Shovel Knight launching as a complete product
Shovel Knight will ship as a complete game. We know this sounds discordant with the current era, but once upon a time when you paid for a game you actually got the full game.
"I almost feel like the game industry has become very cynical. Everything is so microtransactiony. Everything is, like, taking advantage of customers," Sean Velasco, founder of Shovel Knight developer Yacht Club Games told us. He explained that if Shovel Knight is going to make additions, Yacht Club will make a full new sequel.
Velasco speculated if the original Mega Man were launched today, it would include a few bosses and then charge players for more downloadable levels. He tells us that Yacht Club doesn't feel good about freemium or "fleecing" people.
"I don't understand why they stopped making these types of games in the first place," Velasco said, noting the game's inspiration from 8-bit era games such as Duck Tales and Mega Man. " I feel this is a totally valid and awesome form of entertainment. Why can't we continue to make games that have simple controls, that are fun, and have humor and levity?"
The company hasn't announced stretch goals yet, but Velasco tells us they're looking at adding additional playable characters in the vein of Castlevania 3. King Knight is currently the main playable character. He says they are also "looking very closely" at Wii U multiplayer capabilities, but they can't promise anything so far. Shovel Knight is about $10K away from its Kickstarter goal and is expected to launch this summer.
