Let's Play Shovel Knight

[HalfTangible]

Hello everybody. I'm HalfTangible. You know me from such hits at that thing you've never heard of but I promise was totally real and awesome, or from the roleplaying boards.

Shovel Knight is a kickstarted 2d platformer from Yacht Club games dripping with nostalgia for an era of gaming that to be perfectly honest I missed entirely. I've played this game before, but previously I stopped. I am quite terrible at this game.

But that's never stopped me before (*cough* Warcraft *cough*) so forget about it; let's not waste any more time.

Let's Play Shovel Knight!
Part 1 - The Blackest Knight (Youtube link here)
Part 2 - Ghost Rider (YouTube link here)
Part 3
Other parts to come...

Other parts to come...

[KillingAScarab]

I still haven't finished Shovel Knight's original game (Shovel of Hope), myself. I should get back to that at some point, as it did seem quite good.

In part 1, "that gem" can be reached a few different ways. You did figure out you can "hook jump" as the manual calls it - controlling your movement left and right while you're jumping upward to get around platforms. You can also fall normally after you begin a shovel drop if you slash. Cancelling the shovel drop is going to become very important later.

[HalfTangible]

I still haven't finished Shovel Knight's original game (Shovel of Hope), myself. I should get back to that at some point, as it did seem quite good.

In part 1, "that gem" can be reached a few different ways. You did figure out you can "hook jump" as the manual calls it - controlling your movement left and right while you're jumping upward to get around platforms. You can also fall normally after you begin a shovel drop if you slash. Cancelling the shovel drop is going to become very important later.

Aaaaaah. I wasn't aware you could cancel the shovel drop with a slash; that's good to know.

[Avian Overlord]

I like it so far. As a fellow SK player who missed the NES era, a few tips:

• Combining the jump and horizontal slash can be very useful to bash enemies above you.
• Areas with irregular walls signal a secret. You missed a number of these in the level. They're worthwhile to pick up. Character upgrades are expensive.
• You can hit back many projectiles, including Black Knight's, by slashing them.
• This hasn't come up yet, but you can fish in bottomless pits to heal.

Good luck!

[Velaryon]

I'm at work so can't watch any videos right now. Also not having a PC at home at the moment is gonna be a problem, but I'll watch when I can.

Anyway, Shovel Knight is an awesome game! I just started playing it again because the Specter of Torment expansion came out, but I've recently been playing the original game as well.

Going to follow this thread and contribute where and when I can.

[Destro_Yersul]

Yeah, Shovel Knight's great. I'd love to do an LP of it myself at some point, but I want to do no damage and I'm not convinced I'm good enough to manage that. In any case, I'll follow along with this one, since it looks good so far.

[Velaryon]

Just for fun, I wanted to link this mashup of the song Strike the Earth from Shovel Knight (on the Plains level) with the theme from Space Jam:

[The Eye]

Do you plan to do the DLCs?

[HalfTangible]

Do you plan to do the DLCs?

Maybe? We'll see. At the moment, I'm just trying to keep a schedule of one video per week.

I'm already cutting it close on the second video.

[HalfTangible]

Uploading now. Sorry guys, this was supposed to go up at noon, but my editor crashed like 8 times yesterday.

[HalfTangible]

Let's Play Shovel Knight (Part 2)! (YouTube link here)

[Destro_Yersul]

That minigame is a lot easier if you jump to hit the jars. The targets up high are worth more points, and you can't easily hit them from the ground.

[KillingAScarab]

Yeah, The Lich Yard is a bit hard. That darkness isn't alleviated by lightning very often in the stage, and becomes a problem if you don't interrupt Specter Knight's animation to activate it at 3 or fewer health bubbles. As for Specter Knight's scythe attacks, there are three paths the scythe will take depending upon how/if he teleports. If he doesn't teleport, it travels in a full rectangle. If he teleports to the opposite side and elevation, this will be be half the rectangle ( ¬ if he moves from left to right and down) and the next throw will be the other half. If he teleports directly across from where he threw the scythe, it moves in a sine wave or a V. If he teleports up or down only, the scythe moves in a < or a > and then again on the second toss.

[smuchmuch]

Most people tend to do Pridemoor Keep before the lich yard. Probaly because king knight is easier a boss than specter knight.

[Destro_Yersul]

King Knight's pretty easy, yeah. I don't find Spectre Knight as hard as his stage, though. The stage gimmick with the darkness and lightning has always made it one of the harder stages for me, just because precision platforming relies a lot on being able to see what you're doing.

[HalfTangible]

Most people tend to do Pridemoor Keep before the lich yard. Probaly because king knight is easier a boss than specter knight.

Indeed. But I did that last time, and I wanted to mix things up a bit.

Also I'm not very bright.

[HalfTangible]

New one up. (youtube link here)

[Destro_Yersul]

If I'm remembering rightly, you can fight those shield guys by waiting for them to telegraph an attack and then pogoing/attacking. Assorted relics can of course also damage them.

Oh, if you haven't yet, you may wish to change relic activation to a dedicated button rather than a control combination.

