Shantae: Risky's Revenge - Director's Cut
- June 15, 2014
- WayForward
- 5h median play time
Shantae Risky’s Revenge is a fun, challenging adventure. Filled with difficult boss battles, tons of tricky puzzles, and all kinds of magic spells to learn. While it may be a little outdated, Risky’s Revenge will always be fun to play.
Get on SteamShantae: Risky's Revenge - Director's Cut is a steamified version of the critically acclaimed game, featuring HD portrait artwork, additional challenges, and extra content like illustrations, Steam Trading Cards, Achievements, and more. As half-genie Shantae, players explore a sprawling world, whip enemies with their hair, tackle big bosses, and uncover a thrilling adventure in this side-scrolling action game. The warp system has been reimagined for speed runners and returning players, making this a must-play for fans of the series and newcomers alike.
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Reviews
- Charming characters and humorous dialogue that enhance the overall experience.
- Beautiful pixel art and fluid animations that create a vibrant world.
- Engaging gameplay with fun transformations and a solid platforming experience.
- Frequent backtracking and a confusing map system that can lead to frustration.
- Short game length, typically around 4-6 hours, which may leave players wanting more.
- Combat can feel repetitive and lacks depth, with some spells being underutilized.
- music344 mentions
- 68 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in "Shantae: Risky's Revenge" is widely praised, with many reviewers highlighting its catchy melodies and vibrant, upbeat nature that enhances the game's nostalgic charm. Composed by Jake Kaufman, the soundtrack is considered one of the standout features, adding life to the colorful pixel art and gameplay. While some mention a lack of variety in certain tracks, the overall consensus is that the music significantly contributes to the game's enjoyable atmosphere.
“The soundtrack is phenomenal, arguably the best part of the game.”
“The music in these games is absolutely the highlight with super catchy melodies throughout.”
“The music is simply amazing, it has an eastern vibe and it's mostly upbeat.”
“The music is repetitive.”
“The music, while very well done, is missing something, and that something is the dance button music.”
“Maybe the music could've used a little more variety but it fit too.”
- gameplay343 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Shantae: Risky's Revenge" is characterized by its solid platforming mechanics and metroidvania elements, allowing for exploration and transformation into various forms to overcome obstacles. While many players appreciate the charming visuals, music, and character design, some criticize the controls for feeling stiff and the combat as somewhat simplistic, leading to mixed feelings about the overall experience. Despite its short length and occasional clunky mechanics, the game remains enjoyable for fans of the genre, offering a nostalgic blend of old-school platforming with modern touches.
“The gameplay is smooth and there's a variety of abilities you can use, as well as giving that classic metroidvania feel when you unlock new areas or explore.”
“An awesome platformer, with tight controls and rewarding gameplay.”
“Shantae: Risky's Revenge is a splendid platforming adventure with incredible visuals, music, and gameplay, and I think everyone should give it a shot.”
“Shantae feels stiff to play as when whipping on the ground and when doing the dodge - a serious missed opportunity to have that be able to flow into a jump or special kind of counterattack - and her hair whip attack is so narrow it's not worth the bother of learning to aim it for when you have to jump and fight at the same time, and the items work on an unintuitive selection mechanic.”
“I would say it's a 6/10, the gameplay has shown its age with the controls and took quite a significant part of my enjoyment away.”
“But still, the gameplay is nowhere as refined as the sequels, the combat is slow, the backtracking is tedious, and the platforming is a bit of a coin toss due to the zoomed-in camera.”
- graphics315 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Shantae: Risky's Revenge" are widely praised for their vibrant, colorful pixel art and charming animations, evoking a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic 16-bit games. While some players note that the visuals may appear dated or poorly scaled on modern displays, the overall aesthetic and character designs are considered appealing and well-executed, contributing significantly to the game's charm. Despite minor criticisms regarding resolution and graphical consistency, the art style is celebrated for its creativity and expressiveness, enhancing the overall gaming experience.
“The graphics are deliberately retro in style along with the music, so this is a giant nostalgia trip for those of us that grew up in the '90s.”
“Its presentation is timeless, with colorful and expressive pixel graphics and a peppy soundtrack that perfectly suits its tone.”
