In the six year, almost seven, years since Shovel Knight first released, the title character of Yacht Club's insanely successful crowdfunded 2D platformer has made cameo appearances in so many games, it's become something of a running joke. From other indie titles like Yooka-Laylee to something as big as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, he's appeared as an NPC and sometimes even a playable character. But his latest guest appearance might be his strangest yet, since it's not in a video game but at Arby's.
As part of a partnership between Yacht Club Games and the American restaurant chain, Shovel Knight is being featured in Arby's kids meals for a limited time. Seven unique launcher tokens can be found and collected from the meals, each one depicting a different character from the game.
These characters are Shovel Knight himself, his best friend Shield Knight, his rival Black Knight, the villainous Enchantress, and the three playable members of the Order of No Quarter: Specter Knight, King Knight, and Plague Knight. Funnily enough, Plague Knight's name has been changed to Doctor Knight, likely due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Aside from being simple toys, each token also comes with a unique DLC code for Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, the version of the game that includes all the expansions. Unfortunately, the codes are only for the Steam and Nintendo Switch versions. It's not exactly clear what the DLC does but, if the announcement trailer is anything to go by, they'll probably add Arby's related cosmetic changes, like replacing enemies with sandwiches and drinks or giving characters a hat resembling the Arby's logo.
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.