Game thoughts?

[Oobedoob S Benubi]

So how is this game, what's it like?

 

I dismissed it when it was released as being a tough as nails platformer like Super Meat Boy or Spelunky, but there actually might be more to it.

 

The game is €25 now... Does that mean everybody who bought it back when it was €15 gets the extra content for free or do they have to pay an additional fee?

 

Is €25 worth it for all the content it has gotten up to now? Should I just wait until the campaigns are released separately and only get the normal game?

 

I don't care about the trophy difficulty, only about the game itself. I might actually just buy the Switch version instead of the PS4 version so I can play it on the go, and with these graphics I don't think I absolutely need to play it on a large television.

[Super-Fly Spider-Guy]

The second the main game is available on it's own I'll be buying it on Switch.

Edited March 15, 2017 by Stevieboy
Don't discuss offering to game share.

[Oobedoob S Benubi]

1 hour ago, Super-Fly Spider-Guy said:

The second the main game is available on it's own I'll be buying it on Switch.

 

So have you played the game before?

Edited March 15, 2017 by Stevieboy

[Super-Fly Spider-Guy]

1 hour ago, BillyHorrible said:

So have you played the game before?

I figured dude, I just meant have a go and see if you like it. 

 

Nah, been meaning to for so long though. Wanted to get it launch day but was unawares of the price rise they were doing. Still good value honestly, but it's just more than I wanna spend at the moment. Looks proper fun though.

 

It's probably worth buying the proper version anyway. You get all the campaigns, so the main one, the second one, the third one, the Spectre one (which may be the third, I'm not sure), and I think at least 2 more announced future ones. 5 or so campaigns on their own for 13 bucks (or whatever it is in your currency) each kinda works out to a bit more than the 32 price they're asking for the full thing at the moment. 

Edited March 15, 2017 by Stevieboy

[Shadiochao]

It's not at all tough like Super Meat Boy or Spelunky. In fact it's not even particularly tough in general, especially if you're not going for the more annoying trophies. If you've played any of them, I'd say it's a fair bit easier than the classic Mega Man games it's inspired by, and unlike those, you're not limited by any lives or continues.

 

I never really got into the old Mega Man games, though. There's a bit too much precision jumping in those for my tastes. But I loved this game and quite liked the first DLC, although it took some time getting used to the new character's controls.

 

On the Switch, the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove edition is essentially the base game plus a season pass. Anyone who owns the game in any form on Playstation will be upgraded to that version when it's released here, and at that point they'll start selling the DLCs separately.

 

Also, if you want it on the go, the digital PS4 version is cross-buy with PS Vita

[crimsonidol38]

24 minutes ago, BillyHorrible said:

The game is €25 now... Does that mean everybody who bought it back when it was €15 gets the extra content for free or do they have to pay an additional fee?

 

The 25 EUR-version right now will get all the future campaigns as free updates via patches (the added campaigns will be treated like DLC-lists).

 

26 minutes ago, BillyHorrible said:

Is €25 worth it for all the content it has gotten up to now? Should I just wait until the campaigns are released separately and only get the normal game?

 

As only two campaigns (main game + Plague Knight) of four campaigns (Specter Knight + King Knight) are available so far it's hard to say whether the 25 EUR are worth it or not. Personally I enjoyed the main game but didn't feel like playing the Plague Knight-campaign at all. If you want to go for multiple runs to achieve some of those challenging trophies you can spend somewhere between 10 to 15 hours with the game. If you just want to play it casually the playtime is somewhere between 4 and 8 hours depending on your playstyle.

 

29 minutes ago, BillyHorrible said:

I don't care about the trophy difficulty, only about the game itself. I might actually just buy the Switch version instead of the PS4 version so I can play it on the go, and with these graphics I don't think I absolutely need to play it on a large television.

 

You might want to see if you can grab the PS4-retail version of the game as that's the same as the current download version and will also get all future campaigns for free. If you don't like the game, you can sell it then at least.

[MosesRockefeller]

I'd say it depends on your skill with 2D platformers. I thought I was good at Super Mario Bros and similar games, but I found Shovel Knight to be much more difficult when I tried it on Vita. It's not Super Meat Boy difficult, but it's hard enough. I got stuck on one of the mid-area bosses and took a long break. It's a very well-made game though, so I don't regret buying it even if I'll never be able to finish it. There are probably ways to improve your chances by tackling stages in a specific order, but I didn't play with a walkthrough. I'll try getting back into it at some point but I don't know if I'll fare any better. 

 

I can't comment on the value since I've only played the base game. I would at least watch some videos. I'm not sure if there is a demo. The PSN version is cross-buy as mentioned, but since you gave your Vita up for adoption that doesn't benefit you. 

[Happy]

Game is nothing short of a masterpiece. Absolutely worth getting the full version.