“The graphics are gorgeous, with incredibly detailed, colorful environments, superbly animated sprites, and great character design.”
“There's something a little off-putting about the combination of high-resolution text and artwork drawn over a tiny pixel game, but between that and some annoying enemies, I don't have a lot of bad stuff to say about Shantae: Risky's Revenge.”
“From a graphical standpoint, it looks like a poorly upscaled DS game (which it is).”
“The dialogue box and menus really clash with the pixel art style.”
- story289 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The story of "Shantae: Risky's Revenge" is generally described as simple and lighthearted, serving primarily as a setup for the subsequent game, "Pirate's Curse." While some players found the narrative engaging and filled with quirky humor, others criticized it for being bland and lacking depth, with character interactions often being more memorable than the plot itself. Overall, the game is seen as a fun, albeit straightforward, adventure that appeals to fans of the series and newcomers alike, despite its reliance on backtracking and fetch quests.
“The story feels like a direct follow-up from the original Shantae.”
“The story was simple but fun with great dialogue from all characters as I've come to expect from the series.”
“The story is entertaining, though simple.”
“The story isn't anything to write home about; it's lighthearted and simple with an interesting but shallow cast of characters.”
“It's boring, the controls are imprecise, the map is useless, the story gets in the way, I didn't care about any of the characters.”
“The story is a bit hard to grasp if you haven't played the first Shantae game (for example, you'll have no idea why the main character is friends with a zombie).”
- humor148 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in "Shantae: Risky's Revenge" is widely praised for its charming and quirky dialogue, featuring a sassy cast of characters and a lighthearted tone that often includes self-aware and tongue-in-cheek jokes. While many players find the writing amusing and engaging, some note that the humor can be hit-or-miss, with varying levels of depth in character development. Overall, the game successfully combines fun gameplay with a vibrant, comedic narrative that enhances the overall experience.
“This game is a culmination of what Shantae can be at its best: an action platform game with some degree of adventure in the form of dungeon exploring, accompanied by a unique cast of characters and an excellent sense of humor.”
“The dialogue and the characters are pretty funny, often making fourth wall jokes and jabbing at one or two video game tropes which I like.”
“The story has both tense/dramatic and comic moments, but it's mostly a lighthearted game with a touch of goofy humor.”
- replayability68 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with some players finding it enjoyable due to features like "magic mode" and achievement hunting, which encourage multiple playthroughs. However, many reviewers note that the game is relatively short and lacks significant variety, leading to limited replay value unless players are completionists or interested in speedrunning. Overall, while there are elements that can enhance replayability, it may not appeal to everyone.
“The magic mode, which is unlocked after completing the game once, adds a more difficult experience to add replayability, and there are plenty of secrets hidden in the game.”
“It feels like it's a rather short game, but the fact that speed runs are encouraged by the game will definitely add to the replayability if you're into that sort of thing.”
“An ambitious platformer with great gameplay, a nice amount of replay value, and a charming heroine to play as.”
“Really easy, really empty, really short, not a lot of variety and no replayability.”
“Not much replayability though unless you want to find all secrets or beat the clock.”
“The replayability is mostly achievement based or for those who want to play with the magic mode unlocked after the game is already completed; the game pretends to have multiple endings, but it really just gives you a different post-credit art piece depending on the speed you completed the game and how many items you've collected.”
- grinding44 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, primarily due to cumbersome backtracking, slow map navigation, and awkward fast travel points. While grinding for items isn't necessary to complete the game, the repetitive nature of traversing long areas filled with enemies and pitfalls can detract from the experience. Despite some enjoyable elements, many reviewers noted that the level design and combat mechanics feel unrefined, leading to a frustrating gameplay loop.
“But still, the gameplay is nowhere as refined as the sequels; the combat is slow, the backtracking is tedious, and the platforming is a bit of a coin toss due to the zoomed-in camera.”
“Things get clunky when later areas are long and stuffed with enemies as well as pitfalls that reset your progress in the room. You're pushed to backtrack through these areas constantly, the map warp system never quite puts you where you want to be but instead 1-2 long walks off, and things get tedious and repetitive fast.”
“I also gotta admit the endgame backtracking was a bit tedious because the warp points were placed in awkward spots, and while going through enemies the first time around was fun, by the 9th time I just took the hits while trying to dodge as best as I could.”
