Shovel Knight is an upcoming homage to 8-bit games crafted by some of the people behind the excellent Contra 4, and it needs your help to enter production.
There are very few developers whose output might convince me to pick up their future projects sight unseen. Blizzard Entertainment and Platinum Games are the most notable names on that very short list, but the most surprising firm there would have to be WayForward Technologies. You may not know the name, but if youāve played Contra 4, the 3DSā Shinobi or the recent Double Dragon Neon youāre no doubt aware of the obvious affection the firm has for classic games.
With that in mind, weād like to introduce you to a new Kickstarter project recently created by developer Yacht Club Games. Youāre even less likely to recognize that name, but the important part is that Yacht Club Games is comprised of former WayForward employees whoāve decided to branch out and do their own thing. In this case, ātheir own thingā is a modern ālove letterā to classic 8-bit games ā particularly RPGs and platforming adventures. Have a look at the gameās official description:
Shovel Knight is a sweeping classic action adventure game with awesome gameplay, memorable characters, and an 8-bit retro aesthetic. Itās a hot mashup of new and old that may remind you of Mega Man, Castlevania, or Dark Souls! You play as the eponymous Shovel Knight, a small knight with a huge quest. Shovel Knight has come to this valley with two goals: to defeat the evil Enchantress and save his lost beloved. He wields a ShovelBlade: a multipurpose weapon whose techniques have now been lost to the ages. Always honest and helpful, Shovel Knight is a shining example of the code of Shovelry: Slash Mercilessly and Dig Tirelessly!
Yacht Club Games hopes to raise a relatively paltry $75,000 for the development of Shovel Knight, and as of now the fundraising effort has attracted $11,647. With 29 days left on the Kickstarter clock, this seems a promising start, though thatās no reason to rest on your laurels. If youāve got the spare cash, please donate it to this project. I rarely make impassioned pleas like this, but the games these people have created in the past are such excellent examples of how to revive classic franchises that I canāt wait to see what they do with this homage to the titles that defined my childhood. If you donāt want to contribute to see the game get made, and arenāt swayed by the excellent donor rewards ā a mere $10 will net you a copy of Shovel Knightās PC iteration on release ā then do it for me.
Then again, Iām kind of a jerk, so instead you should donate your cash to fund hypothetical console ports of Shovel Knight. As of now the game is being designed as a PC exclusive, but with enough support Yacht Club Games hopes to also release the title on the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. Any excess support beyond that will go toward bringing Shovel Knight to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Vita handheld. As Biggie never said, āMoā money, moā viable platforms for this intriguing throwback game.ā
If youāve got a few spare moments, read over the Kickstarter page. Yacht Club Games has packed it full of interesting information, and we dare any of you to read it all and not be excited for this project.
Source: Kickstarter
Published: Mar 15, 2013 11:45 PM UTC