Shovel Knight, and all of the accompanying DLC, is amazing to say the least. While it takes a lot of skill and patience, they're all satisfying in their own ways to complete. To go through each, one by one:
Shovel of Hope:
The main campaign. You go around as the titular character, digging up gems and flippin' over stuff. While it is basic, the way it teaches you how it'll progress and how other campaigns will go forward- all having some of the same LRPG elements- is really fun. Though that being said, it is the most basic of the campaigns and I had more fun going through the other campaigns. That's not to knock on this campaign though, it is a classic indie game for a reason. There is fun to be had with Shovel of Hope and it is a great campaign to start with if you get Treasure Trove.
Plague of Shadows:
the 2nd campaign and the most challenging one for casual players. Despite that, I also had some real fun with this. While you go through the same maps you did in Shovel of Hope, they're all altered in a way to make it challenging. Or at least they would be way more challenging if you weren't playing with Plague Knight, my favorite character in the game. (Fuck, I lost the game.) Plague Knight's a bit of a Wife Guy™ so I thoroughly enjoyed that and his story with Mona, his confidant. Wait a minute, this isn't Persona 5. No, Mona is not a cat though, she's a tall lady that works with Plague Knight and they have a really cute dynamic. That being said, Plague Knight's new gameplay feels awesome in the most literal definition of the word, striking awe. With the addition of potions to your arsenal, it's basically a new combat system entirely. There's also double jumping and the burst jump, which makes movement incredibly fun. If you're a speedrunner, I would highly recommend this campaign just because of the movement mechanics and all the intricate movement you can pull off.
Specter of Torment:
I will be honest with you. I cried. So much. Not because this is frustrating, but because the story really pulls you into an otherwise edgy nothing character of a boss. If you don't play anything else, you should at least play Specter of Torment for the story. Speaking of play, while Specter is a bit slower in running compared to Shovel and Plague, movement options for him are almost as plentiful as Plague Knight. You can just homing attack from across the room OR you can use your own scythe as a skate board. While speedrunners would be more enthralled with the movement of Plague, I feel more casual players would like Specter's movement because- while challenging like the rest of the game- it's not hard to pull off.
King of Cards:
It's the card game tournament one.... Yaaaaaaaaaay. I'm joking, I also had some real fun with this one. While levels are shorter in comparison to the last three campaigns, it more than makes up for it with more levels and the card game aspect. The card game is so fun, I, no joke, put more effort into that than the platforming sections. But again, like the last campaigns, the platforming sections were great. This time especially, due to levels having less content packed within them, the concepts and designs for each level were really fun. While all the other levels in campaigns are more comparable to games like Castlevania or Megaman, levels in King of Cards are more like Mario levels in a way.
Showdown:
Not too much to say about this part of the game. I most certainly had fun with it and it was cool to see how it adapted some other characters other than the campaign characters. But other than that, just not a ton to do other than the story and fighting CPUs. It would be fun playing against friends I guess, but none of my roommates are gonna want to play with me so oh well.
So, that being said, Treasure Trove is an amazing collection of games. Depending on sales and such, you basically get 5 games for $30-$40. I couldn't recommend it more. It's really an indie game classic that I feel everyone who wants to get into more indie games should have in their library.
Shovel of Hope:
The main campaign. You go around as the titular character, digging up gems and flippin' over stuff. While it is basic, the way it teaches you how it'll progress and how other campaigns will go forward- all having some of the same LRPG elements- is really fun. Though that being said, it is the most basic of the campaigns and I had more fun going through the other campaigns. That's not to knock on this campaign though, it is a classic indie game for a reason. There is fun to be had with Shovel of Hope and it is a great campaign to start with if you get Treasure Trove.
Plague of Shadows:
the 2nd campaign and the most challenging one for casual players. Despite that, I also had some real fun with this. While you go through the same maps you did in Shovel of Hope, they're all altered in a way to make it challenging. Or at least they would be way more challenging if you weren't playing with Plague Knight, my favorite character in the game. (Fuck, I lost the game.) Plague Knight's a bit of a Wife Guy™ so I thoroughly enjoyed that and his story with Mona, his confidant. Wait a minute, this isn't Persona 5. No, Mona is not a cat though, she's a tall lady that works with Plague Knight and they have a really cute dynamic. That being said, Plague Knight's new gameplay feels awesome in the most literal definition of the word, striking awe. With the addition of potions to your arsenal, it's basically a new combat system entirely. There's also double jumping and the burst jump, which makes movement incredibly fun. If you're a speedrunner, I would highly recommend this campaign just because of the movement mechanics and all the intricate movement you can pull off.
Specter of Torment:
I will be honest with you. I cried. So much. Not because this is frustrating, but because the story really pulls you into an otherwise edgy nothing character of a boss. If you don't play anything else, you should at least play Specter of Torment for the story. Speaking of play, while Specter is a bit slower in running compared to Shovel and Plague, movement options for him are almost as plentiful as Plague Knight. You can just homing attack from across the room OR you can use your own scythe as a skate board. While speedrunners would be more enthralled with the movement of Plague, I feel more casual players would like Specter's movement because- while challenging like the rest of the game- it's not hard to pull off.
King of Cards:
It's the card game tournament one.... Yaaaaaaaaaay. I'm joking, I also had some real fun with this one. While levels are shorter in comparison to the last three campaigns, it more than makes up for it with more levels and the card game aspect. The card game is so fun, I, no joke, put more effort into that than the platforming sections. But again, like the last campaigns, the platforming sections were great. This time especially, due to levels having less content packed within them, the concepts and designs for each level were really fun. While all the other levels in campaigns are more comparable to games like Castlevania or Megaman, levels in King of Cards are more like Mario levels in a way.
Showdown:
Not too much to say about this part of the game. I most certainly had fun with it and it was cool to see how it adapted some other characters other than the campaign characters. But other than that, just not a ton to do other than the story and fighting CPUs. It would be fun playing against friends I guess, but none of my roommates are gonna want to play with me so oh well.
So, that being said, Treasure Trove is an amazing collection of games. Depending on sales and such, you basically get 5 games for $30-$40. I couldn't recommend it more. It's really an indie game classic that I feel everyone who wants to get into more indie games should have in their library.