Shantae Ranking - Dancing through the Danger

Dancing through a series of indie my personal MetroidVania darlings.

The more game reviews I write, the more I feel I can give my opinion on a specific game series as a whole. Look at all the games and rank them from, to me, the least to the most fun. I can only do that though if I’ve played enough titles in that series though to fill a list. Shantae is one of those game series. 

What is Shantae, I hear some of you ask? Well, Shantae is a 20+-year-old series of Metroidvania and platforming games by independent developer WayForward. Its first game sadly didn’t sell very well, but over the years, WayForward would keep on returning to their creation. 

Because of this “never give up” attitude, Shantae would over time grow to become something of a pseudo-indie. It was my first Metroidvania and turned me into a fan of the genre. With all of it games under my belt, and with a 6th entry now good and well under my belt, I thought it was high time I updated this old ranking to better reflect my current thoughts. 

Without further ado, let's talk about, and dance through, Shantae's long but still short career! Oh, and as always with these lists, you can go to my review of each title by clicking the purple headers. 

6. Shantae

Let's begin this list with, well, the beginning: the original on the GameBoy Colour. Look, I know this is the game that started it all, and it’s regarded as one of the best GBC games, but I don’t find this first outing all that great. I would even go so far as to say that I don’t recommend playing this game unless you have already played all the other games and really, really want to experience the beginning.

Why is that? Because the original has lots of issues. The screen is so zoomed-in that you don't see much of your surroundings. Combined with unforgiving level design filled with bottomless pits, leaps of faith, and the damage sponges that are the enemies, you have the recipe for some very frustrating and not-fun game design. There’s a lot of backtracking, avoiding enemies, and whatnot.

On the upside, the groundwork the game laid for the series is strong. The music, the graphics, the writing—while not as catchy as in later games, it's still catchier than its contemporaries. It’s easy to see why these aspects were further developed in later games. The dungeons are well-designed, so while getting there is a hassle, once you’re there, the game shines.

So yeah, not a game I’d recommend to start the series with, but if you’ve played other games in the series and are hooked, I would give it a try—even if only to see where it all started.

5. Shantae: Risky's Revenge - Director's Cut

From a game I wouldn’t recommend starting with, to a game that I do: the second game in the series and the greatest title on DSiWare, Risky’s Revenge is a solid start for two reasons—its length and its pricing. As the shortest and also cheapest Shantae game, it’s the perfect enrtry point for anyone looking to get into the series.

While only sporting three real dungeons and being beatable in one sitting, this small game still packs everything Shantae is about: the combination of more traditional platforming and Metroidvania. The lovely, in this case, still sprite-based, graphics. It has a punchy and witty writing style. Plus, the director's cut comes with some neat QOL updates and a second mode: magic mode.

Why isn't it higher on the list? Because the short length and, I presume, development time don’t do it any favours. On top of being short, it feels like stuff has been cut out, like a proper second dungeon, and it feels unpolished in areas. To name one example: the main gimmick, switching between the back and foregrounds, feels seriously undercooked in how underused and basic it is.

Still, a great starting point without breaking the bank or taking too much of your time.

4. Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution

You’ve read that story in the opening about how the original Shantae flopped? Well, because of that, its planned sequel got scrapped. Its name was Risky Revolution, all about shifting the fore- and background, for the GameBoy Advance. Expecting, or better to say hoping, that the Half-Genie’s first outing would be a success, WayFoward started work on this sequel even before the original was released. A sequel that seemed to be fated to never see the light of day, be nothing more than a cautionary tale of sorts... Until 2025, that is, when the finished game was finally released thanks to the series’ current (relative) popularity.

Seeing this unrealized game in the series well, realized, at last was quite exciting. Alas, what this game represented was better than the final product. Not that the finished game is bad but it just does not live up to what it could’ve been. In essence, we have a game that is a more realized Risky’s Revenge which makes sense as that game was built on ideas and assets meant for Risky Revolution, but it doesn’t rise above it by much.

The game isn’t much longer, not quite feeling like a full-fledged title to me but like another stop-gap entry. The core concept of shifting fore- and background elements also still does not feel fully realized in WayForward’s second go at the concept. The controls frustrated me to no end, and I felt that the writing here wasn’t as ‘punchy’ here as it usually is.

That said, this is still a fun title to play, just like I find all Shantae games are fun to play. The game looks good with its 2D Pixel art style and I didn’t have a problem with the soundtrack, unlike others. The selection of animal transformations is also the best we’ve had in the series, if you ask me.

So yeah, not a ‘phoenix rising’ moment but still a fun game to have played. 

3. Shantae and the Seven Sirens

Right in the middle is the last "new" game: Shantae’s exploits on Paradise Island, tussling with the titular Seven Sirens. Now, I have to start with a disclaimer here. Since I reviewed this game, an update came out that addressed some of the issues I named. Better difficulty balancing and bosses with actual intros and dialogue, to name two. However, I haven’t revisited this game post-update. I intend to, but I haven’t yet, and thus my opinion on the game is based on the state it was originally released in.

