***Disclosure: I normally write video game related content on The Koalition’s website, but I felt this blog would be a more appropriate platform for my post. My opinions here are my own and do not represent The Koalition. Thank you for your understanding and for reading on. ***
This morning I woke up to find my Twitter feed loaded with tweets celebrating the release of Shantae and the Seven Sirens in Japan. It filled me with joy to see so many Japanese gamers happy to finally get to play the game on their PS4 or Switch consoles. It was also a reminder that my physical copy was on its way from Amazon Japan, which I’m excited for too. I already have the game digitally thanks to WayForward, but I’m more than happy to support them by buying it physically too. That and I really wanted the Shantae acrylic stand which, judging by pictures, appears to be smaller than I had anticipated.
It’s dawned on me that I’ve become emotionally invested in the Shantae brand more than I’ve ever been before. I’ve loved the franchise ever since I first started playing it when I got the Switch. But now I’ve found myself in recent months in something of a deep rabbit hole. Now I’m liking and retweeting stuff that other people share about Shantae. I’m following more Shantae fans and people who’ve worked on it. I’ve played soundtracks to their games on a regular basis on my devices (which I’m currently doing as I type this thanks to Bandcamp).
On many occasions I’ve expressed my support to WayForward, and not just for Shantae but for their other games which I also love. I’ve felt recently compelled to put this down in writing, because I want to take a step back and reflect on how I’ve gotten to this point. This is not a bad thing by any means, but I want to reflect on everything that has brought me to being so invested: in Shantae, in WayForward, in video games in general. I’ve already addressed how I fell back in love with gaming but I want to expand on that as it relates to a particular indie developer group based out of Valencia, California.
I grew up an ’80s kid and video games were among my first passions in life. My first video game controller had one stick and one button. Over time those controllers got more buttons and the games got a little more complex along the way. By the turn of the millennium, the graphics got a lot more advanced, and the controls a lot more involved. Now I’ve gone from one stick and one button, to two sticks and 10+ buttons. At some point video games just didn’t capture my attention enough beyond sports games. Too much to memorize and I wasn’t putting much time into them.
Fast forward to December 21st, 2018. WayForward had a big eShop sale on two Shantae games (Pirate’s Curse and Half-Genie Hero), and there were glowing reviews about it on Reddit. That was enough to convince me to take the plunge. I was a bit worried about throwing down money on an adventure style game considering it had been a long time since I had done so, and I hoped that the mechanics of the game weren’t too involved for me to pick up. It ended up being a refreshing experience, as Pirate’s Curse was a platformer style that I was very familiar with as a kid.
Now I understand that it’s my fault that it took me so long to open up to the possibility of playing these indie games, considering these Shantae games were available on other platforms I already owned. But this was about getting value for my dollar on a new system that I, at the time, had buyer’s remorse over. It changed the game for me, in every sense. I don’t want to dive too much into that right now since I already articulate it in my ode to the Switch as well as my review of Seven Sirens. So I’m going to focus more on how I’ve become a more devoted fan.
PAX East always takes place in my backyard of Boston, Massachusetts. I’ve gone to it multiple times but earlier this year was my first time attending as a member of the press. I went with my longtime friend Richard Bailey Jr., who also happens to be the Editor-in-Chief of The Koalition. We attended media hour on the first day, an hour before opening to the general public. Some media members flocked to the Animal Crossing booth (which had I been familiar with the game prior, I would’ve done as well), others flocked to the Square Enix booth. But Richard will tell you where my mind was, because I couldn’t shut up about it. I most looked forward to going to the WayForward booth, because I was finally going to get to play Shantae and the Seven Sirens for the first time. I was nervous about it, and honestly my first playthrough of the demo was almost a haze to me. It was an out of body experience. Why was I so nervous to play a demo of the game? A large part of that was because I wanted to set in motion something of a relationship with the company. I’ve contributed to The Koalition for several years prior via podcast, but writing reviews was a new venture for me and I wanted WayForward to be my first personal contact. I just wasn’t sure how to go about it without sounding like a drooling fanboy.
