Combining fast-paced action and fluid parkour platforming, Shady Knight is a fun and creative little indie game that quickly makes a good impression. Built using its solid mechanics as a foundation and avoiding grindy or otherwise unnecessary mechanics, Shady Knight is sure to make a splash with fans of fast-paced platforming, even if this reviewer thinks it could use a little more style.
Before I get into this review, I think it’s worth pointing out that I’m somewhat of a stranger to the “parkour” genre of platformers.
Though I’ve been made aware of recent popular titles in this subgenre, like ULTRAKILL, it’s not one I’ve ever really been super into. The last time I remember really sitting down and playing these types of games was Mirror’s Edge on my Xbox 360. That said, it’s hard for me to define what Shady Knight does or doesn’t do well because I don’t have a foundation of references to compare it to.
While I can’t tell you how Shady Knight holds up to other “competing” titles, I can tell you what I liked and what I liked less about it during my time with the game. Spoiler: After putting a fair amount of time into Shady Knight, I found myself lacking any real criticisms of the game. There were aspects I didn’t enjoy quite as much as others, but overall, my impression was that the game was good, and I had a fun time with it.
Shady Knight has you playing as a knight, defeated in battle by a powerful foe and awakening in another world guided by a talking skull to seek your vengeance.
The game is a mixture of parkour platforming and knightly violence, tasking you to complete a series of levels with one goal: destroy the orb and get the highest score possible along the way.
The main facet of this parkour platforming game is, of course, the parkour and platforming. In Shady Knight, you move pretty fast, jump pretty far, and use a series of movement abilities to ascend various towers and physically reach the orb you mean to destroy. You will employ slide jumping, grappling hooks (er… daggers, actually), ledge-grappling, and environmental boosts like jump pads.
While I’m unfamiliar with the genre, I imagine a super important factor in a game like this is the movement. Suffice it to say, Shady Knight does movement really well, and I consistently felt a good sense of speed as I jumped, slid, and grappled my way around the map. I didn’t even mind when I overshot my jump and flew off a ledge; it always felt like my fault when I did so.
In addition, Shady Knight features a host of enemies and some light, albeit fun, combat mechanics to mix it up between (and during) your parkouring. While fighting these enemies is usually completely optional, doing so is the best way to rack up your score by pulling off stylish moves like chain yanks, backstabbing, and kicking your foes off ledges.
I was very satisfied with how combat was implemented in Shady Knight. Again, while often wholly optional, taking on your foes in stylish ways was a good means to spice things up in a run and challenge yourself to conquer the scoreboard. The game manages to keep the fights feeling just as quick and bouncy as the parkour, so it never feels like a detour. Often, you can and are encouraged to use the combat as a means to platform as well; it’s hard to explain just how satisfying attaching to an enemy and tugging them off a cliff as you soar over them is.
Something I initially had mixed feelings about is how the enemies in the game can manipulate your movement. Beyond using enemies to move yourself, you can also be knocked back by an attack or have your jump completely disrupted by an enemy appearing at the ledge you mean to land on. Though at times I found myself in death loops, often due to enemies spawning around new areas they weren’t at before and crowding the landing on very tight jumps, I never found it too frustrating and eventually came to see it as part of the challenge.
So, what else is there to say about Shady Knight? The combat is fun, the movement is excellent, and there isn’t much more you can say about it.
While more of a nitpick and less of a criticism, I found the game’s setting and visual presentation to be a little boring. Far from the heavily stylized world of ULTRAKILL, Shady Knight uses a sort of low-poly fantasy look that, while inoffensive, kind of feels like a flipped asset pack you’d buy on the Unreal store. Very little about the game’s visuals managed to charm me, and I found the sort of semi-futuristic-medieval aesthetic of glowing swords and spirit knights to be underwhelming; a cool concept, sure, but not one I feel like the game capitalized on too well with its visuals.
That being said, I thought the game did exceptionally well with its UI and effects. It’s the overall aesthetic outside of these areas that kind of failed to wow me.
Again, this is more of a nitpick than a criticism, and you’re certainly not going to be put off by the game’s looks, nor will they be at the forefront of your mind too much as you play. Also, the talking skeleton head is cool and is my new BFF.
The Final Word
Shady Knight combines fast-paced combat with even faster parkour, challenging you to dash, grapple, and slay your way through intense platforming puzzles on your quest to get the highest score possible. The game focuses on its solid foundation of well-designed mechanics and should easily appeal to any fans of the genre.
Try Hard Guides received a PC review code for this game. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles on our Game Reviews page! Shady Knight is available on Steam.
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