* ActingForTwo: Creator/CristinaValenzuela voices both Shantae and Risky. Stepped up a notch in ''Seven Sirens,'' where she also voices Harmony the Half-Genie. The former two are ''also'' in this game.
* ActorAllusion: When recovering to full health using an auto potion, Shantae will sometimes say [[Franchise/LyricalNanoha "Total Destruction!"]]
* ChannelHop: Publisher version. While all the games are developed by Creator/WayForwardTechnologies, the first game was originally published by Creator/{{Capcom}}, while all later installments are self-published digitally by [=WayForward=] themselves. Meanwhile, physical versions of those titles have been handled by Limited Run Games (''Risky's Revenge'', [[Platform/PlayStation4 PS4]] and [[Platform/NintendoSwitch Switch]] versions of ''Pirate's Curse'', ''Seven Sirens'', and all [[Platform/PlayStation5 PS5]] verions), Rising Star Games ([[Platform/Nintendo3DS 3DS]] version of ''Pirate's Curse''), and Creator/XseedGames (''Half-Genie Hero'').
* CutSong: The soundtrack release for ''Seven Sirens'' features a downbeat rendition of the Tree Town theme named "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19AwKwH5vZE Tree Town Chief]]", which was presumably intended to play upon first meeting the character in question while Vera is kidnapped. In-game however, the recurring theme used for numerous apprehensive or mysterious scenes in the game, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwiCKbpPkL8 Secrets]]" plays here, and "Tree Town Chief" goes unused.
* DummiedOut: In the Virtual Console release, it isn't possible to get the Tinkerbat Transformation as the game is emulating the Game Boy Color version, not the Game Boy Advance version (unless you know how to access the Debug Mode).
* ExecutiveMeddling: ''Shantae and the Seven Sirens'' being released on the Apple Arcade before any other platform, due to Apple's involvement in the game's production as they helped finance it plus two more original titles they were making at the time, ''Spidersaurs'' and ''Marble Knights''. [=WayForward=] were also very tight-lipped about when the game would debut on other platforms, and didn't initially make things clear about the segmented nature of the Apple Arcade release.
* FanCommunityNickname: Updates on ''Half-Genie Hero'''s Kickstarter referred to backers as "Tinkerbackers" and "Shantarians".
* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: The original game was this for a very long time until it made it onto the 3DS [=eShop=]...then [=eShop=] itself got shut down. The shutdown also took the Platform/DSiWare version of ''Risky's Revenge'' and the 3DS eShop version of ''Pirate's Curse'' with it as well. Mitigated by the fact that all three games have been released on modern systems, but it still leaves fewer options to play the games. ''Pirate's Curse'' did get a physical release on 3DS, but [[CrackIsCheaper it's gone up in price since its release]]. Meanwhile, the only way to legally play the original game and ''Risky's Revenge'' on the 3DS now is if you got them back when they were available.
** The Wii U [=eShop=] got shut down at the same time as the 3DS shop. On it were its own versions of ''Risky's Revenge'', ''Pirate's Curse'' and ''Half-Genie Hero''. ''Half-Genie Hero'' was given a physical release on Wii U, but like the 3DS version of ''Pirate's Curse'', [[CrackIsCheaper it's expensive]]. Meanwhile, there's no longer any legal way to get the Wii U versions of ''Risky's Revenge'' and ''Pirate's Curse'' at all, meaning the only way you can legally play them on the system is if you managed to get them before the shut down.
* LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition: Every game in the series now has one by way of the publisher Limited Run Games. [[note]]Except for ''1/2 Genie Hero'', which got a "Day One Ultimate Edition" from [=XSeed Games=].[[/note]] Each collector's edition comes with a soundtrack, a reversible poster, a steelbook case, a collectible trading card, and a miscellaneous collectible, like an acrylic figure, a collector's coin, or a prop Game Boy Color cartridge. There was also a special rerelease of the original Game Boy Color version ''for'' the Game Boy Color, and they would go on to fund and release the cancelled Game Boy Advance entry for the original hardware as well.
* MilestoneCelebration: The console versions of ''Seven Sirens'' were released in 2020, just in time for [=WayForward=]'s 30th anniversary.
* NoExportForYou: It took until ''Risky's Revenge'' was released in Europe in February 2011 for the series to make its way outside of the United States. Australia and New Zealand ''still'' didn't get it, though, with Creator/WayForward stating that they weren't actively pursuing it. To say nothing of Japan. It took until the 2013 Platform/VirtualConsole release of the original Game Boy Color game for those territories to be introduced to the games.
** The free "Dancer Outfit" in ''Risky's Revenge'' was not put in the Platform/DSiWare version for undisclosed reasons, likely due to Nintendo's restrictive policy on third parties releasing patches at the time.
* TheOtherDarrin:
** Bolo was voiced by [[Music/NateWantsToBattle Nathan Sharp]] in ''Half-Genie Hero''. In ''Seven Sirens'', he is voiced by [[WebVideo/SteamTrain Ross O'Donovan]].
** In ''Risky's Revenge'', Shantae was voiced by Meagan Glaser. From ''Pirate's Curse'' onwards, she is voiced by Creator/CristinaValenzuela.
* RefittedForSequel:
** Risky Boots, Bolo, and Rottytops were all going to be playable in a multiplayer mode for a UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance entry that never got off the ground. Years later, the Kickstarter for the fourth entry in the series (''Half-Genie Hero'') had a stretch goal for Risky Boots getting her own campaign, and another stretch goal to give Rottytops, Bolo, and Sky their own campaign. Both goals were successfully reached, becoming "Pirate Queen's Quest" and "Friends to the End", respectively.
