It’s been a few weeks since the spotlight was on the 80s inspired game, Shovel Knight, during Microsoft’s GDC presentation. To keep the game fresh in gamers’ minds, the official Xbox blog, Xbox Wire, has posted a brief introductory post on the series for those who may be new to the title and explains its Nintendo Entertainment System (aka NES) 8-bit inspiration.
Evoking the nostalgia of an 8-bit game without being overly referential or silly, Shovel Knight doesn’t just feel like a game inspired by the late ‘80s – it feels like a game that could have actually existed in that decade.
Shovel Knight may have already appeared on Nintendo’s 3DS and Wii U systems in addition to the PC, Mac, and even Linux in 2014, but this Xbox One release in 2015 won’t just be a direct port of previous versions. Several unannounced new features are promised for the Xbox One release of Shovel Knight and while the post doesn’t go in to detail on what most of them will be, it does remind everyone that the old school BattleToads characters from the NES game of the same name will be making cameos in the game. No news on if they’ll be playable characters though or simply blink and you’ll miss them cameos.
If you’re too young to remember BattleToads, go ask an older relative if they ever broke a controller in rage, and then listen to their story about the hover bike level. It will sound like a grandparent talking about the war.
Regardless of how much BattleToads we see in the game, it’s still an exciting tease for the all but confirmed new BattleToads game that Microsoft likely has in the works. Until that’s announced though, retro gamers will have to make do with Shovel Knight which is a fantastic homage to the classic 8 bit games of the 80s and a genuinely fun game itself.
Further reading: Battletoads, Microsoft, Nintendo, Rare, Retro, Shovel Knight, Xbox One
