In Seven Sirens, the developers opted for more of a Metroidvania approach — a relatively large and interconnected overworld that facilitates all fetch quests and provides entry points to individual levels. Personally, I think this is a great change, as in Half-Genie Hero, the levels could get quite stale even in a regular playthrough, especially toward the end of the game. Now, there's often no reason to return to levels since all Heart Squids are accessible with the powers you gain in that area and other then them there is nothing to be found there. As a result, revisiting locations is relegated to the much less linear open world.

Even though most of the overworld is underground, it offers a decent variety of visuals and enemy designs. Thanks to this, the unique level design isn’t missed as much — especially since Shantae games never relied heavily on elaborate set pieces or level-specific mechanics in the first place.

Visually, the game introduced animated cutscenes to the series. These are a great addition and add a lot of charm. This is especially welcomed as the story isn’t anything groundbreaking — it’s funny, but don’t expect deep twists. Still, it’s a shame that most of the dialogue has to be read. Hopefully, in a future sequel, they’ll find the budget for full voice acting.

Mechanically, Seven Sirens simplifies things quite a bit — there are now only four transformations and five relatively simple abilities. I understand this was done to prevent players from getting too lost (which could be an issue in Half-Genie Hero). Still i thing little more variety wouldn't hurt. Especially as the abilities we do have aren’t all that distinct — swimming in water and swimming in sand are functionally the same, just with different visuals.

When it comes to difficulty, the game is quite easy, especially toward the end. I played on Definitive difficulty and didn’t have much trouble anywhere, aside from one small exception. Most boss fights feature slow-moving attacks that are clearly telegraphed, though at least they’re visually unique and some of them hot which is of course essential for a Shantae game. The hardest challenge for me was the Squid Pit — being under a timer really forced me to use all of the game’s mechanics since basic attacks alone didn't cut it.

One major gripe I have is that the game’s physics are tied to FPS. So, out of the box, the game runs way too fast on high-refresh-rate monitors. It’s a quick fix in graphics card software, but still...

Overall, I really enjoyed Seven Sirens—definitely more than Half-Genie Hero and Pirate’s Curse. The Metroidvania approach suits the game design well, and I hope the developers eventually return to this format.

more complex RPG system, with the card collection
environments were rolled from 3D back to 2D, but spritework stayed the same as in Half-Genie Hero
music is a bit weaker compared to previous games (which is understandable, since Jake Kaufman was not making it this time), but still holds up pretty well
personal ranking of Shantae games I've played so far:
1. Half-Genie Hero
2. Pirate's Curse
3. Seven Sirens

These Shantae games are great quality!

The controls feel perfect for whats its trying to do, and the Art n animation are superb!