Shovel Knight 3DS, Wii U will have unique multiplayer features

Shovel Knight, the crowdfunded retro platformer hitting various platforms next month, has a couple of cool Nintendo-exclusive features.

On 3DS, Yacht Club Games has implemented a feature currently called StreetPass Arena, which uses the eponymous data swap service to allow users to compete asynchronously. Users will pre-record five second clips of gameplay of battling or collecting gems; these will then be battled against each other somehow, with the winner receiving a prize of gold.

If that sounds a bit difficult and random - don't worry, that seems to be kind of the point.

"There are some goals that you're all going for, but you don't know what the other player is doing,. You don't know which gem they're going to go for first. You don't know if they're going to use a weapon," Yacht Club's Sean Velasco told Polygon.

"It's just craziness because you do it in these little five-second rounds, and you do three rounds over and over."

Meanwhile on Wii U a feature codenamed The Digger's Diary has players using the Game Pad to leave hints for each other.

"Every time there's a room where you don't know what to do, or if you just want some more information, you can tap on this diary," Velasco told Shack News.

"[Maybe you'll] leave a message for other players or get a message yourself, or maybe learn a little more the same way you would trade secrets on the school ground."

Shovel Knight arrives on 3DS, PC and Wii U on March 31.