Blog:TyrantRex's thoughts on Shantae: Half-Genie Hero

Note: This isn't a proper review, but rather my thoughts and opinions on the game!

I recommend listening to this while reading this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71lLnE8gJnU

Background
I've heard good things about the Shantae series, I was recommended to try one of them a few times, Half-Genie Hero was at a discount on Eshop, I liked the artstyle on the screenshots, here were are.

The Game
I'm just going to say this, this game looks absolutely fantastic. With all the blah-blah-4k-blah-blah obsession with graphics these days people get way too hung up on superficial stuff like frames-per-second and resolution (which reminds me of the obsession with Bits back in the 90s), meanwhile I say that what truly matters when it comes to graphics is the art style the game is going for not the amount of pixels. Shantae has an absolutely gorgeous art style, it's colorful and simple, the 2D sprites are excellent and very well animated, the backgrounds are 3D but blend well with the sprites, this is just a very eye-pleasing game and exactly the type of graphics I like.

The music is also very good, it's very energetic and upbeat while also fitting the game's setting. The story is very simple and clearly not the focus, but it's still entertaining and there are some very funny moments, it's one of those games that make you think "Every single NPC is a moron!" but in a good way. One of the main highlights for me was the fifth Boss fight.

To my surprise, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is a straight up platformer with some RPG and Metroidvania elements. By that I mean that each "main area" is a standard platforming level but there are lots of item collecting and upgrades RPG style and areas that you can't reach on your first visit but you will return to later for more secrets Metroid style. The first visit to each area has it's own mini-plot and a boss fight at the end, once you beat the boss you get a power-up so you can use to reach a previously unreachable area, those Power-ups being Shantae's transformations.

Speaking of the powerups, I really like them. They're easy to use and really expand Shantae's mobility and help you find secrets and explore areas. Now I've said I don't like exploration in games, but to be more specific I don't like exploration in big open worlds, in a 2D platformer built around constantly finding new areas, upgrades, and collectibles, it works very well. It's very rewarding finding items to keep upgrading Shantae, getting new Transformations to find even more secrets, and becoming more powerful. It also helps that the main platforming is well done too, not that challenging but not too easy either.

At first it seemed a tad annoying having to revisit each area multiple times but every time you keep finding more stuff you missed the first time so it's not that repetitive. My only real issue with Transformations is that some of them are underutilized and sometimes you'll accidentally pick the wrong transformation but it takes seconds to switch to the right one so not much to complain there.

I do have something else to complain about though, and it's a pretty big one too, and that's the game's lenght. It's short, VERY short. There are only FIVE main areas and a final level, granted you visit each multiple times but even then I 100% completed the whole game in less than 6 hours! Even for a $20 title I found discounted, that's still very short, when the game ended I was like "That's it?", which is a shame because I liked a lot what the game does but it's over before you know it. I know there are DLC story modes but I didn't get them and from what I heard they're all about 2 hours long each so yeah that ain't gonna add much meat to the game.

Yeah... this blog is shorter than usual and I don't have that much to talk about, and that's because the game is also really short. On it's own Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is very good, I just wish there was more of it.