Probably not the best Shantae but its still a great game.
I recommend it, just ignore the Legacy Mode and start playing in the Definitive Mode, Legacy is just very easy, the best way to play it is with the hula skirt + Definitive, its pretty hard and funny that way.
The game itself is great, i loved the Ost even if it was not made by my beloved Jake Kaufman its very good, the game is very fun, overall i recommend it personally.
Fun game, but in my opinion it's too easy overall (playing on definitive mode, which was supposed to be a more challenging version of the game). Levels and fights are well designed, that’s not the problem, there is just too much healing too easily available. It’s easier to power through boss fights by taking some hits and healing than by playing more carefully and trying to avoid more attacks. Kind of a shame. Cool game otherwise.
I'm not quite sure what it is. When I first started playing the game, I was really excited to see them switch to high fidelity 2D visuals. (Although I wasn't too big on Shantae flashing her boobs at me whenever the game starts. In the past, I usually thought that people made too much of it when they complained about fan service but in this case, even I found it too sleazy. And then they have awkward "girl power!" stuff in there. which I find equally cringy...)
But after playing it for a few hours, I just stopped losing interest. Maybe it's the pretty bland level design, maybe the fact that you can't place map markers to e.g. remind you where cave entrances were, maybe it's the unnecessarily lengthy backtracking and searching around. Yes, that's a thing with Metroidvanias but it heavily depends on how the world is designed whether that's enjoyable or not. And the more I think about it, the more it seems to me like WayForward is may simply be better at designing stage-based games than full-blown Metroidvania worlds.
But you know - characters look good, the concept of card collection is fun and so I'll probably get back to it eventually. It's just not what I imagined when I immediately bought the game upon seeing that it got released. And I'm currently VERY Metroidvania-starved...
It's great to play another Shantae game. After level based Half-Genie Hero I wanted the series to go back to good old metroidvania, and Seven Sirens goes back to it in style. Get ready to explore giant interconnected world filled with secrets, dungeons and collectibles. Armed with new dances and transformations (now instant!) Shantae ventures deep into vast sunken city in an attempt to rescue her new genie friends.
Seven Sirens reuses quite a of assets from the previous entry. Sounds, enemies, boss attacks, magic, animations etc. Even Risky Boots got copy pasted from Half-Genie and it doesnt help that you fight her four times! It adds to the sense of repetition and sameyness.
Seven Sirens is also really easy. Only last boss provides a little bit of challenge, but with abundance of healing options, you can brute force it without much problems. There is a pseudo "new game+" mode that can be quite challenging, as Shantae takes double damage at the cost of higher magic pool.
Despite all that Seven Sirens is still good. It is an ideal entry-level game for people that would like to pick up a Shantae game. It looks great, has butter-smooth controls, moderate-low difficulty, lack of grind and the adventure is wacky and cheerfull as always. There is also new card collecting system, that gives you passive benefits, altrough most of them are very situational.
Despite its drawbacks, Seven Sirens still provides good few hours of light entertainment. Too bad it lacks variety and some more innovation.
Shantae and the Seven Sirens is a game about having a relaxing beach vacation. Or it is a highly enjoyable metroidvania, who can say. What I can say is that it is worth the full price. Good purchase decision, my past self.
Pros:
+ Gorgeous art
+ Precise controls
+ Fun map to explore with plenty of secrets
+ Collecting enemy cards for powerups is addicting
Cons:
- There are not as many genie forms as previously, but using them is generally much faster.
- Backtracking returns, but as moving around is fast, it is less tedious than before.
