Operation Backlog Completion 2025

Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution Confirmed for Other Platforms

 Video games  2 Responses »  Tagged with:
Nov 152023
 

Back in July, the most exciting announcement to come out of this year’s Limited Run Games showcase was that Shantae Advance was being revived as a new entry in the series.

Originally planned to be the second Shantae game, Shantae Advance was cancelled due to being too ambitious for what the sales of the first game allowed the developers to do.

From what I understand, Risky’s Revenge was written as though the second game had happened, which left some gaps in the story we never got to see.

Now it’s being revived and completed, to be released as a full game called Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution. At the time, WayForward would only confirm a Game Boy Advance release, so some fans worried it might be exclusive. However, it has now been confirmed to be coming to modern platforms as well.

After showing a new trailer in yesterday’s Indie World Showcase, which confirmed a Switch release, WayForward officially announced that Risky Revolution will be released for the Switch, PS4, PS5, and PC after the GBA version.

It has no release date yet, only a 2024 window. (And I tell you, I was holding my breath in anticipation that a February release date might appear, so I’m relieved it’s still unknown. Let’s save some games for the rest of the months.)

From the trailer, it sounds like it has some intriguing gameplay ideas, such as a mechanic where you move elements of the background and foreground and switch between them to solve puzzles. There’s also a new 4-player battle mode. The rest of the gameplay sounds like traditional Shantae.

I’m looking forward to Shantae Advance, and I’m glad to learn it’s coming to other platforms besides the GBA. If I was a longtime fan who had been in the series from the beginning, maybe I’d have gone for it, but as someone who got into Shantae with more recent ports, I’ll be just as happy to pick up a copy for my Switch.

Are you planning to play Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution?

New Shantae Game Announced at LRG3

 Video games  3 Responses »  Tagged with:
Jul 142023
 

While not held during June like the rest of the “Not-E3” events this year, Limited Run Games held its 2023 “LRG3” showcase on Wednesday.

I expected some announcements of previously digital-only games I’d want to pick up physical copies for, and maybe some old classics being resurrected again.

We certainly got that, and even the Clock Tower rumors came to fruition, with an enhanced port of the original SNES game announced with a translation for the first time.

But what I never saw coming was a new Shantae game.

Shantae Advance was originally planned as Shantae 2 for the Game Boy Advance, but the lack of sales for the first game meant the game’s ambition couldn’t be realized, and it was cancelled. Now it’s back – and they aren’t just releasing the incomplete pieces, but finishing the game to release Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution as a new full entry in the Shantae series.

Not only that, but it’s being completed and released as an actual GBA game.

So far it’s unclear if Risky Revolution will be released on modern platforms or if it will be a GBA exclusive. When asked on Twitter, WayForward said they don’t have anything to announce at this time about it coming out on other platforms.

While it seems like a strange decision to release a GBA exclusive in the year 2024, it does contribute to the sense of this old cancelled game being released as it was originally conceived. Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution preorders will open in September, with the game itself being due out in early 2024.

Shantae & the Seven Sirens is a Welcome Return to Form

 Reviews, Video games  No Responses »  Tagged with:
Dec 232020
 

After Half-Genie Hero dropped the interconnected world of the previous Shantae games in favor of a level-based structure with no overarching plot, I was thrilled to learn the next game would return to the old style.

Indeed, Shantae and the Seven Sirens features a large world with Metroidvania-style progression, towns and dungeons, and a new plot as Shantae’s tropical vacation for the Half-Genie Festival is interrupted when the other half-genies are kidnapped!

Transformations have been streamlined a bit this time around, since instead of dancing to turn into a new form, you can transform instantly.

That does take away a little bit of the magic, but on the other hand, it makes everything feel so much faster and snappier. Meanwhile, you learn additional dance-based powers separate from the transformations.

Seven Sirens also introduces Monster Cards, a special type of collectible you get by fighting monsters that can be equipped for passive bonuses. This feature is pretty neat, and between that, the usual magic attacks, and the new powers, it feels like you have more options in Seven Sirens than ever.

At the same time, though, it also seemed easier than previous games to me… in the sense that I could eat damage while spamming attacks and then just heal because healing was so plentiful.

But I don’t play a Shantae game for some sort of hardcore combat; I want to explore dungeons and unlock new areas. As I played through Seven Sirens, I was delighted as I worked my way through the interconnected world and spotted areas I knew I’d need to return to later once I had more powers, and everything felt so good that I considered it might be the best Shantae game yet.

However, now that I’ve finished, I would still rank Pirate’s Curse ahead of this one. Seven Sirens has a big world to explore, and that’s great – but it makes backtracking for Heart Squids and other items tedious since there’s no way to track them.

By the time I had all my powers, I remembered areas I wanted to return to, but I’d opened up so many locations on the map that I couldn’t remember where they were without slowly backtracking through each area to see if I’d missed anything. Pirate’s Curse and Half-Genie Hero both indicated how many collectibles remained in a given area, so I wish they’d done something similar here.

And while I was happy to see an overarching story return, and there are some great character interactions, it could have done more (especially when it comes to the half-genies, who barely play a role as characters) to really stand out.

But hey, being my second-favorite Shantae game isn’t bad by any means! Shantae and the Seven Sirens is a really fun game and a wonderful return to form despite some frustrations, and I hope the next game they make will be even better!

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