The exploration, in particular, is a little rough-traversing the long, horizontal overworld takes a long time and the large sprites take up a lot of real estate. So many aspects of this series have continued onward, virtually unchanged, while other things have been significantly streamlined or dropped entirely. With the entire series under my belt, the original Shantae game is nothing if not incredibly interesting. I think we all know how that turned out (spoiler alert: poorly). Well, I guess I mean TRY to pre-order an Analogue Pocket. As if I needed a better excuse pre-order an Analogue Pocket. Limited Run Games is the publisher on this new remaster, and they’re going all-out: in addition to this digital version, they’re publishing a physical Switch cart and, by some black magic alchemy, they’re reproducing functional Game Boy Color carts. Miraculously, Shantae was digitized for the 3DS Virtual Console back in 2013 and I heartily recommended it back then. Consequently, that cart is now one of gaming’s Holy Grails. It had a legendarily-low print run on the GBC, published by Capcom, who sat on it and until the Game Boy Advance had been released. Of those five games, it’s still the original that’s the hardest to find. This is something of a miracle by itself, as the series spans several disparate systems: Shantae on Game Boy Color, Risky’s Revenge on DSiWare, Pirate’s Curse on 3DS, Half-Genie Hero on Wii U (and other concurrent systems), and finally Seven Sirens on current platforms. You can play through that entire history now from the comfort of your own Switch, as every Shantae game is on the eShop. There’s also plenty of character artwork and sprite sheets from the development process to scroll through.Shantae, our favorite half-genie hero here at Nintendo World Report, has come a long way during her 18-year history. The game comes with a few improvements to drag it into the modern era, including save states, and playing in GBC or GBA modes. Despite being Shantae’s original outing, I don’t think this game holds a candle to any of its many sequels such as Shantae: Half-Genie Hero. Still, the game offers a solid 2-5 hours of solid Metroidvania goodness, if you’re patient enough to overlook the QoL shortcomings of a game that’s almost 20 years old. I’m spoiled by modern titles, and the 16-button controllers many swear by. Considering the GBC only had two buttons, a start and select, and a basic D-Pad, I understand why Shantae controls are a little awkward. The platforming in the game feels as cumbersome as classic Mega Man games. These moves turn her into different animals with varied abilities, which allow her to traverse new obstacles and open up new areas.Īfter my hour with the game, it felt a little stodgier than I remember. Instead of gaining new weapons or armor upgrades, Shantae, the genie guardian of Sequin Land unlocks new dance moves. What game isn’t ported to the Switch, nowadays?įor those unfamiliar with Shantae’s first title, it’s quite similar to the other games bearing her name. Having happily played every Shantae release since the first, I was as excited as many retro gaming fans when I heard the Game Boy Color cult classic was being ported to the Nintendo Switch. Despite buying buried under the onslaught of a new, shinier portable, Shantae left an impression and is now a celebrated game series five games strong. One of the Game Boy Color’s most ambitious titles was released about a year after the Game Boy Advance launched. The release of the original Shantae was as strange as it was celebrated. When it comes to classic titles, sometimes, you simply can’t go home again. Many games from the golden era are still quite playable.
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