Hey friends! I like my games cozy, colorful, and easy to pick up when I just want to relax for an hour. Shovel Knight Dig definitely grabbed my attention with its bright pixels and the promise of new places to explore. I spent a good chunk of time spelunking its ever-changing chasm, and here’s my honest, laid-back take on it.
Overall Impressions
What stood out most was the energy. Shovel Knight Dig is fast, loud, and packed with little surprises — enemies popping out of the dirt, treasure, and new relics that change your playstyle on the fly. The game trades the handcrafted levels of the original Shovel Knight for a procedural, roguelite loop, and that’s where opinions split. If you’re coming in expecting a direct sequel with carefully tuned platforming levels and a steady story, this isn’t that. If you want a pick-up-and-play, action-filled roguelite that keeps the Shovel Knight look and humor, it’s a lot of fun.
What fell flat for me was the repetition. Because levels are randomized, some runs felt a bit same-y toward the middle, and certain gimmicks show up more often than you’d hope. There’s also a definite difficulty curve and some spike-y moments that can be frustrating if you were hoping for a more leisurely experience.
Gameplay Mechanics
At its core, Dig mixes platforming, digging, and hack-and-slash combat with a roguelite progression loop. The digging mechanic is satisfying — it adds a little puzzle element: do you dig to find treasure, or carve a safer path? I loved moments when I tunneled under a lake of enemies and came up in a secret vault. Signature Shovel Knight moves (bounce, charge, shove) are present and land nicely.
Where it stumbles is in how the roguelite and platformer parts interact. A few players felt, and I agree to an extent, that it’s a roguelite that doesn’t quite embrace all the things that make roguelites great — permanent meaningful unlocks, very tight risk/reward loops, or completely rewarding randomness. Some runs feel amazing because the relics and drops lined up, and others feel frustrating because of repeated enemy combos or dull room layouts. One player I read even said it felt like “not a worthy successor” to the first game, and I can see that perspective if you loved the original’s handcrafted levels.
Controls and responsiveness are mostly good. The pace is quicker than classic Shovel Knight, so learning to flow with the momentum is part of the fun. Boss fights feel punchy and memorable, though sometimes they rely on the same mechanics.
Story and Characters
Shovel Knight Dig isn’t a deep, drama-heavy story — and that’s fine. It’s light, tongue-in-cheek, and full of little character cameos and lines that made me smile. You meet new friends and foes on the way down, and the cast has the same playful tone the series is known for. The game’s world-building is more focused on fun moments, weird locales, and flavor than on a deep narrative. If you want heartfelt character arcs and long cutscenes, this isn’t the place. If you enjoy small, charming interactions while you play, you’ll get plenty.
Visuals and Graphics
This is one of the game’s strongest suits. The pixel art is superb — colorful, clear, and delightfully animated. Nitrome’s experience with pixel-heavy games really shows. Enemies are readable, the varied biomes (fungal caverns, icy pockets, lava rooms) pop, and the little touches — like dirt particles and screen shakes — make digging feel tactile. One community comment summed it up: the pixel work is “top of the game,” and I agree. It looks great while moving quickly, which matters a lot for a game like this.
Sound and Music
The soundtrack is upbeat, chiptune-forward, and matches the on-screen action. I found the music energizing without being obnoxious, and sound effects add weight to each shovel strike and enemy thunk. There’s no heavy voice acting — the game leans into classic series sound cues and text-based lines. Overall, the audio helps create that nostalgic, arcade-y vibe.
Difficulty and Replayability
This game is challenging, and it expects you to learn by dying and trying again — classic roguelite behavior. That’s a feature if you enjoy mastering runs and unlocking new toys; it’s a con if you want a calm, cozy platformer. Replayability comes from the randomized chasm, relic combos, and unlocks, plus a few endings to chase. That said, some players found it repetitive and frustrating; I had runs that felt fantastic and others that felt grinding. If you enjoy tweaking your strategy between runs and trying new relic combos, it’ll keep pulling you back. If repetition gets on your nerves quickly, maybe take it in short sessions.
Developer Trivia and Behind-The-Scenes
A neat bit of context: Dig is notable because it was developed by Nitrome with Yacht Club Games publishing — a different pairing than the original games. Nitrome started with charming web and mobile pixel games and brought a lot of that aesthetic and fast-play design to Dig. Yacht Club continues to steward the Shovel Knight brand, and this collab gave the series a fresh, slightly different spin.
Final Thoughts
If you like fast-paced roguelites, love crisp pixel art, and enjoy short, energetic runs you can play for 20–30 minutes at a time, Shovel Knight Dig is a cheerful, well-made ride. If you loved the original Shovel Knight for its handcrafted levels and tighter platforming or you prefer slow, cozy experiences with little repetition, you might be disappointed.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Pros: Gorgeous pixel art, fun digging mechanic, energetic soundtrack, a lot of variety in relics and enemies.
Cons: Can feel repetitive, sometimes flimsy roguelite design, steeper difficulty spikes than some players will like.
If you’re curious and like quick, action-filled runs, give it a try — especially during a sale. I had plenty of moments where I grinned, dug a stash of treasure, and thought, “One more run.” That’s the kind of cozy addiction I can live with.
