A real treasure room: the best of 8-bit gaming is the subject of today’s micro-review, Shovel Knight Treasure Trove
With the conclusion of the review of yesterday, only those who have not played a Shovel Knight he couldn’t have expected us to talk about it today, not with Treasure Trove around. In short, the original game has revived (and, let’s face it, sweetened) the era of 8-bit video games just as the most nostalgic remember it. Which is good: the basic adventure, now retrospectively subtitled Shovel of Hope, translates into a journey into the best of the best in Mega Man level design, with the help of equippable items like in the best Castlevanias, a bounce mechanic taken from DuckTales for the NES and the combat dynamics of Zelda II. Then add a death as a mere rite of passage, with the possibility of recovery identical to Dark Souls. And that’s just the beginning!
Shovel Knight Treasure Trove, twentieth review of the Nintendo Switch Calendar
Not satisfied with the already excellent basic result, strengthened by the success (in hindsight, deserved) on Kickstarter, the guys from Yacht Club Games they included four other gaming experiences. From this, then, the big picture elevated the “simple” Shovel Knight to the literal Treasure Trove it has become today. However, if the medieval equivalent of Mega Man has received so much success, it is hardly to be attributed to Plague of Shadows, the first extra campaign. In it, the boss Plague Knight has his plans: from there, an adventure in which movement and attacks depend on his combination of potions. No more, no less. Definitely the weak link of the five.
At the other extreme we have Specter of Torment, a prequel to the first two campaigns dedicated to Specter Knight. Beyond the poignant plot, the level design changes in favor of a real metroidvania. But if you miss Wario Land (we certainly do), don’t worry: he’ll think about it King of Cards, mixing more compact levels, a light-hearted story and a trading card mini-game capable of entertaining for hours. Finally we have Showdown, which makes almost the entire cast of the game (or games?) playable in a delirious platform fighter (which, somehow, has a story too). Enhanced by Jake “how is it possible that we haven’t yet dedicated an episode of Music & Videogames to him” Kaufman to the scores, the game worth every penny: if you find it discounted, you have no excuses.
Now it’s up to you to tell us yours: have you played this masterpiece? Let us know below, and as always, don’t forget to stay on TechGameWorld.com for all the most important news for gamers and more. For your purely gaming needs, you can instead find the best discounts in digital format on Instant Gaming.