[SnowxSakura]

It's really fun to play if you're a fan of old 2d platformers, it plays a lot like mega man. Also it has some of the best chip tunes I've heard in a very long time

 

[Oobedoob S Benubi]

2 hours ago, Super-Fly Spider-Guy said:

I figured dude, I just meant have a go and see if you like it. 

 

Nah, been meaning to for so long though. Wanted to get it launch day but was unawares of the price rise they were doing. Still good value honestly, but it's just more than I wanna spend at the moment. Looks proper fun though.

 

It's probably worth buying the proper version anyway. You get all the campaigns, so the main one, the second one, the third one, the Spectre one (which may be the third, I'm not sure), and I think at least 2 more announced future ones. 5 or so campaigns on their own for 13 bucks (or whatever it is in your currency) each kinda works out to a bit more than the 32 price they're asking for the full thing at the moment. 

 

Ah, like that, got it.

 

Yeah if it would have been €10 I'd have doubted less about buying it.

 

Yeah Specter Of Torment is the third (first being the retroactively titled Treasure Trove, second being Plague Of Shadows and the fourth will have you play as King Knight). This wasn't obvious to me at first since Specter is already available separately on the Switch but apparently it's in the Treasure Trove pack as well.

 

2 hours ago, Shadiochao said:

It's not at all tough like Super Meat Boy or Spelunky. In fact it's not even particularly tough in general, especially if you're not going for the more annoying trophies. If you've played any of them, I'd say it's a fair bit easier than the classic Mega Man games it's inspired by, and unlike those, you're not limited by any lives or continues.

 

I never really got into the old Mega Man games, though. There's a bit too much precision jumping in those for my tastes. But I loved this game and quite liked the first DLC, although it took some time getting used to the new character's controls.

 

On the Switch, the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove edition is essentially the base game plus a season pass. Anyone who owns the game in any form on Playstation will be upgraded to that version when it's released here, and at that point they'll start selling the DLCs separately.

 

Also, if you want it on the go, the digital PS4 version is cross-buy with PS Vita

 

That's a lot of valuable info, actually, thanks! Only Mega Man game I liked was Mega Man X on the SNES.

 

I don't have a Vita any more, sold both it and the Wii to make sure I could afford the Switch - I figured I would never use the Vita any more once I had the Switch, never bought any games for the Vita and I was just using it for PS+ games and to be able to play console (PS4) games when not having access to a television.

 

2 hours ago, Crimson Idol said:

The 25 EUR-version right now will get all the future campaigns as free updates via patches (the added campaigns will be treated like DLC-lists).

 

As only two campaigns (main game + Plague Knight) of four campaigns (Specter Knight + King Knight) are available so far it's hard to say whether the 25 EUR are worth it or not. Personally I enjoyed the main game but didn't feel like playing the Plague Knight-campaign at all. If you want to go for multiple runs to achieve some of those challenging trophies you can spend somewhere between 10 to 15 hours with the game. If you just want to play it casually the playtime is somewhere between 4 and 8 hours depending on your playstyle.

 

You might want to see if you can grab the PS4-retail version of the game as that's the same as the current download version and will also get all future campaigns for free. If you don't like the game, you can sell it then at least.

 

So the €15 version has all the future campaigns for free as well, right? Must be lucky for all those who bought it earlier.

 

Specter is actually already available to play on the Switch ^-^

So four games would be about 20-30 hours for me... Sounds good.

 

Retail version actually is a very good idea, I could get it used here for about €15 and in a store that allows me to play it at home for a few days before deciding if I want to keep it.

 

1 hour ago, MosesRockefeller said:

I'd say it depends on your skill with 2D platformers. I thought I was good at Super Mario Bros and similar games, but I found Shovel Knight to be much more difficult when I tried it on Vita. It's not Super Meat Boy difficult, but it's hard enough. I got stuck on one of the mid-area bosses and took a long break. It's a very well-made game though, so I don't regret buying it even if I'll never be able to finish it. There are probably ways to improve your chances by tackling stages in a specific order, but I didn't play with a walkthrough. I'll try getting back into it at some point but I don't know if I'll fare any better. 

 

I can't comment on the value since I've only played the base game. I would at least watch some videos. I'm not sure if there is a demo. The PSN version is cross-buy as mentioned, but since you gave your Vita up for adoption that doesn't benefit you. 

 

I might be able to get through it easier on the Switch since I don't have as many games for it. On PS4, for sure it would probably end up as another title in my backlog right now.

 

54 minutes ago, SnowxSakura said:

It's really fun to play if you're a fan of old 2d platformers, it plays a lot like mega man. Also it has some of the best chip tunes I've heard in a very long time

Spoiler

 

 

 

I'm a fan of old 2D platformers, never was a real fan of 8-bit though, personally 16-bit is when the appeal started for me.

 

 

 

 

 

By now I've watched the trailers for all three available campaigns:

 

Treasure Trove

Spoiler

 

 

Plague Of Shadows

Spoiler

 

 

Specter Of Torment

Spoiler

 

 

Gotta say it's actually all a lot more appealing than when I first caught a glimpse years ago. Everyone here combined with the info I found online persuaded me: I want this game!