- character development33 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is generally viewed as limited, particularly for the protagonist, who is seen as a straightforward hero. However, the character designs are praised for their uniqueness and expressiveness, contributing to memorable interactions and quirky dialogue that enhance the overall experience. While the main character may lack depth, the supporting cast showcases interesting personalities, adding layers to the narrative.
“The dialogue is quirky and fun enough, and the character designs are very expressive.”
“They have some interesting wordplay and character development in the story that gives some of the characters their own unique personality as you go along with it.”
“It depends, this was the first modern Shantae game and it set the framework for all later releases, both art style and character development wise.”
“She doesn't get a lot of character development, and is basically just a straightforward hero protagonist.”
“It depends, this was the first modern Shantae game and it set the framework for all later releases, both art style and character development-wise.”
“+dialogue (probably the game's strength along with character design)”
- atmosphere10 mentions
- 80 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its colorful graphics, cheerful and cute design, and distinct thematic areas that create an engaging world. The music enhances this lively ambiance, with remastered tracks from the original game adding to the overall experience. Players find the atmosphere fun and immersive, making it a highlight of the game.
“The game's strongest point is definitely its colorful graphics, cheerful and cute atmosphere, and the world feeling alive.”
“The songs sound great and add to the atmosphere of the game (just sit down for a while in Tangle Forest, you won't regret it), and many of the most famous tunes from the original Shantae were remastered for this game too (such as Burning Town and the boss theme).”
“The controls are smooth, and the different areas each have their own theme, which builds a nice atmosphere.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is notably poor, with frequent frame rate drops and stuttering that can lead to skipped inputs, reminiscent of a poorly-tuned emulator. Despite its fantastic art design, players report that performance issues often prevent a smooth experience, with frame rates dipping below 60fps and minor scaling problems.
“The control issues are further compounded by frequent mild stuttering causing skipped inputs, which feels almost as if the game were running on a poorly-tuned emulator.”
“Although, throughout the game, there might be a slight performance issue where it would feel like the frames will drop and stutter a bit before recovering again to constant.”
“Graphics: art design is fantastic, game optimization is surprisingly poor, frequently dips beneath 60fps and has some minor scaling issues.”
- stability6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has been criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and issues with disappearing save files. Concerns about it being a low-quality port are prevalent, particularly regarding the reliability of achievements, which are often described as buggy and misleading.
“I was a little worried that this was going to be a buggy, low-quality port.”
“Achievements are buggy and have misleading descriptions.”
“Broken, just made of glitches and save files disappear often.”
- emotional6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a sense of nostalgia rather than deep character connections, with players reminiscing about simpler times spent playing classic games. While the game may evoke fond memories, it lacks the depth needed for players to form strong emotional ties to its characters.
“Honestly, I would have loved this game as a kid, so playing this made me feel the nostalgia of a simpler time of playing video games in the afternoon on a classic console.”
Critic Reviews
Shantae: Risky’s Revenge – Director’s Cut (Nintendo Switch)
Shantae Risky’s Revenge is a fun, challenging adventure. Filled with difficult boss battles, tons of tricky puzzles, and all kinds of magic spells to learn. While it may be a little outdated, Risky’s Revenge will always be fun to play.
85%Shantae: Risky's Revenge - Director's Cut (Wii U) Review
I whip my hair back and forth
85%Shantae: Risky’s Revenge – Director’s Cut
Traversing the world is rather simple, even if the map if not very intuitive right off the bat. Although, there are some issues I noticed. For example – if I use a teleport statue, why can’t I teleport directly into town, the focal point of the game? Instead I need to teleport 2 or 3 screens to the left or right of it and be forced to fight my way through the same set of areas time and time again. I’m pretty sure I could have done them blindfolded by the end. There’s also the backtracking. Famously in the ‘Metroid’ sense, the player will often pass objects or places in the world that can’t be accessed until a new power is unlocked and then need to re-visit those areas later. I’ve always been one of them them that writes notes of all the things I see that I’ll need to come back for later, as not to miss anything – so there was no problem with myself running around in circles looking for what to do next. The problem I did have, once again, is that every time I was forced to go back somewhere I needed to fight my way through the same, stale enemies again.
50%
