Two-thirds into the funding period, Wayforward has successfully funded upcoming multiplatform console game Shantae: Half-Genie Hero for $ 400,000. This is a notable accomplishment for a developer that has long relied on contract work for their games.
The Shantae series itself has made its home in Nintendo portables for a long time. The first Shantae was published on the Game Boy Color by Capcom in 2002, with a sequel, Shantae: Risky’s Revenge coming out in 2010 for DSiWare. There is also an upcoming release, Shantae and The Pirate’s Curse, set to release in the 3DS eShop later this year. Risky’s Revenge has also seen an iOS release, and a Steam release is forthcoming after passing Greenlight.
Shantae and Mighty Switch Force are the odd original IPs for Wayforward, whose oeuvre has mostly consisted of contract work they’ve undertaken to fund their original games. Among these, their most notable games include Contra 4, Bloodrayne: Betrayal, Double Dragon Neon and DuckTales: Remastered.
As they explained in their original pitch, Wayforward launched a Kickstarter for Shantae in the first place because they wanted to explore alternate ways to get funding for their original games, and in particular, they wanted to find if there was interest and support forthcoming for a Shantae game on consoles.
Wayforward has pledged they will bring the game to Wii U, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Vita, Vita TV, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Steam. Now, Wayforward’s success is bound to have other contract companies in the gaming industry looking at crowdfunding as a viable option to produce original games.
Art is by Gigi D.G.