There is a nice little transition that is reminiscent of Golden Axe. You are able to play local co-op. And there is the previously promised stretch goal of gender-swapping characters.
For a $12 game that took 5 years in the making, I would have to say I am really perplexed on playing three separate characters within the same stages. Each character took me 5 hours (total of 15 hours) to play which isn't that bad considering the early Mega Man games can be completed in under 2 hours each. The games will consistently test your mettle by giving you challenging platforming obstacles. The good news is they replaced the lives system with a more flexible money system. The stories are engaging. I found Plague Knight to be a little more harder to handle while Specter Knight was a little easier. The levels change just enough to make a difference like that in playing the characters in Sonic & Knuckles. I found no interest in playing challenge mode or collecting all the additional tokens. The music wasn't that bad, though it can get rather irritating and loud at times. Overall I found it all rather interesting.
Summary: A very odd game that combines Mega Man and Castlevania with a lot of additional options to tell an interesting story from multiple characters. The difficulty can be harsh at times but forgiving. The game definitely gets repetitive as you play every stage three times but there is enough there to keep you interested. The lack of content and edgy music may sour your experience unless you find a way to get the game at a cheaper price. I would recommend Shovel Knight for anyone a fan of old-style platforming games.
5-15-2019