Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon Reviews

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon is ranked in the 95th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
9.2 / 10.0
Jun 6, 2023

Original, brilliantly designed, varied, challenging, and loads of fun the Shovel Knight series has shaken up the action puzzler genre nicely

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8.5 / 10.0
Jul 14, 2022

Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon relishes in the idea of punishing you. The roguelike nature and quick action puzzle elements can feel overwhelming, and it'll feel like a miracle when you beat the game for the first time. The solid mechanics are enough to keep you coming back, and the bevy of unlockable characters makes this similar enough to the original Shovel Knight in that the content will seem endless. For fans of unusual puzzles and Shovel Knight, Pocket Dungeon is perfect for you.

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9 / 10.0
Feb 8, 2022

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon won’t be for everyone. This is not the Shovel Knight you know and love, but to be fair, neither is Shovel Knight at this point. If you like Puzzle games, then you can’t go wrong with Pocket Dungeon. Yacht Club Games have belted out another home run, and I look forward to their next project.

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Recommended
Jan 13, 2022

A microsurgical blending of genres results in a lovely balance of precision and chaos.

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85%
Jan 9, 2022

Combining an action roguelite and tile matching puzzle game into one game is pretty wild, but Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon somehow makes it work really well and the result is a very fresh and quite addicting title.

Review in Slovak | Read full review

9 / 10.0
Jan 6, 2022

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon isn’t some haphazardly thrown-together spin-off. It’s the real deal, blending both puzzle and roguelite genres perfectly.

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85 / 100
Jan 2, 2022

Methodical puzzle games and frenzied roguelikes sound like apples and oranges, but Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon makes a delicious smoothie out of the two genres suitable for all tastes.

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8.9 / 10.0
Dec 28, 2021

A refreshing take on the puzzle genre, Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon combines different mechanics seamlessly to produce an invigorating experience that is both challenging and accessible for players of all kinds.

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8 / 10 stars
Dec 27, 2021

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon brings one of the best puzzle games of the year while staying true to its roots.

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9 / 10.0
Dec 22, 2021

Pocket Dungeon understands puzzle spinoffs in the same way that the original Shovel Knight and all of its DLC understands classic platformers from the NES. While its title is fittingly suggestive of just how small the whole game is, I have a feeling I'll be coming back for months until I move on to my next roguelike obsession.

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GameSpew
Top Critic
7 / 10.0
Dec 20, 2021

Despite its frustrations, you’re likely to get sucked into Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon‘s gameplay loop. With an adventure mode, a daily challenge and a versus mode, there’s plenty to go at, too. Even if you do die frequently, you’ll probably want to jump straight back in, each time vying to get just that bit further. And the assistive options are a nice touch, even if they do disable trophies and achievements.

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8.7 / 10.0
Dec 19, 2021

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon is a superb puzzle game that's much more enjoyable than it has any right being. Plus, no matter which kind of puzzle gameplay you prefer, the wide variety of options will allow you to enjoy it at whichever pace you prefer.

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8 / 10.0
Dec 18, 2021

It’s brilliant how crazy you can make this Pocket Dungeon, and it gives me a proud joy to say that this puzzler was easily the biggest sleeper hit of the year: despite being tough to explain, it just has a flow that is silky smooth!

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8.5 / 10.0
Dec 18, 2021

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon is a puzzle-adventure made with great love and passion, entertaining, full of options and with exceptional replayability. A little gem not to be overlooked.

Review in Italian | Read full review

Metro GameCentral
GameCentral
Top Critic
8 / 10
Dec 16, 2021

Shovel Knight's first spin-off is just as good as his mainline games, with a clever take on tile-matching puzzlers that offers an enjoyably unique challenge.

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8.5 / 10.0
Dec 15, 2021

A puzzle-adventure game that lives up to the name Shovel Knight, as well as being a very interesting and well-executed challenge.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

4.5 / 5.0
Dec 15, 2021

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon may seem like a minor yet unexpected twist for the franchise, but it's a twist that pays off big time.

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8.5 / 10.0
Dec 14, 2021

Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon turns the charismatic universe of the knight with the shovel in an excellent and addicting action puzzle. The main concept of running into enemies to attack them is simple, but, in order to survive, it's essential to make combos to attack various opponents simultaneously, which isn't always [an] easy [task] to execute. Some of the fun comes from being able to make huge combinations able to clear a big chunk of the screen. Different types of monsters, heroes with unique skills and many items add diversity to the adventure, and so do the game modes. As a negative point, sometimes the matches are way too similar and the action gets confusing in the midst of the visual chaos of certain situations, however those details can be overlooked. In the end, Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon is captivating with its creativity and is a recommendation for people who appreciate action puzzles.

Review in Portuguese | Read full review

GameSpot
Top Critic
8 / 10
Dec 14, 2021

Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon combines familiar tile-matching puzzle mechanics with rogue-lite elements to make one of the best puzzlers in years.

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8 / 10.0
Dec 13, 2021

Though pieces of its are familiar and taken from long standing genres, in uniting them with the series’ panache and pixels we get something unique to pick up and play again and again. Though I might be content to set it aside for now, that fine tuned gameplay and infectious soundtrack have made sure I won’t be gone for long.

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