Shantae and the Seven Sirens (2020)

Beat the definitive mode, going to play the legacy mode + hulu costume next. I don't really have a vivid memory of the other games I've played other than the fact that I like them, but I think this is either the 1st or 2nd best game in the series for me.

• I like the artstyle. One of my biggest gripes with Half Genie Hero was that the portrait art for Shantae felt like a stepdown from Pirate's Curse. This game feels like a nice middle-ground between the two of them.
• This game is funny. I forgot how lighthearted and whimsical the series is, so it caught me off-guard.
• I love the monster card system. It was a cool way to customize the way you play with the buffs they provided. It kind of reminded me of Castlevania: Circle of the Moon's card system, but I enjoyed this one more.
• I like the story. It did a nice job expanding the world and lore of the series by showing off more half-genies with cool designs. Big fan of the reveal that one of the half-genie's was Rotty Tops in disguise and the fact that this twist isn't just a joke, but it actually has a satisfying effect on how the game ends. I liked the revelation of how Risky planned everything, I felt like all my questions about the story events were wrapped up cleanly and nicely.
• I like the idea of having the dances have their own effects, while still keeping Shantae's transformations. It allows her the keep her versatile mobility, while also giving her additional abilities. When all of her abilities are unlocked, the mobility is fun.

• The map is pretty awful, at least for finding collectibles. I'm pretty sure the older games let you know when a room contained a collectible, but this one doesn't. It would've been nice if we were able to at least put down pins. That's the biggest reason why I do not think I'm getting 100% for this game. It was also inconvenient that opening the map didn't automatically center on your current position. I want to stress that when I say map, I mean the map in the menu, the level-design is great. Considering I have such a big issue with the map in definitive mode, from what I've played of legacy mode, it seems like the map is even worse there because it lacks the QoL of showing you your next destination.
• It's a bit unfair to call this a con because I did it to myself, but the early game is pretty darn hard. I felt like there wasn't enough healing hearts or magic pots considering how much damage enemies do and how much you need magic for various puzzles. I remember getting 2 more heart containers thinking the game would be easier because I got stronger, just to be blindsided by new enemies doing 2.5 heart containers of damage per hit. I should mention that I intentionally avoided using items and magic for the entire game, and the healing dance until late in the game.
• Did we really need to fight Risky Boots 5 times?
• It's a staple of the genre and I'm sure the other games did the same thing, but the backtracking to get collectibles in this game felt particularly bad. There's so many instances where I just had to comeback because I didn't have the right ability and it got annoying after awhile.
• Spoilers for unlockable abilities: two of the unlockable transformations are basically the same, except one digs and the other swims in water. The sand and water hazards basically served the same function in this game though. It's honestly a very minor thing to nitpick, but it would've been nice unlocking the double/triple jump sooner.
• Spoilers for late game levels: Squid pit is stupid hard and the final dungeon is long for no reason. There isn't really anything particularly interesting to see, there's no collectibles, and there isn't anything new added to make gameplay interesting. I don't think it really tested the skills you've gained along the way all that well either. My feelings for the last level are mostly due to the fact that I was ready to just fight the final boss and be done with the game at that point rather than go through a slog of a dungeon.

This game came out in 2019, so I'm ready for a new entry in the series. I'm a big fan of all of the WayForward titles I've played and I can't wait to see them put out more.