Resisting The Urge To Dig Myself A Grave With A Shovel Joke (Dammit) -- A Shovel Knight Review

Written By: Tyler
Platforms Available On: PC, Wii U, 3DS
Platform Played On: Wii U

The first of many badass encounters.

Rating: 9/10
Verdict: A love letter to the past, but also a game that forges its own identity, Shovel Knight is an 8-bit inspired platformer that reaches beyond its humble roots and gives us a game that mentions the past but doesn't rely or get lost in it.


Releasing games inspired by the classics of the 8-bit era isn't anything new within the indie community. The indie scene is flooded with nostalgia, and you can't go five seconds without tripping over something that harkens back to the past. Shovel Knight is no different in that regard, being a game that is very much entrenched in the days of yore, but not trapped in them.

Let's just get this out of the way, because this is what you're here for: Shovel Knight is awesome. There will probably be very few games this year that bring me greater joy than this unassuming little platformer about a knight with a shovel who is trying to save Shield Knight from the evil Enchantress. Mario, yes, but that's not where it ends. The levels look like Mega Man, you can use your shovel and bounce off enemies and objects like in Duck Hunt. The world map is ripped right from Mario 3. The references are numerous, but like I said in the first paragraph... Shovel Knight owes to them but isn't defined by them.

Despite how obvious the influences are, the game forges its own path ultimately, and that's something a lot of indie games lack when calling to the past. It's one thing to make us go "aha" when we spot a reference, but that overstays its welcome. The better route is to make us go "aha" but then follow that up with making us go "wow" because the game has its own identity.

Shovel Knight has simplistic controls. Use a button to jump and another to swing your shovel. Press down while you're in the air and you can use it as a pogo stick. Press up and the attack button and you use your spell. If you're playing on Wii U you can either press a button to call up your inventory or use the screen on the gamepad, which is what I do. That's about it, but the game doesn't need anymore because the foundation is so solid, the levels so well-designed, that what might appear as a limitation these days is a strength. You don't get bogged down at any point.

All games need clever world/level/stage design, but platformers need it more than most genres, and Shovel Knight has it in spades. Every level has its own motif, whether it's something a little more trippy, or it being dark with only lightning lighting the way, or a level that uses air in interesting and dynamic ways, the game is always throwing something new at you.

Enemies are placed in interesting areas, and if you're not careful you might jump over to a ledge only to get hit off because that particular enemy is placed for that sole reason... the game assumes you'll get careless and make that jump without thinking, and a lot of people probably will. There are times that your platforming skills are truly tested, as the game consistently throws new types of jumps at you. The game is hard, but -- to the dismay of some retro-gamers -- it's not impossibly hard, which I'm completely fine with. I had a nice challenge throughout the whole thing.

Each stage ends with a boss, of course, and like the rest of the game there's a lot of variety to them. Since all the characters are knights with different specialties, such as the Tinker Knight, Specter Knight, Polar Knight, etc, they all have their own method of attacking and you have to adapt to that. The battles are fast, and if you sit back they will probably eat you up. I tended to lose on the first fight but won on the second more often than not. 

I have a confession, and yes I've chosen until the middle of the review to say this: I actually am glad we've moved on from the past in a few ways. Namely, I hate redoing levels over and over just because I died. I welcome checkpoints. I did my time, so now once I beat a section I beat it and I don't want to go back until my next playthrough. Shovel Knight has a bunch of checkpoints throughout each level, and each time you die you lose money where you died and you can go back and collect it. This is an interesting play on what we know and love.

Part of the identity of the levels is the excellent soundtrack. Each level has its own, and the soundtrack itself has 48 songs. All of which are great. As I write this review I am listening to it, and each song fits the mood of the stage, transporting you into that world with its usage of chiptune. Yeah, it's another homage to the 8-bit era, but it's extremely well composed with a variety of different moods and atmosphere. Some of it is victorious, some of it is darker, some of it sounds incredibly urgent.

You don't level up in the game, but you can buy different spells such as a fireball, a green orb that bounces around, a powerful blast, and much more. There's a good variety of spells in Shovel Knight, especially when you consider that it's not an incredibly long game. More on that in a second.

You can also spend your money on giving yourself more life, upgrading your shovel with a few different abilities like an homage to Zelda where your shovel shoots something across the ground when you have full life. There are also a bunch of armor upgrades, all of which with their pros and cons, except for the gold armor which I don't think really changes your stats but makes you do a flip when you jump. Plus you look stylish and that's all I really want.

As of writing this review, the game is $15 and I feel like I got every penny nickel worth. I completed the game in roughly five and a half hours but I didn't get everything. Besides the main stages, there are side stages and side boss battles, along with the many dream sequences in which you fight enemies until the Shield Knight drops and you catch her. I don't know why I love this so much, but I think the numerous campfire scenes add to the experience. It's a nice touch. There's also a new game plus after you beat the game, which allows you to keep your old equipment but ups the difficulty.

Shovel Knight is special. It's one of the best platformers of the last ten years, at least, and it's a good price. If you're looking for a retro-inspired game that offers more than just nostalgia, then pick up Shovel Knight because while it does have the novelty of you playing as a knight with a shovel, it has an abundance of excellent level-design, lovable characters, great boss battles and amazing music.