IMHO.

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope vs Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope and Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment both land in Action, Indie, Adventure on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Action, Indie, Adventure on Steam. Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment (2017) is 2 years older than Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope (2019). Both sit near 94% positive on Steam (Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope: 465 reviews, Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment: 244). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.

Which should you pick?

Choose Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope

Choose Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope if you want the Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, and Co-op side of the pairing. On Steam, it's Steam Deck Verified, so handheld play works out of the box. Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope launched in 2019.

Choose Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment

Choose Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment if it's currently about 33% cheaper on the Steam Store. Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment launched in 2017.

Both Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope and Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment sit in Action, Indie, and Adventure on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (93.1% vs 93.9% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.

Side-by-side comparison

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope vs Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment — Steam metadata comparison
Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope — Steam game coverShovel Knight: Shovel of HopeShovel Knight: Specter of Torment — Steam game coverShovel Knight: Specter of Torment
Released20192017
GenresAction, Indie, AdventureAction, Indie, Adventure
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxWindows, macOS, Linux
Steam DeckDeck VerifiedDeck Playable
Price14.99 USD9.99 USD
Steam reviews93.1% positive (465 reviews)93.9% positive (244 reviews)
MultiplayerMulti-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-opSingle-player only
DevelopersYacht Club GamesYacht Club Games

Side by side

Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope vs Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment — FAQ

Which is better, Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope or Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment?
On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope sits at 93.1% positive (465 reviews), Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment at 93.9% (244). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
Should I play Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope or Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment first?
If you want chronology, Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment (2017) came out before Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope (2019). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
Are Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope and Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment similar?
They overlap on Action, Indie, Adventure on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.
Does Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment have multiplayer like Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope?
No. Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope supports multiplayer on Steam (Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op), while Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment is listed as single-player only.
Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope vs Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment · imho.run