Shantae Half Genie Hero E3 Trailer

As an original Kickstarter backer of this project I am happy to say Shantae Half Genie Hero finally has an official release trailer this year in the wake of E3. It’s been a long journey with WayForward’s progress on the game being seemingly slow but at least consistently updated with concepts and news along the way. The long wait time can likely be attributed to the expanded content in the Kickstarter campaign.

Official E3 Release Trailer

The game’s campaign was first announced all the way back in 2010. Accompanied with a demo trailer and theme song (by Virt) fan reaction was ultimately positive. It hit nearly every stretch goal it was asking for including release on major consoles. Not to mention the development and release of entire game that acts the third game in the franchise, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse.

I had the chance to play “Pirate’s Curse” recently and it was interesting to see some of the same assets in that original trailer years ago finally realized in gameplay for a game that wasn’t planned so long ago. Other than that the game only links the events of “Risky’s Revenge” (Shantae 2) and her re-acquired powers as Genie in Half Genie Hero, as in the former game Shantae lost her powers and had to gain the back through the events fighting the Pirate King in the third installment.

Dance Through the Danger

Shantae Half Genie Hero probably excites me more than most of the announcements at E3. I remember playing borrowed copies of the original games on Gameboy Color. I wish I had purchased the games back then seeing as the cheapest cartridge I can find locally is about $600! From the first demo trailer it was clear the WayForward developers were fans of the series. And the latest animations and designs have only reinforced this thought for me.

The promise of this game is something I’ve followed for over 5 years and to see it’s final realization this year at E3 is exciting. The animal transformation powers look varied and the art style is just as inspired as the previous games in the franchise. All the genie fans out there can look on to this fall with happiness and anticipation! Now if we can just get an official date.