Shovel Knight: King of Cards Reviews
It’s my least favourite of the Shovel Knight entries, but with the bar raised so high, that doesn’t mean that King of Cards isn’t worth your time.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards revisits the formula one last time with new maps and bosses, as well as a brand new card game. It's ambitious, but it's also the least essential of the major Shovel Knight episodes. If you own Treasure Trove, play Shovel of Hope and Specter of Torment first, then circle back to King of Cards if you still want more.
Despite my misgivings with our royal protagonist’s moveset, King of Cards is an excellent cap on what’s become a downright amazing collection of games.
King of Cards is another excellent addition to the Shovel Knight saga - an exciting and grand finale for the series.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards is a master-class in platforming, design, pixel art, and much, much more. Offering a good amount of new content, as well as the all-new card mini-game, Joustus, you have an overall package that is hard not to recommend, even if good portions of this feel wholly the same as the original Shovel Knight and its successive releases.
Other than my quibbles about the plot and Joustus, I have no huge complaints about King of Cards. The closest I can get is that some of the final stages were truly difficult and frustrating, most especially one that has you constantly warping back and forth. This is a very well made game, and had it not released after Specter of Torment, easily would have been my favorite Shovel Knight game. As it is, I got 5 and a half hours out of it for a mere $9.99, and only saw 34% of what the game had to offer. I skipped a whole 13 stages and probably some truly epic optional bosses. You won’t lack for replay value either, with many difficult achievements that are a hallmark of the series. As a fan, I did very much enjoy my time with King of Cards, even if the ending was a bit disheartening. I’m glad I got to play each part of the Shovel Knight saga, and cannot wait to see what surprises are in store for Yacht Club Games in the future.
King of Cards is the triumphant end of an era.
Yacht Club Games has delivered once again in the latest expansion for Shovel Knight thanks to exciting gameplay and level design that proves Shovel Knight: King of Cards was well worth the wait.
King of Cards is, without doubt, the most risky expansion of all of them. It brings brand new elements, as a complete card game (with collectible cards and fully playable) or a main character that plays very different from the previous ones, but as a whole it doesn't astound at the same level that Shovel Knight did up today.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Like each campaign before it, King Knight’s quest is a uniquely thrilling 2D experience that needs no asterisk assigned to any praise. This isn’t a retro throwback or an NES hanger-on, but a masterful platforming action that stands up to any and all contemporaries.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards repeats some elements from previous entries, but it ultimately delivers one of the largest and more refined expansions in the series yet.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards is a glorious, flowing, challenging addition to the series. There's more to do, and more to love - and love it you will.
Yacht Club Games continues to dig up gold with Shovel Knight: King of Cards, despite a momentum slowing card game.
King of Cards is the better Shovel Knight campaing yet, and a great goodbye to this wonderful series of games. We really look forward to Yacht Club Games' next work, be it Shovel Knight 2 or else.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Shovel Knight: King of Cards is the proverbial cherry on top of a massive sundae that I’ve enjoyed thoroughly, and I know I’ll look forward to revisiting it in its entirety in the future as well.
While I haven’t formally reviewed any of the previous Shovel Knight games I’ve been a quiet fan of the series since it started...
"You just activated my trap card."
Review in Finnish | Read full review
Shovel Knight: King of Cards is a successful union of its disparate halves, existing as both a platformer with consistently inventive level design and an engaging collectible card game. Joustus and the platforming offer a well-choreographed sequence of challenges that deliver constant variation.
Yacht Club Games has once again created a character that somehow feels familiar to play, yet fresh. The world and characters are enchanting, and the entire package is endlessly charming.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards continues the series' route in bringing more and more exquisite expansions to the original game. A crowning achievement of the Shovel Knight series, this expansion adds some very original new levels, a welcome new character with new mechanics and the series' trademark art style and sound environment. King of Cards is the expansion that Shovel Knight could want the most and it's recommended without any reservation to all Nintendo Switch owners.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review