Shovel Knight [ Page 2 ] | Cheerful Ghost

Review - Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope (part of Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove) for the Switch

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope is the original Shovel Knight game released by Yacht Club Games in 2014. It is a platformer with an 8-bit sound and art style. The version reviewed here is part of Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove for the Switch, which was provided by Yacht Club Games, to Cheerful Ghost in the form of a download key.

I previously played Shovel Kinght: Shovel of Hope on the 3DS, and now on the Switch. The Switch version wins the match between the two, hands down, in my opinion. While the Switch does not have the 3D that the 3DS has, it has a beautiful handheld screen and great sounding audio.

Yacht Club Games did an outstanding job with Shovel Knight. The level... Read All Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope is the original Shovel Knight game released by Yacht Club Games in 2014. It is a platformer with an 8-bit sound and art style. The version reviewed here is part of Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove for the Switch, which was provided by Yacht Club Games, to Cheerful Ghost in the form of a download key.

I previously played Shovel Kinght: Shovel of Hope on the 3DS, and now on the Switch. The Switch version wins the match between the two, hands down, in my opinion. While the Switch does not have the 3D that the 3DS has, it has a beautiful handheld screen and great sounding audio.

Yacht Club Games did an outstanding job with Shovel Knight. The level design was awesome. Each level was difficult, but not to the point where you give up. They designed it in such a way that you felt finishing each level was achievable, which is was.

The retro 8-bit sound and art was well done too. The thing that stood out the most to me was the use of lighting on some levels. Not only did this provide a fun game mechanic, but it also provided ambience to those levels.

The controls on the game were very responsive, even with the Switch's D-Pad buttons. The D-Pad buttons took a little bit of getting used to, but after an hour or so of play, it felt like a good replacement for a D-Pad.

My two small problems with the game were that some of the auxiliary weapons didn't seem needed (maybe it was just the way I played), and the pogo attack move seemed overpowered. The reason I felt it was overpowered, was that for the most part, it could be used to take down the majority of enemies including the bosses. Maybe this was by design, but it would have been nice if I needed a little bit more strategy to defeat the bosses for each level. The only time it felt balanced was when there were knights with shields that could block you from bouncing on their head.

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope is just one game out of three in Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove. I would recommend getting Treasure Trove for the Switch just for Shovel of Hope. I hope the other two games live up to this first Shovel Knight game.

Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove is available on Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Sony PS3, Sony PS4, Sony Vita, Xbox One, PC, Mac, Linux, and Nintendo Switch.

Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove for the Switch - First Impressions

Recently, Yacht Club Games provided Cheerful Ghost with a download key for Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove for the Switch. Given that I just got the Switch and have yet to try a 2D platformer on the platform, I decided to download the game and fire it up.

Before I dive into my first impressions of the game, let's talk about what Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove on the Switch comes with. The Switch version includes the following:

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope

Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows

Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment

Co-op mode

Four player battle mode

Amiibo support

There is a lot of game here and the co-op mode really interests me. Since the Switch has two... Read All Recently, Yacht Club Games provided Cheerful Ghost with a download key for Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove for the Switch. Given that I just got the Switch and have yet to try a 2D platformer on the platform, I decided to download the game and fire it up.

Before I dive into my first impressions of the game, let's talk about what Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove on the Switch comes with. The Switch version includes the following:

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope

Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows

Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment

Co-op mode

Four player battle mode

Amiibo support

There is a lot of game here and the co-op mode really interests me. Since the Switch has two controllers built in, getting a co-op game going seems like a perfect use of the system in tabletop mode, or even on the TV.

Now on to my first impressions...

My only exposure to Shovel Knight has been on my 3DS. I have enjoyed it a lot on that platform, so when I had a chance to give it a try on the Switch, I was game. This game really pops on the Switch. Shovel Knight on the Switch's screen is gorgeous. I went back and compared it to my 3DS version, and found that my 3DS gave me a headache (both in 3D and 2D mode). This has nothing to do with Shovel Knight, but rather the difference in the platforms. The Switch's display is night and day better than the 3DS, and Shovel Knight shines on it.

The controls are solid on the Switch. You can use the thumb stick or the "D-pad" (actually D-buttons) to move Shovel Knight. Given that I prefer to play 2D platformers with a D-pad, this is the method of control that I decided to use. Playing with the D-buttons is taking some time to get the hang of, but I feel I will get there. Again, this is not a Shovel Knight problem, but rather a Switch design choice.

Next up, I docked the Switch and played Shovel Knight with the Switch Pro Controller on my 47" TV. It looks just as great on the TV as it does on the Switch screen. Moving back to a traditional d-pad was also a bonus (at least until I get used to the D-buttons on the joy-con). The game seemed to preform perfectly on the big screen. I am not sure if there is any resolution change here, but if there is, it did not seem to impact performance.

