The play plays as Shovel Knight, a knight who carries a shovel rather than a normal weapon like a sword or a spear. The player will use the shovel for fighting enemies, jumping on platforms, and digging up treasure and secrets. There is no game over if the player dies in a level, but they will return to the last checkpoint they turned on and lose about one-fourth of all the Gold they have, the game's currency. Like in "Dark Souls", the player will have one life to take back the Gold they lost, but if they die before taking back their lost Gold, the lost Gold will disappear forever. The player can destroy checkpoints to get more Gold, but in turn, the player will have to start at an earlier part of the level if they die. At the end of the main levels, the player will have to fight a boss, usually an enemy knight, to complete the level.