Shantae and the Pirate's Curse

 Switch
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 82 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 60 out of 82
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 82
  3. Negative: 8 out of 82
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Mangamanvii
    Sep 13, 2021
    7
    Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is a nice game with stellar pixel art and a wonderful OST. However, the level designs are pretty bland and seem to focus more on being chunky setpieces than actual levels. Dungeons are over before they should be and many overworld areas are barren.

    When compared to other games of the genre of past and present, this one just feels average to me. But, it's a    Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is a nice game with stellar pixel art and a wonderful OST. However, the level designs are pretty bland and seem to focus more on being chunky setpieces than actual levels. Dungeons are over before they should be and many overworld areas are barren.

    When compared to other games of the genre of past and present, this one just feels average to me. But, it's a solid entry in one of gaming's best indie series.    … Expand
  2. BenannahRama14
    Jul 15, 2021
    7
    Shantae and the Pirate's Curse has some great ideas, but ultimately feels like an inferior version of Risky's Revenge. Everything aside from the writing feels like a watered down version of what existed in the previous title. Gone is the charming dancing mechanic in favor of... holding a button to gather mist and scents. It's even more situational than the dancing mechanic and is notShantae and the Pirate's Curse has some great ideas, but ultimately feels like an inferior version of Risky's Revenge. Everything aside from the writing feels like a watered down version of what existed in the previous title. Gone is the charming dancing mechanic in favor of... holding a button to gather mist and scents. It's even more situational than the dancing mechanic and is not nearly as charming as Shantae's signature dancing. Aside from one or two themes, the music seems lackluster and rather forgettable compared to the first two games. It sounds like Shantae, but I don't remember any new tunes off the top of my head. Shantae's physics seem very wonky this time around, making platforming feel less natural. The enemies hit way harder this time around, hearts and healing items are almost non-existent, and hearts only fill your health a quarter heart at a time. It is a significant downgrade despite technically having more hit points than in the previous entries. You have more incentive to just make it to the next checkpoint and immediately kill yourself to gain full health again because your healing items are just too scarce and precious, making the game's difficulty feel cheap and unearned. You can buy potions from the shop, but you'll want to be saving your money for the expensive combat upgrades. Now, it's not a particularly hard game, but you will die. Many times.

    Of course one could argue the whole point of the gameplay is to support what's happened to Shantae in the story. Making her feel significantly weaker and more vulnerable. I will give them credit where it is due, however I think they flew too close to the sun, as it made me less immersed in the story and derailed my focus again and again. It's a tough one to get right, and everyone is different when it comes to the difficulty they enjoy, so I'll leave that up to the individual.

    Traversal through the overworld has been even more segmented than Risky's Revenge, which has been taken a step too far. It tends to make things feel much more disconnected and makes exploration feel a little less exciting than it use to. Labyrinths are criminally short this time around and are intellectually bankrupt compared to the first two games. The most interesting Labyrinth of the bunch this time around is one of the earlier ones with Risky's hat. As you progress through and restore power to the center room, it changes into an air current, which carries you to the upper levels. Unfortunately, this is about as good as the labyrinths get this time around.

    On the topic of Risky's items you get in the place of the transformation abilities, they leave a bit to be desired. The two that are great additions to Shantae's kit are Risky's boots (very funny) and her hat. These felt very satisfying and were incorporated very naturally into her moveset. The other are not nearly as exciting and don't get much use. The plummeting shimtar move gets pretty much replaced by the cannon by the end of the game, and the pistol is useless in combat with a slow firing rate and terrible damage, which makes it better suited for activating distant switches for solving puzzles. Overall, a very mediocre kit without the charm and variation of the transformations.

    Now as for the praise I can give Shantae and the Pirate's Curse, like I said earlier, the writing in the game is top-notch. Every character gets fleshed out in a meaningful way and they all contribute to the overarching story with little moments to shine. Risky is given some much welcomed nuance, and acts as your companion/captain across the seas. The dialogue is very entertaining and it makes as many small but meaningful callbacks to the first game as possible. They even bring back every single old enemy from the first game and update their sprites; this aspect of the game makes a great love letter to the series.

    It also has a great pay-off to the ending of Risky's Revenge and the story feels very much like a fitting companion piece to it. Everything that was set up in Risky's Revenge has a continuation, no matter how big or small.