Edited March 15, 2017 by BillyHorrible

[Oobedoob S Benubi]

So, I just decided to get the complete package

 

Decided that since they're such good sport with all the free DLC being released that they now need to up the base price, I'm not going to be a dick and wait on a sale.

 

I also bought the Shovel Knight amiibo

[Oobedoob S Benubi]

@Super-Fly Spider-Guy @Shadiochao @Crimson Idol @MosesRockefeller @Happy @SnowxSakura

 

Wanted to thank you all for giving your opinions. I've been enjoying the game a lot in between my Zelda and PlayStation gaming, I'm glad I did not wait for a sale as the devs have really made something special - and that's coming from someone who usually hates 8-bit games!

 

I probably won't play Plague Knight right away as it's just a re-skin of the main campaign but I might do Specter Knight soon (if only to take advantage of it being a timed exclusive for the Switch since launch until somewhere this month).

 

@MosesRockefeller I'd really advise you to give the game another go. I know I'm more of a precision platform gamer than you but it's really not super hard, the game has a nice difficulty curve and every new gameplay mechanic in each level gets 'tutorialed' for a bit. Two tips I would give you are to immediately invest in health, and to go to the Troupple King and fill two chalises with red potion (and keep them filled until the boss fights). Boss fights get much easier if you can refill your health bar twice. The bosses are also very easy if you hang back and watch their moves.

[MosesRockefeller]

On 4/15/2017 at 7:03 AM, BillyHorrible said:

 

@MosesRockefeller I'd really advise you to give the game another go. I know I'm more of a precision platform gamer than you but it's really not super hard, the game has a nice difficulty curve and every new gameplay mechanic in each level gets 'tutorialed' for a bit. Two tips I would give you are to immediately invest in health, and to go to the Troupple King and fill two chalises with red potion (and keep them filled until the boss fights). Boss fights get much easier if you can refill your health bar twice. The bosses are also very easy if you hang back and watch their moves.

Now I remember why I got so frustrated with this game. I did the two things you mentioned, I now have 6 hearts and 2 chalices. I got to the 4th checkpoint on the Plague Knight stage and proceeded to lose all my gold (I started with about 1000) dying over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over. It was either the frakking green knight guy knocking me into a bottomless pit or taking damage from flame jets and getting knocked off. I finally managed to stick with it and beat the bastard (strangely enough, I got him on my second try, WITHOUT chalices since I had already used them by mistake).  

 

I'm glad some people can enjoy it, but I am pretty sure I am not the audience for this game. I can see a ragequit coming quite soon... 

 

EDIT: So I have to eat my words a bit (but in a good way!). I'll leave the original post intact, above, so you can see my change of heart. I decreased the font size of that part to make it clearer. 

 

After playing more on Saturday and Sunday, everything in the game started to click. As background, I originally played the game 2 years ago and got stuck after the 3rd boss. My choices for progression were fighting Plague Knight and Mole Knight, both of whom gave me problems. I'm pretty sure I didn't even get all the way to the boss in the Plague Knight stage but I know I fought Mole Knight and died several times. Anyway, my memory was fuzzy but after picking it back up I realize that I had seen some (very bad IMO) advice to start the game with the "no upgrades" run. Now that I have abandoned that idea and am using relics and upgrades, the game is TOTALLY different. I stand by my previous comment that the Plague Knight stage is a PITA because of some nasty platforming parts, but it's doable with patience and enough attempts. I have now beat both of those bosses, and gone back to replay earlier stages to farm enough gold for relics and upgrades. 

 

Anyway, thanks again for the advice, BillyHorrible. 9 health orbs, 2 chalices, and several useful relics make the game so much more reasonable to play and I'm actually really enjoying it now. I have my doubts that I could ever do the no-death or no upgrades playthroughs, so the Platinum is almost certainly out of my reach, but I can at least now enjoy finishing the first playthrough and probably the DLC as well. 

 

Interestingly enough, I think I lost more health (and had to use at least one chalice) on the wandering boss that swings around with a grappling hook (I forget his name but it's something short like "Stu") than either Mole or Plague Knight. Having enough health orbs to take some damage as well as HP/MP chalices as a fallback, make such a big difference in beating bosses. I can't emphasize that enough. 

 

To anyone else reading the thread and on the fence about this game, take it from me that it's great. You just have to use the right strategy and this is one where a "story" playthrough first is helpful. 

Edited April 17, 2017 by MosesRockefeller

[Oobedoob S Benubi]

I'm playing through Specter Of Torment (about halfway done) and it's awesome. The levels do a lot with Specter's moves, once again each level has a good difficulty curve and teaches new mechanics step by step. I think I prefer Specter's moveset over Shovel's. Props (no pun intended) to Propeller Knight's boss fight being revamped to better suit Specter's moves.

[Homejuustosipuli]

Good game