Acclaimed Shovel Knight Getting Physical Release on Xbox One, PS4, Wii U, and 3DS

Retro-style platformer Shovel Knight has, until now, been available exclusively as a digital game. Later this year, you'll be able to put a copy of it on your shelf, as the game is getting a physical release.

Developer Yacht Club Games today announced it's bringing the game to retail on Xbox One, PS4, Wii U, 3DS, and--exclusively in Europe--PC. This version will carry a slight premium over the $15 price of the digital versions; it'll cost $20 upon its release on October 13 (October 16 in Europe).

The physical release will include the base game and the Plague of Shadows expansion, which is due out in the next few months (more on that below). Physical buyers will also get all of the other updates planned for the game, including Battle mode, the Specter Knight's campaign, King Knight's campaign, and more.

More notable is the exclusive: Buyers will get a "lavish" instruction manual similar to what was offered to certain Kickstarter backers. There aren't many details on this, but Yacht Club promises, "No two-page inserts here!" referencing the sort of manuals games sometimes come with these days. "You deserve a full manual, to hold in your hot little shaking hands and pore over as you wait to get home!" the developer said.

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Shovel Knight originally launched on PC, 3DS, and Wii U last June before being ported to other platforms including PS3 and Vita (which are not seeing physical releases). Yacht Club said as part of today's announcement that the game has sold more than 700,000 copies across all platforms.

As for the Plague of Shadows expansion, which looks to be a major update for the game, Yacht Club says it's coming "very soon." As noted above, the free update "will definitely hit digital platforms BEFORE the boxed version." The company notes it's "in the home stretch and [is] polishing every detail, pixel, and potion right now." You can check out an animated GIF and some screenshots of the expansion in action above.