    In conclusion, the story delivers a great follow-up to an amazing game, but the game itself falls short of that. In its own right, it's still a fairly enjoyable experience, and it even comes with a NG+ mode which increases its already lengthier playtime. However, it's subpar overworld and labyrinth structure, inferior control, and lackluster items hold it back from what is otherwise a remarkable experience.    … Expand
  3. JuanitoMaldad
    May 14, 2018
    8
    Un gran juego que ya viene completo y se disfruta muchisimo en modo portatil
  4. thisisdot
    Jan 29, 2019
    6
    I really could not get into this game. I don't know what it is, the mechanics were well executed, the world WF created was nice, and the music was pretty good(though not really memorable). But idk, something about this game just couldn't grab me. It's not a horrible game, but it just didn't engage me, though I won't deny that the girls are cute, but if I wanted to look at cute girls I'd goI really could not get into this game. I don't know what it is, the mechanics were well executed, the world WF created was nice, and the music was pretty good(though not really memorable). But idk, something about this game just couldn't grab me. It's not a horrible game, but it just didn't engage me, though I won't deny that the girls are cute, but if I wanted to look at cute girls I'd go browsing on the internet instead of buying a video game.… Expand
  5. Daisuk
    Jun 18, 2020
    3
    I'm sure the core gameplay is decent somewhere buried deep below that insanely cheesy Disney Channel teenage Violetta-like style, but my word, I just can't get through the thick veil of cartoony teenage Disney cheese. Jesus. Well, at least I've learned.
  6. HSuke
    Jun 1, 2020
    8
    A somewhat casual and cute Metroidvania-like game. Awesome characters and a quirky sense of humor. Difficulty is on the easy side until that final dungeon. F that dungeon. The platforming difficulty came out of nowhere.
  7. Kosama
    May 19, 2018
    10
    Lo juegue en PC pero puedo decir que es el mejor juego de shantae que hay.
    Lo mas seguro me termine comprando en Switch xD
  8. Ryuail
    Feb 1, 2020
    9
    Shantae is a delightfully crass character, and this is easily her strongest game to date.
    Mechanically it is tight, the level layout is easy to understand.
    The story while simple and requiring the player just goes along with certain plot points when bringing up past events or characters is fun, funny, and fantastically paced. Music is top notch, I'm particularly keen on the record    Shantae is a delightfully crass character, and this is easily her strongest game to date.
    Mechanically it is tight, the level layout is easy to understand.

    The story while simple and requiring the player just goes along with certain plot points when bringing up past events or characters is fun, funny, and fantastically paced.

    Music is top notch, I'm particularly keen on the record scratch in the sewers below the royal palace.

    And the ending is satisfying in that "gotta take down the big bad emperor Palpatine" sort of way.    … Expand
  9. Pakon
    Aug 13, 2019
    8
    This game is a combination of platforming and metroidvania elements. Although I prefer "Shantae: Half-Genie Hero" ( which feels more like a traditional platformer) over this game, I still enjoyed "The Pirate's Curse" and had a lot of fun playing it. Fans of the Shantae series or platformer and metroidvania gamers in general would feel right at home with this game. A solid game which peopleThis game is a combination of platforming and metroidvania elements. Although I prefer "Shantae: Half-Genie Hero" ( which feels more like a traditional platformer) over this game, I still enjoyed "The Pirate's Curse" and had a lot of fun playing it. Fans of the Shantae series or platformer and metroidvania gamers in general would feel right at home with this game. A solid game which people should add to their Switch collection.… Expand
  10. candidKlutz
    Jun 27, 2020
    9
    While I'm a big fan of the entire series, I have to say that Pirate's Curse is the best one in my opinion. The soundtrack of this game is the most memorable of the series, the gameplay is strangely the most satisfying despite Shantae lacking her magical powers due to the previous game, the art is done incredibly well as always, and the story is the most interesting the series has to offerWhile I'm a big fan of the entire series, I have to say that Pirate's Curse is the best one in my opinion. The soundtrack of this game is the most memorable of the series, the gameplay is strangely the most satisfying despite Shantae lacking her magical powers due to the previous game, the art is done incredibly well as always, and the story is the most interesting the series has to offer in my opinion. I'd recommend this game to anyone that's a fan of platformers or metroidvanias.… Expand
  11. ChizWiz
    Sep 28, 2020
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is a follow up to the previous title: Shantae Risky’s Revenge. I’d say this is the best game in the series! Although this is the only game where Shantae doesn’t have her belly dancing animal transformations, her Pirate Gear is awesome and makes it faster to pull off than dancing, so the game doesn’t lose it’s pace. The game starts off with a great hook and first stage. The dialogue is humorous and I enjoyed reading through it. Nice art. An iconic soundtrack made by Jake Kaufman. Unlocking Pirate Mode after finishing makes re-playability fun. The dungeons can feel repetitive at times and if you get lost in what your supposed to do next you’d have to talk your way around Scuttle Town for hints.… Expand
  12. 3DSFan
    Aug 6, 2022
    9
    Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is a fast paced metroidvania. The music is phenomenal and the graphics are fluid and amazing, using a similar style to Risky's Revenge. The pirate tools are amazing, although the pistol felt underutilized. Overall, this game is pretty good.
  13. Peospeoou
    Sep 5, 2023
    10
    Genie with a gun 10/10
    But seriously changing from the transformations to the pirate gear was an amazing idea that works perfectly with this kind of game.

Awards & Rankings

26
#26 Best Switch Game of 2018
96
#96 Most Shared Switch Game of 2018

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
86

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. FNintendo
    Jul 4, 2018
    90
    This direct port of a previously-released game does not add anything remarkable other than the HD Rumble feature and as such, it remains the same magnificent game as the original: with a beautiful visual environment and very well implemented gameplay mechanics, Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is a wonderful game of the Metroidvania style that will keep players exploring and collecting for hours on end.
    Read full review
  2. Universo Nintendo
    May 3, 2018
    90
    Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is one of those games that can quickly put a smile on the player's face. Perhaps the reason for this is because it reminds us of some of the reasons that led - and still do - many of us to love videogames. Addictive gameplay, incredible soundtrack and charismatic characters. Yes, he is inspired by The Legend of Zelda, Mega Man, Castelvania and Metroid, but has his own charisma and charm and is very competent in what he proposes to do.
    Read full review
  3. Nintendo Insider
    Apr 9, 2018
    90
    On the whole, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse is a stylish and fun 2D platformer that fits as well, if not better, than it does on the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. Some of the backtracking may be a bit tedious for some and the save system in particular is less than desirable. These are only small criticisms in the grand scheme of things though because Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse as a whole is an absolute joy to play.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »