Shantae and the Seven Sirens (2020)

Publisher: WayForward Technologies
Developer: WayForward Technologies
Director: Matt Bozon
Platform: PC/Steam

Overview:
Shantae and her friends go to Paradise Island for the Half-Genie Festival, but when the other half-genies are all kidnapped, Shantae has to rescue them.

Gameplay:
This game was built off the engine from Half-Genie Hero and it follows the long-standing traditions of the series, so veteran players will take right to it. For those of you who are new to the party, this is a Metroidvania-style action platformer. Unlike Half-Genie Hero, which separated the stages, there is a single unified map.

One of the biggest changes is that instead of transformations, Shantae's dance is now used for magic spells (not to be confused with the familiar relic-based abilities from previous games, which are also present). Transformations are now mapped to key sequences for the relevant actions. While the creatures Shantae transforms into are new, functionally they're pretty much the same as previous transformations (i.e. the Dash Newt is essentially the monkey, the Spike Tortoise the elephant, etc.).

Story/Characters:
If you were hoping for some major development in the story, well, don't. There's some promise with the scenario of Shantae getting to interact with other half-genies, but the most we get is a hint at something more. At this point, I think it's safe to say that The Pirate's Curse was the high point of storytelling for the series and we can't expect more than that. I play the series more for the gameplay anyway, so it's fine, but it does feel like a bit of a missed opportunity. Also, Sky comes off really badly in this game. It rubbed me the wrong way.

Graphics:
A lot of assets are recycled from Half-Genie Hero, which isn't a bad thing as that game looked really good. The animation is always a treat and the backgrounds are nicely detailed. Character art as seen in the dialog sequences is a little more detailed than the previous game, which may or may not appeal to you. The opening animation is done by Studio Trigger, which is a big plus. Other cutscenes are animated in-house, which are brief but add a little visual spice.

Music/Sound:
The music is good as ever. As with the last few games, we get partial voice acting for dialog sequences and full voicing for some of the cutscenes (the ones that aren't just Shantae reacting to the appearance of a boss).

Conclusion:
I was happy with my experience when I played through the game. Gameplay-wise, it's what I want from the series. It's a bit on the short side and it doesn't have all the extra modes that Half-Genie Hero had, but it's a pretty satisfying package overall. Though I can't help but feel the series peaked at The Pirate's Curse, this is still quite good and worth having.

Rating:
Own It