Yacht Club made good on its promise during its Kickstarter campaign that it will be releasing fresh content to the much beloved old-school game Shovel Knight. An expansion pack has been announced in the form of a "spectral campaign" featuring the titular Specter Knight, who has already been introduced with his own unique slash skill style.
The target release for the expansion pack is said to be sometime in Spring next year.
Fans, of course, know that Shovel Knight is already finished. The upcoming update is only an extra campaign — a side story if you will — to the entire game narrative and will again be headlined by the scythe-wielding Specter instead of the Shovel Knight. He was first seen in the original game as one of the top bad bosses (that red hovering apparition) who made life difficult for the Shovel Knight. He has made waves since his debut as a hero in June.
For the uninitiated, the Specter Knight comes with his own unique skills. Developers equipped him with the much touted Dash Slash, which allows him to jump into the air and proceed with a strike, decimating an enemy in the process. This skill can be performed in both downward and upward directions and could be used repeatedly to cut up hapless adversaries.
In a side note, developers have not explained why the Specter Knight no longer hovers specter-like. Players do know that he particularly excels in walking, but he never levitated. Even the height of his jump is not something one could write home about. He is, however, adept at climbing walls.
"Move into almost any wall or ledge and Specter Knight will begin climbing," developers at Yacht Club Games said. "[However], Specter Knight can only climb a set distance before falling or jumping away though so be sure to plan your path accordingly!"
Another expansion is also currently being developed. This involves the King Knight update, a playable boss campaign, which features the notoriously slow but snappy dresser character who defends the Pridemoor Keep.
The Specter of Torment expansion will be available for free as revealed by the developers in their Twitter account. It will also be released ahead of the King Knight update.
— Yacht Club Games (@YachtClubGames) September 12, 2016
It is expected that Specter of Torment will include the new Body Swap feature or the Battle Mode, which is said to be a single-screen multiplayer combat mini game. It could also include both.
There is no word yet from the developers about availability of the expansion across platforms. Last year, for instance, the physical edition of the Shovel Knight for the Xbox One was canceled.
