{"id":1205,"date":"2021-01-28T20:36:00","date_gmt":"2021-01-29T01:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/?p=1205"},"modified":"2021-01-24T20:36:39","modified_gmt":"2021-01-25T01:36:39","slug":"game-ramblings-129-shantae-and-the-seven-sirens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/?p=1205","title":{"rendered":"Game Ramblings #129 &#8211; Shantae and the Seven Sirens"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wayforward.com\/shantaesevensirens\/\">More Info from WayForward<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Genre<\/strong>: Metroidvania<\/li><li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: PS4<\/li><li><strong>Also Available On<\/strong>: Switch, Steam, Xbox One, Apple Arcade<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I fucking love Metroidvanias.  I fucking love the Shantae series.  Guess what?  I fucking loved this game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-1024x576.jfif\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1214\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-1024x576.jfif 1024w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-300x169.jfif 300w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-768x432.jfif 768w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-1536x864.jfif 1536w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Cave-2048x1152.jfif 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Alright, that was probably too simple of an opening.  A lot of what I&#8217;d say about this game matches with exactly what I said in the ramblings for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/?p=138\">Pirate&#8217;s Curse<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/?p=518\">Half-Genie Hero<\/a>, and that&#8217;s a good thing.  This is another iterative release in the series, and it takes what made the past games really work and moves it forward in important ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-1024x576.jfif\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1215\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-1024x576.jfif 1024w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-300x169.jfif 300w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-768x432.jfif 768w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-1536x864.jfif 1536w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Map-2048x1152.jfif 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first big one is that instead of being level-based, this is 100% a true Metroidvania.  The entire game takes place on a single unified map and new areas open up purely based on upgrades you receive.  While I definitely liked the way previous entries encouraged re-traversing levels once you gained new abilities, there&#8217;s just something to having a pure open environment.  You see and make note of those open ends of hallways that you can&#8217;t quite get to or those things in the environment that are obviously something that you can interact with, and make mental notes to return to later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Where they end up making use of their history of level-based gameplay is in the handful of labyrinths that come up.  These act as pillars to the overall story and upgrade path, but also serve as mini-tutorials to learn new powers, as well as the core spot for the big boss fights in the game.  It gives a nice on and off pace to exploration where you kinda futz around finding new areas and exploring for hidden stuff, then go into a labyrinth and really focus on combat for a while in a controlled linear environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-1024x576.jfif\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1216\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-1024x576.jfif 1024w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-300x169.jfif 300w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-768x432.jfif 768w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-1536x864.jfif 1536w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Timer-2048x1152.jfif 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The second thing that really stood out to me was how well integrated the transformations were into gameplay.  In a lot of ways, this felt very much like <em>Pirate&#8217;s Curse<\/em>.  That game required upgrades to be fast and easy to use due to story reasons causing the loss of transformations.  In this one, the transformations are automatic.  There&#8217;s things like the newt form which gives you a dash and wall climbing.  There&#8217;s things like the frog form which the frog which gives you the ability to swim.  Thematically they make a lot of sense, and the fact that they&#8217;re automated makes the game flow pretty much a non-stop affair, which is a huge benefit to the game pace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That&#8217;s not to say there aren&#8217;t dances, but in the case of this game they&#8217;re all there as one-off attacks that don&#8217;t have permanent transformations.  These are definitely useful in their own right &#8211; for example an electric attack does AoE damage to all things on screen, as well as powering up mechanical devices &#8211; but they definitely have a much more straightforward use that isn&#8217;t tied to moving through the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-1024x576.jfif\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1217\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-1024x576.jfif 1024w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-300x169.jfif 300w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-768x432.jfif 768w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-1536x864.jfif 1536w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squid-2048x1152.jfif 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is just a really fun game.  There&#8217;s not been that many Metroidvanias that really have high pace gameplay and almost purely melee combat, and the <em>Shantae <\/em>series continues to be at the forefront of that style.  Movement is fun, combat is fun, the bosses are fun.  It&#8217;s just all <em>fun<\/em> and I can&#8217;t think of many better series to recommend in this genre right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8230;.and don&#8217;t worry.  Everyone&#8217;s favorite Squid Baron makes his return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-1024x576.jfif\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1218\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-1024x576.jfif 1024w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-300x169.jfif 300w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-768x432.jfif 768w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-1536x864.jfif 1536w, https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/S7S_Squidbaron-2048x1152.jfif 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More Info from WayForward Genre: Metroidvania Platform: PS4 Also Available On: Switch, Steam, Xbox One, Apple Arcade I fucking love Metroidvanias. I fucking love the Shantae series. Guess what? I fucking loved this game. Alright, that was probably too simple of an opening. A lot of what I&#8217;d say about this game matches with exactly &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/?p=1205\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Game Ramblings #129 &#8211; Shantae and the Seven Sirens&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1219,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,37,6],"tags":[18,35,53,75,241],"class_list":["post-1205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-action","category-adventure","category-ps4","tag-action","tag-adventure","tag-metroidvania","tag-shantae","tag-wayforward"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1205"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1220,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1205\/revisions\/1220"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1219"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.blog.dwgames.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}