It took me until Day 3 of the convention to muster up the courage to start dialogue with one of the WayForward booth representatives. But once I did, I was put at ease and told what steps I needed to take. It was really one of the highlights of my four days at PAX. I was excited. But after the convention was over, I took some time to reset. Then the COVID-19 crisis hit pandemic status and my focus shifted to my safety as well as those around me. I started working remotely from home, and found myself with a little more free time for other activities. Eventually I decided to write my first article based on the games I played at PAX, with a few of them being WayForward games. After that article was well received, I decided I wanted to continue writing about games, and that’s when I reached out to WayForward to discuss reviewing their games. And I think that’s where I’ve grown to appreciate them as more than just the company that brought the Shantae games into my life.
Before long I was playing and reviewing River City Girls, Shantae and the Seven Sirens, Vitamin Connection, Mighty Switch Force! Collection, and more. I’ve enjoyed playing all of them and writing about them as well. There are other games from other developers who I can say the same for, but I’ll admit I’m a little more partisan when it comes to WayForward. Any time their Twitter account retweeted my Koalition reviews it was a big deal for us and for me personally. I’m happy that I can bring attention to our site as well as to WayForward’s games, and honestly I’d like to do that more, not even just for WayForward. I’ve grown to appreciate indie developers a lot more through this process. Don’t get me wrong, I still have room for AAA games. But I see indie devs as underdogs of the industry and there’s just something endearing and pure about their pursuit to present their work to the world. It’s no different than what my goals are for The Koalition, as we are an indie site in our right and I want us to expand to wider audiences, and I hope I’ll play a role in making that dream a reality.
Speaking of which, recently our site was gifted a PlayStation 5 console by Sony for review. That speaks volumes to how far we’ve come and how bright our future outlook is. I was super proud when it was announced. This was something of a theme, as I was finding myself proud of many of my peers in recent days.
From the time I first started writing reviews to now, I found myself gradually increasing the number of Twitter accounts I followed, mainly those who had something to do with WayForward. Fans in the community as well as those who’ve worked with the company. Multiple talent who worked on Seven Sirens tweeted to celebrate the release of the game and share their involvement, and I congratulated each person. For example, James Montagna, Director and Game Designer at WayForward, expressed the surreal joy of owning a physical copy of the game he made, Vitamin Connection, and I’m happy for him. Cristina Vee, who has voiced Shantae as well as other WayForward characters, has shared in her success with her followers with inspirational messages and I’m proud of her for that. There have been those in the fandom who celebrated their own goals, whether it was reaching a certain number of followers, or completing a project, or finishing school, or that cool drawing they just did, or even just the arrival of games and plushes they ordered and waited long months for. I’m happy for all of them and feel the positive energy.
It’s not all without my own gratifications. Every time I got a like or a tweet, it was a nice little dopamine hit for me. It was especially satisfying whenever my work was acknowledged, whether by WayForward or their fans. I always appreciate the feedback. I’ve had some friends joke with me about how I should work for WayForward at this point given all the love I show for them. And I’ll admit, the thought has crossed my mind on more than one occasion. But ultimately, I’m not sure there’s any more I can do for WayForward that I don’t already do with my coverage of their games. I’ve worked in tech support my whole adult life, but given the nature of their work they seem more in need of developers, artists, and voice acting talent. I’ve gotten to know a little bit of some of WayForward’s crew with the limited interactions I’ve had, and they all seem like they would be great to work with. I am openly rooting for their success, and would entertain the idea of moving cross country if the opportunity ever presented itself. But right now I can’t think of anything that they’re missing that I can provide. In the meantime I’m happy to continue to show my support whether it’s investing my hard earned money in their products or spreading the word of their work.
While I can’t think of much else I can do for WayForward, there is plenty they’ve done for me. Their games have helped me get through this pandemic, providing me with countless hours of entertainment as well as material for my articles at The Koalition. Their friendly staff have been very accommodating to me as I transitioned to video game reviewing. The whole process has been encouraging to me as an introverted young man who’s looking to humbly carve my place in the industry. I couldn’t ask for much more from WayForward (except for maybe a follow of my Twitter account, @Telos09!). Ultimately, I just wanted to convey my thanks to all the people that make up the WayForward community and to The Koalition as well for giving me a platform to share my love of video games. Thankful for the music provided by Jake Kaufman, Megan McDuffee, Sakamoto, etc. Thankful to Erin and Matt Bozon for making Shantae happen. Thankful for all the stories and the artwork. You’re all awesome and make it fun to be on Twitter and to continue doing what I do. That comes from the heart.
Thank you WayForward, and congratulations on 30 years. Here’s to many more years to come.
-Telos09
Telos09's Blog 