Those wizards have always been there far as I know. And yes, projectile deflection is a thing.

Ah, King Knight. Probably the easiest boss in the game. not counting Tinker Knight's first form. Fun fact, "The Decadent Dandy" is the name of King Knight's boss fight music. Also, when he does the trumpets, if you just sit there and pogo on his head, you can get a lot of damage in.

[Rakaydos]

When an enemy knight attacks, he wings up for a moment and drops his shield.

[HalfTangible]

Oh, if you haven't yet, you may wish to change relic activation to a dedicated button rather than a control combination.

*eyebrow* tried that the last time i played, there was no way to change button combos that I could find.

But that would make my life immensely easier.

[Destro_Yersul]

It's in options > controls > subweapon input type.

[Avian Overlord]

On knights: They have a delay in switching defensive positions. This means you can attack them from one angle than quickly switch. And as previously mentioned, artifacts are also good for fighting them.

On artifacts: There's a button to open the item menu. Check your control options to see what it is. Artifacts are cheaper if you find Chester in the dungeon itself, and often useful in the dungeon where you purchase them. You can still purchase the artifact from any level you've finished in the village basement. It's worth keeping up to date. The areas with diamonds on the map are places you can use one particular artifact to gather a lot of treasure.

[Velaryon]

So I missed if you said it anywhere - what platform are you playing the game on? That might make a difference when it comes to suggestions about controls. I play it on PS4 and have a separate button for relic activation there.

Anyway, suggestions (if you're open to them):

-There are a LOT of secrets you aren't getting, because the game is absolutely riddled with them. Lots of breakable walls, some of which are labeled and some of which aren't. Any place where the edge of the screen doesn't have a wall is likely a place where you can walk to another area, especially if it's an area you'd have to jump or pogo off an enemy to get to.

-A good habit I got into is to instinctively do a downward shovel on most jumps (unless you're jumping onto a breakable object that you don't want to break, of course). Also, by controlling your bouncing you can often times land multiple hits on bigger enemies and bosses. I've seen you do it once or twice but there's a lot to be gained by practicing it.

-Co-op, if you ever decide to try it, makes the game harder, not easier. It's still a blast, but be forewarned.


Anyway, it's fun watching these, as it reminds me a lot of the initial fun of exploring the game when you don't already know where everything is. Also, you're making me want to pick up my copy (which is currently on loan to a friend) and try some run-throughs like no meal tickets, no relics, etc. which I hadn't tried before. Though maybe I should finish New Game+ first...

[HalfTangible]

So I missed if you said it anywhere - what platform are you playing the game on? That might make a difference when it comes to suggestions about controls. I play it on PS4 and have a separate button for relic activation there.

Anyway, suggestions (if you're open to them):

-There are a LOT of secrets you aren't getting, because the game is absolutely riddled with them. Lots of breakable walls, some of which are labeled and some of which aren't. Any place where the edge of the screen doesn't have a wall is likely a place where you can walk to another area, especially if it's an area you'd have to jump or pogo off an enemy to get to.

-A good habit I got into is to instinctively do a downward shovel on most jumps (unless you're jumping onto a breakable object that you don't want to break, of course). Also, by controlling your bouncing you can often times land multiple hits on bigger enemies and bosses. I've seen you do it once or twice but there's a lot to be gained by practicing it.

-Co-op, if you ever decide to try it, makes the game harder, not easier. It's still a blast, but be forewarned.


Anyway, it's fun watching these, as it reminds me a lot of the initial fun of exploring the game when you don't already know where everything is. Also, you're making me want to pick up my copy (which is currently on loan to a friend) and try some run-throughs like no meal tickets, no relics, etc. which I hadn't tried before. Though maybe I should finish New Game+ first...

I'm open to suggestions, yes.

I'm playing on PC, but using an xbox one controller.

[Velaryon]

I would think that you aren't going to replay stages for your Let's Play, but I wanted to point out one secret in Pridemoor Keep that's so obvious it's actually easy to miss (or at least that's what I'm telling myself since I missed it for the longest time).

You can go left from the starting screen of that stage to access a hidden area with sheet music, treasure, and a breakable wall that reveals a Yacht Club logo.

[HalfTangible]

This next one as you may be able to tell is gonna go up tomorrow instead of today because I got lazy and didn't record the next video's gameplay in advance Sorry. Next one I'll be sure to ahead on.

[HalfTangible]

This next one as you may be able to tell is gonna go up tomorrow instead of today because I got lazy and didn't record the next video's gameplay in advance Sorry. Next one I'll be sure to ahead on.

Ooooor mom could find it near impossible to breath because there's three dogs in the house, meaning that I spend all of today running around like a chicken with it's head cut off.

That works too ._.

[Destro_Yersul]

Oh dear. Allergies? Those suck.

Hopefully you can find time for Shovel Knight somewhere, I'm quite liking watching these.

[Velaryon]

I started a no-relics playthrough yesterday. So far it hasn't been as hard as I thought, although I haven't tackled the Tower of Fate yet. Not having Troupple Chalices is going to make that rough, I think. I didn't save any videos though, so I'll have to do another one eventually.