I'm sure that for people who love the 2D platformer, Shovel Knight is an excellent time, and I did find a lot to love about it. The narrative is barebones but cute, the songs range from decent to superb, and the art is a callback to it's NES forebears while perfectly casting it's own whimsical little world.

But the 2D platformer is just not my genre.

The whole game was a large exercise in frustration for me. I just don't have the sense to quickly intuit the correct sequence of inputs I'm meant to do to progress, or the dexterity required to actually perform those inputs. I frequently found myself bashing my head against a wall until I miraculously was able to make it through. Each checkpoint was a gift from God, shielding me from having to trudge through hell again. My final death count was around 23 per level, which probably speaks to how long and how agonizing each level was.

The only part of the gameplay that I thoroughly enjoyed was the bosses. My ineptitude carried over here, but curiously, my frustration did not. Every death felt much more fair here; where falling into a pit or spike trap instantly kills you, a boss attack will damage your health, which gives the player more breathing room to recognize patterns, and come up with plans in their head. Combined with unique and varied design, the bosses truly test skill in a way that doesn't feel overly punishing.

Shovel Knight is a love letter to action platformers of a bygone age, and it's success helped usher in a new age for both 2D games and the indie scene. But in being that appreciative piece, it alienated me, and created a state where I just wanted the game to be over, long before the credits were set to roll. However, despite my lack of appreciation for the game, I do not want to take anything away from the success that Shovel Knight is. Yacht Club has something to truly be proud of here.

TLDR: My ass needs to git gud