‘Shovel Knight’ Review: Get Busy Digging, or Get Busy Dying

The paraphrased title from this Shovel Knight review comes from a story by Stephen King¹, but that juxtaposed theme of rising above harsh circumstances / redemption from the quote fits so well into the overall arc of Yacht Club Games‘ valentine to 8-bit platformers, that I can’t imagine a different subtitle to lead in with.

His spirit broken and beaten after a ferocious fight to seal off an evil tower, Shovel Knight is haunted by the loss of his partner, Shield Knight, during that battle. In fact, after clearing certain stages, there’s a dream sequence where he’s fighting off enemies, trying to save her. Clearly some ghosts reside in that armor of his, and though we don’t get much in terms of their relationship at the outset, it’s clear that she meant a great deal to him. Now some time later, the evil they fought to end has returned, and he’s forced to pick up his shovel once more.

As a well-dressed knight, shovel in hand, you look like a fancy undertaker …

The weapon itself is multipurpose, if a little odd for our chivalrous (the game would say ‘shovelrous’) hero. As a well-dressed knight, shovel in hand, you look like a fancy undertaker, the Duke of Digging, if you will, the Dean of Dirt, the Director of Dust. Possible nicknames aside, the blade works as a elegant weapon, as a… um… awesome shovel, to dig up treasure and clear blocks, and as a means of traversal, bouncing on enemies and other platforms² to reach higher rooms and the secret caches of treasure that litter each stage you visit.

Your adventure is a sizable one, set on purging the land of the evil enchantress and her ‘Order of No Quarter’ that have set up shop at various points in the kingdom. Battles with these rogue knights³ will take you through many different environments, including antiquated towns, clockwork dungeons, flooded submarines, floating airships, and the ominous Tower of Fate (featuring the best-looking pixel rainstorm I’ve ever seen). Almost every stage is unique onto itself, and features new enemies and new tricks to navigating that level’s series of traps and jumps. Boss fights too, are distinct and challenging, and may require two or three (…or more) attempts to figure out their patterns and attack them accordingly.

To that end, each stage in Shovel Knight is a lengthy quest (a half-hour long for some), testing your platforming skills as much as combat. Thankfully, the checkpoint system is novel and much-needed, allowing you some respite from the trickier moments and knockbacks. As an alternative for truly badass knights, you can smash those checkpoint gates for extra cash. And cash is king in Shovel Knight. Treasure is more than just currency in the game, as you drop varying amounts of it upon death; the price of a ‘continue’. You do get one chance to collect it in your next life, as a way to correct your past mistakes and gauge your progress (or lack thereof) in the level.

It’s in your best interest to keep yourself as wealthy as possible. That treasure economy also works as a means to upgrade your knight, such as permanent boosts to your health and magic, adding special attacks to your shovel blade, donning more powerful armor, and buying relics (think Castlevania‘s subweapons, draining magic instead of hearts) to aid you in your quest.

And you’ll need the help, as the game will throw some difficulty spikes your way. You know that part in some retro platformers, where the developer decides that parading out all the bosses you’ve fought so far and making you face them in sequence sounds like a good idea?⁴ Yeah, Shovel Knight thinks so too. And if you should die while facing one of them, you’ve got to fight them all over again? Yeah, that part too. Minus that aggravating sequence, and some tough platforming bits in the final three or so stages, the game is a solid experience from beginning to close— 7+ hours of adventuring, optional boss fights and treasure stages, lovingly rendered in that retro style, and with an awesome soundtrack to boot.

… one of the most memorable, most engaging retro platformers to grace a modern console.

In the end, Shovel Knight hits (almost) all of the right notes, and ties up its tale nicely, so the hero can find his redemption, so that maybe he can finally sleep without the nightmares. Even if the story is not your thing, there are plenty of homages to past classics, and more than a handful of other tiny details (the puns!) that you’ll notice and appreciate as you play. It all comes together expertly and as an experience that stands on its own, as Yacht Club Games has crafted one of the most memorable, most engaging retro platformers to grace a modern console.

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1. ‘Get busy living, or get busy dying.’ From the Different Seasons collection, more specifically, the novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. Most people will recognize it from the excellent movie adaptation starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. The scene being referenced. ↩
2. Clearly influenced by the classic (and recently remastered) Duck Tales platformer. Scrooge and that Pogo stick-cane of his. ↩
3. Think Mega Man here, with the sort-of villain / sort-of ally Black Knight, and themed stages, with boss names like Propeller Knight, Tinker Knight, etc. ↩
4. It sucked in the 80s and 90s, and it still sucks today. I can’t be the only one that thinks like this. ↩