Shovel Knight's King of Cards campaign and Showdown spin-off out in December
Developer Yacht Club Games has unearthed a whole load of Shovel Knight news, revealing that its long-awaited King of Cards campaign and fighting spin-off Shovel Knight Showdown will finally be releasing on all supported platforms this December. Additionally, a new game for the spade-wielding hero, Shovel Knight Dig, has been revealed.
This flurry of Shovel Knight announcements comes courtesy of Yacht Club’s latest livestream, which also featured new trailers for both King of Cards and local four-player brawler Shovel Knight Showdown. Yacht Club called the former, which builds its 2D platform action around King Knight this time around, “bigger than any game we’ve ever made”, noting that it actually includes a complete card game, Jaustus, technically making it two experiences in one.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards Gameplay Trailer Watch on YouTube
Shovel Knight Showdown (which won’t be available on Vita or 3DS) and King of Cards will be free to all owners of the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove bundle, or can be purchased separately. An updated physical release of Treasure Trove will arrive this December, incorporating Shovel of Hope, Plague of Shadows, Spectre of Torment, King of Cards, and Showdown. It’ll be available on Switch, PlayStation 4, and, for the first time, Xbox One.
Release day will also see a sizeable free update that introduces new features and quality of life improvements to the three existing Shovel Knight Campaigns. Shovel of Hope players will, for instance, gain the ability to unlock feats in co-op, and there will be a them/they option for character pronouns too.
Shovel Knight Showdown Gameplay Trailer Watch on YouTube
Plague of Shadows, meanwhile, gets a new alchemy quick-select option, enabling players to change up bombs freely, and Spectre of Torment’s Challenge Mode will be graced with five new platforming challenges that Yacht Club says are “not for the faint of heart”.