ktoq
2014
2003
2013
2007
2017
2014
A true love letter to the NES classics, Shovel Knight takes the 16-color pixel aesthetic of the mid-80s, the 8-bit soundcards and the design ethos of the classic era of Nintendo and ports them to the modern day with a hearty helping of poor controls and odd mechanics. I'm a bit angry that I don't like this game because there's some great potential here but it simply doesn't feel realized.
2015
2014
2009
2015
Endlessly charming and fun, both the campaign and competitive modes are lovely and it feels great to mow down enemies. The constant mixup of the characters feels like it should be frustrating - especially with how easy it is to die - but every character, even the ones who aren't standout top characters like Brade or The Brominator, are great to play.
2012
The mechanic of switching between characters with different physics properties make even the smallest or simplest of puzzles feel like a chore when you play this game. I do feel a bit bad being mean to it though, the soundtrack is emotive and the graphics are good for what they are - the notion of character designs being to the simplicity of a single polygon is fascinating.
2009