If, like us, you've been playing games since you were 'diddy', you'll likely have fond memories of the games of yesteryear. From old-school platformers like Rainbow Islands and Bubble Bobble to the retro LucasArts point and clicks of Monkey Island and co, to every early flight sim under the sun, it's always fun to reminisce - but it seems we're not the only ones with some rose-tinted game spectacles. It's fair to say there's been something of a retro revival of late, with pixelated art styles and traditional platforming making a bit of a comeback. And none have been quite as well-received as the recently released retro-platforming fest, Shovel Knight. Starring the titular Shovel Knight - an armoured guy whose primary weapon was a shovel - it was up to you to whack enemies, use your shovel as a makeshift pogo stick, and dig up hidden treasure in each of the levels. Bringing with it a difficulty level our review described as being "somewhere between "Incredibly Hard" and "No" on the frustration scale" it was a challenging enough game - but one that found its niche nonetheless.
So well received was the game, however, that it's just been announced that the game's titular hero will be getting his very own amiibo later this year - making it the very first figure to come from a "third party" (read: non-Nintendo) developer.
A new challenger for Smash Bros, perhaps?
Set to launch on the 27th November, Shovel Knight will join the roster of Nintendo's already extensive collectable figure series, and, like other amiibos, can be used to unlock certain things in certain games when scanned on the Wii U GamePad. So far, it's been confirmed that the figure can be used to unlock a co-op mode in the Shovel Knight game on Wii U and 3DS, along with having functionality with other, future games on Nintendo platforms by developer Yacht Club Games. Compatibility with other games in the Wii U/3DS libraries remains to be seen, but at an SRP of £12.99, we can see this selling like hot cakes.
Of course, that's not the only big piece of Shovel Knight news to come out, as it turns out the game itself will be getting a disc based release. While it had previously only been available as a digital download on the Nintendo eShop (and later, other console's online stores), our friends at Avanquest will be slapping the game on a disc, and sending it to brick and mortar establishments on the 16th October, at a wallet-friendly £19.99. Releasing on the Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Wii U and 3DS, the disc based Shovel Knight will also come with an exclusive mp3 soundtrack - and given the original release was praised for it's soundtrack, and you even collect hidden sheet music in the stages, it's a freebie that fits with the game.
Eat spade, dino-dragon-walrus-thing!
So there you have it - a rather Shovel-licious autumn to come, courtesy of Avanquest. We can't help wondering what other Amiibos we might see in the coming months too, now the floodgates have been opened for other, non-Nintendo character figures. We'd love to see one of everyone's favourite lawyer, Phoenix Wright, who could gatecrash any and every game with a quick OBJECTION! and leave. Kind of useless, but funny none-the-less.