That said, the original release of Seven Sirens is still a whole lot of fun. It’s Half-Genie Hero's art style dialled up with 2D backgrounds and very cool animated FMVs from renowned anime studio Studio Trigger, which makes the opening pop. It’s a game that went back to its roots after a little detour (we'll get to that) and brought along a slew of improvements and new features. From a new set of animal transformations to a card-based buff and debuff system.

The latter is both an asset and a liability. While Seven Sirens does a lot that, in theory, only improves the title, in practice, it just doesn’t come together. Transforming with the press of a button is oh-so-snappy, but the new animals just aren’t anything to write home about. The card system, while neat, already breaks the game's poor difficulty in half, and the map is not very helpful at all.

Add to that the problems mentioned earlier, and you get a good game that, while fun and well-designed in areas such as its dungeons, is less than the sum of its parts. A good and enjoyable Shantae game but far from the best.

2. Shantae: 1/2 Genie Hero - Ultimate Edition

Next up is by far the most content-rich title in the series, thanks to its crowdfunding origins. All those stretch goals the Kickstarter achieved gave this game more meat on its bones—from different transformations, to plot beats, to new modes. You won’t get more Shantae bang for your buck than this game’s Ultimate Edition! That isn’t the only oddity of 1/2 Genie Hero, though. In an attempt to make our favourite belly-dancing heroine more approachable to a general audience, this game dropped the Metroidvania gameplay in favour of just pure platforming.

I can’t say that this approach didn’t work. Half-Genie Hero was my first Shantae game because it dropped the Metroidvania aspect. I had finally come around to Mario and platformers after the one-two punch of Super Mario Odyssey and Super Mario Bros. Deluxe and became interested in Shantae thanks to SomecallmeJohnny, but I wasn’t yet ready to try my hand at a Metroidvania. I had heard how difficult those games could be and just wasn’t up to that at the time. This was a good steppin-in point for me.

This game is a great 2D platformer, no doubt about it. Some very good and fun platforming challenges in a colourful world. The core animal transformations are probably the most useful set we’ve ever seen. The title’s micro-plots are fun little scenarios to go through, and fully completing this title is such a good mix of fun and challenge that it’s one of the few titles I have gone for a 100% save file. With all of that extra content thrown in, especially Risky's and Shantae's friends-focused modes, it’s a hefty package.

You certainly won’t go wrong with this content-packed platformer, but I do have to say that if you want to experience Shantae at her truest, I would try out another game first. Metroidvania genre is, in my opinion, really what the series is about. This game lacking that is... unfortunate. There are also some minor nitpicks that do add up, and for a game with so many modes, it really could’ve used more level variety to keep things fresher. All of these points add up, and I do like one Shantae game more...

1. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse

And that is the third game in the series: Shantae and the Pirate's Curse! It’s most fans' favourite Shantae game, I know, I know, but for good reason! It's the most entertaining Shantae game in my eyes. It has the best story of the Shantae games, teaming Shantae up with her long-time nemesis for an interesting tale about how these two ladies are, well, more frenemies than enemies at this point.

What also helps a great deal is that the game's big villain, the Pirate Master, is the most memorable bad guy we’ve had. A good mixture of ominous presence, a cool design, and ties to our characters. Said characters are well-written, with that typical snappy writing and humour at arguably its best.

The graphics are the same style as Risky's Revenge, and what worked there, works here, though that does lead to an odd quirk. Shantae's new animations all have the spiffy vest and bandana you see her wear in the art above, but all the old ones have her in her standard genie outfit. The music has some of my favourite tracks in it as well, now that we’re talking about presentation and stuff. My favourite rendition of what can be considered the main theme, 'We Love Burning Town' and the headbanger that is 'Run Run Rottytops!'

It's though odd that, just like with Half-Genie Hero, one of the staples of the series is gone—the transformations in this case—but the pirate equipment is more than a worthy replacement. Very useful and snappy to activate. These abilities lend themselves well to some great platforming and Metroidvania challenges, of which this game has plenty. A bit easy, maybe, but since Shantae has always presented itself as a more approachable and 'spunky' Metroidvania, that is no big deal. 

If there’s any Shantae game you should play after getting into the series with Risky's Revenge, it’s Pirate's Curse! 

..........

And that’s a wrap! That’s how the six Shantae games out on (digital) shelves rank form to me at the moment—from the not-so-well-aged original to the beefy package that is Shantae’s Kickstarter adventure, to the never-finished ‘lost’ game that finally saw the light of day. Emphasis on 'at the moment' as I do intend this list to be a dynamic one. WayForward announced late in 2025 that a brand-new, seventh Shantae game is in development. I’m not expecting that game to release before 2028, but once it is out you can be sure I’ll play it! Plus, I still have yet to experience that 'Super Spectacular' update for Seven Sirens that addressed more than a bit of my criticisms with that title. Once I do, its position might very well change.

But that’s something for the future. For now, I hope that this list might not only have brought back some fond memories of the series if you’ve played it but if you haven’t, might convince you to give it a shot. It’s a remarkably fun and good series and a very good starting point for anyone who wants to try their hand at the Metroidvania genre.