If I already had Treasure Trove, or all three of the versions of Shovel Knight mentioned above, I would probably have skipped this version, unless I was a die hard Shovel Knight fan, then this is probably a must have for the Switch. Given that I only have Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope on the 3DS, this is a great value and I would have picked it up.

Overall, I think this will be my go to version of Shovel Knight over my 3DS version. The screen just makes the difference to me.

You can find Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove on the Switch eShop for $24.99.

Shovel Knight Update Spector of Torment Coming this Spring!

"You’ll not only play through Specter Knight’s own story, but also see new areas, new music, new enemies, new objects, new boss fights, new weapons, new armors, and way, way more than ever before. Even the villainous boss knights have prepared new tricks and tactics!

Does that sound like a new game?! Well, that’s because we’re building Specter of Torment from the ground up so that it can be a completely unique standalone experience.

While Plague of Shadows followed an alternate parallel campaign, Specter Knight travels a new path in this amazing prequel. It’s your mission as Specter Knight to recruit the Order of No Quarter for The Enchantress! Specter Knight’s campaign... Read All

Shovel Knight By The Numbers

If you missed Shovel Knight now might be a good time to realize this Capcom-era retro love letter to platformers. One way to do that is by reading out this Yacht Club Games infographic highlighting how well Shovel Knight has been received. One part I find interesting is the number of people that have played the extra content has been fairly low. The reason the content is being made is because they sailed so far over their Kickstarter goals meeting their stretch goals. The 3DS & Wii U sales numbers were also much higher than I would have initially guessed but it makes sense considering this game is for Nintendo fans and begs to be played on those systems.

Shovel... Read All

Shovel Knight Plague Of Shadows Update Gets A Trailer And Is Coming Soon!

When Shovel Knight came to Kickstarter it's amazing retro graphics and fun premise catapulted it to much success. So much so that they hit each stretch goal they set. Yacht Club Games decided to ship the main base game and after the initial launch bring a lot of the stretch goal features later. The in-game stretch goals were the ability to play as 3 bosses, gender swap mode, challenge mode, 4 player battle mode, ability to play all bosses in battle mode & the Linux & Mac ports (already released).

From what I imagine is the first of the playable boss modes, Plague of Shadows is coming as a free update and it looks to be a entirely separate story and play... Read All

Previously Recorded Talk Shovel Knight The Nostalgia Engine

Rich and Jack are back at it talking about Shovel Knight. Rich seems to be hung on if Shovel Knight is a great game or a game that falls back to nostalgia and retro feel in place of actually being good. Rich and Jack both loved the game, it just seems that Rich isn't sure if the game stands on it's own.

After playing Shovel Knight it is true that the game is a NES dream come true but I think it holds up well for modern gamers.

Shovel Knight - The Console Gardener

Everyone's favorite cerulean utilitarian warrior is making his debut to your fancy next-gen (current-gen?) consoles, namely the Xbox One and Playstation 4. Playstation fans will also appreciate the cross-buy option for PS3 and Vita (buy one, get all). If you own one of those Playstation systems, you can get it now. Xbox Oners will get it tomorrow.

As far as the console versions go, there doesn't seem to be anything really that diff.... OH, YES THERE IS! Xbox One owners of Shovel Knight will see a certain group of amphibious fighters (i.e. the Battletoads!) featured in their game, while Playstation owners will be tested to find the Ghost of Sparta, Kratos, from the God... Read All

Plague Knight Dispenses His Own Justice

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The first major DLC is coming to Shovel Knight, for free! From the Kickstarter page:

"In this adventure, you play as Plague Knight, the villainous master of alchemy, in a quest all his own. Using his maniacal scientific mind, Plague Knight is seeking to concoct Serum Supernus, the Ultimate Potion. However, to retrieve these ingredients, he must extract them from his former allies… the villainous knights of the Order of No Quarter! World class platforming, music, storytelling, and art all return in Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows; an explosive quest with a new play style, new story, new bosses, and more!"

In addition, PS3, PS4, and Vita will be getting a taste of Shovel... Read All

Shovel Knight coming to PS3, PS4, Via. Kratos boss unveiled!

Shovel Knight is on his way to dispense shovel justice to every platform, now adding Sony's current platforms. This trailer is mostly going to be stuff you've already seen if you care at all about Shovel Knight, but at the end there's a very short clip of a Kratos boss fight. This means I'm probably going to be buying the game all over again.

Shovel Knight Is Now On Linux

Shovel Knight was finally ported to Linux on Steam and as such I downloaded to check it out. I found absolutely no issues running the game and had fun coming back to this platforming shoveler. I expect many more content updates from Yacht Club Games as they decided to release the main game on Windows and then bring the extra Kickstarter game rewards in subsequent updates. If you are looking for an amazing retro platforming experience with shoveling, you should get this game.