** One of the pieces of Pirate Equipment that was scrapped in ''Pirate's Curse'' was a grappling anchor. It was later incorporated into the "Pirate Queen's Quest" mode of ''Half-Genie Hero''.
** A minor example. When the original game was pitched for the UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem and the PC, Shantae's red outfit would have upgraded to a triumphant blue near the end of the adventure. While this doesn't happen in the final Game Boy Color release, some entries in the series would go on to have the blue outfit available as an alternate color, either unlockable after beating the game once or as a starting option.
* SavedFromDevelopmentHell: After nearly ''[[ExtremelyLengthyCreation 20 years]]'' of being on the backburner, Wayforward [[https://youtu.be/u1-fu8loFDY announced]] that ''Risky Revolution'', the long-thought cancelled Game Boy Advance title, will continue development and have a physical release thanks to Limited Run Games supporting it.
* TroubledProduction: The release date for ''Pirate's Curse'' was pushed back from "2013" to Holiday 2013 to Summer 2014 to finally October 2014. Adding in a contract with Inti Creates mid-development, not to mention the shifting of personnel to work on ''Half-Genie Hero'', are probably the main contenders in the delays.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** The first game was originally pitched for the Platform/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem and the PC.
** During the creation process for Shantae's character, one of the early ideas was that her belly dancing would summon or charm animals into helping her accomplish her tasks. Over time, this was eventually turned into her transforming into said animals herself via transformation dances.
** Risky Boots was originally meant to be a ghost pirate and had a much more ominous look in concept. Eventually, they scrapped that idea, but maintained her purple skin and skull motif.
** During the SNES/PC pitch days, one of Shantae's possible transformations was a tiger. It almost came back during the planning for ''Half-Genie Hero'' as well, but it ultimately wasn't chosen by backers when put up for voting.
** There was meant to be a game for the Platform/GameBoyAdvance titled ''Shantae 2: Risky Revolution'' that would have had a multiplayer battle mode with Risky Boots, Bolo, and Rottytops as playable characters. The game was never completed but some of the sprites and ideas were used in ''Risky's Revenge''. The game was eventually {{Uncancelled}} in 2023 as ''Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution'' with a physical release on GBA by Limited Run Games.
** ''Risky's Revenge'' was originally going to be the first in a trilogy of "episodic" ''Shantae'' games.
** In ''Pirate's Curse'', there was originally going to be a character known as the "Gunsmith", whose main purpose was to upgrade Risky's Pistol. On a related note, the Wetgal enemies were going to return along with their Wetmen counterparts, but were removed for some reason.
** Early articles for ''Pirate's Curse'' mention Pirate Equipment that never made it into the final game, such as Bone Daggers that could be used as a ranged weapon and allow Shantae to climb walls, a grappling anchor, and ''remote controlled mines''. Also, the game originally featured 30 Cacklebats as opposed to 20.
** ''Pirate's Curse'' was originally going to have a pirate-esque outfit for Shantae, but was removed for unknown reasons, and the character portraits for it only show up twice in the whole game. Interestingly enough, it's still visible in sprites when using items in the final game, with the exception of the scimitar. It's most notably visible when using the pistol and cannon items, as seen [[https://www.spriters-resource.com/fullview/66816/ here]]
** ''Half-Genie Hero'' was originally going to feature a location called "Freshwater Town". This area would've served as a prologue for the "Mermaid Falls" chapter, with Shantae accidentally scaring the Merfolk, leading her to investigate their situation. In the game itself, no such area appears.
** One of the planned bonus chapters of ''Half-Genie Hero'' had Nega-Shantae returning BackFromTheDead. Sadly, it wasn't funded in time, and while she does make an appearance, she's only around for a single cutscene in the main story. [=WayForward=] proceeded to make her the primary antagonist of the ''Friends to the End'' campaign, instead.
** Other content that wasn't funded included full voice acting, animated cutscenes, and a chapter where Risky supposedly [[HeelFaceTurn reforms]] (the synopsis suggests it was an expanded version of the endgame involving the [[spoiler:Dynamo]]).
** ''Half-Genie Hero'' was going to have a boss fight during Shantae's dream/vision in the prologue, but it was scrapped.
** The team [[https://gonintendo.com/?p=44809 experimented]] with a Wiiware title. Nothing came of this.
* WordOfDante: A subsection of fans tend to assert that Shantae is "canonically" 16 years of age, pointing to [[https://twitter.com/wayforward/status/588883107912122370?lang=en a tweet]] the series' official Twitter account posted in 2015 in response to a fan inquiry on the topic. However, when pressed about the tweet, series designer James Montagna [[https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/515/977/2f8 stated]] that it was posted by an intern without approval, that Shantae as a character was never designed with the intention of portraying her as a minor, and that they never intended to do anything with Shantae's fanservicey elements that would make them or other people uncomfortable.
* WordOfGod: In relation to above, [[https://i.redd.it/6pbhzxx28ew61.jpg an AMA statement]] in 2021 on the Limited Run Games Discord server had creator Matt Bozon confirm that while Shantae's age is intentonally vague, she's an adult.
* WriteWhatYouKnow: Shantae's go-to fighting method of [[PrehensileHair whipping enemies with her hair]] was inspired by creator Matt Bozon's experiences with getting accidentally slapped in the face by his wife Erin's ponytail more than once.

[[WMG: Actual Trivia]]
* Early promotional material for ''Half-Genie Hero'' notably had Shantae appear much paler than normal. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDQUa_96N7E&t=1h46m10s Matt Bozon explained in an interview]] that [[http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=80691113&postcount=722 this was a mistake caused by the lighting engine they were using,]] which was easier to tinker around with if the base color of the test character was light, and was never intended to be part of the final image. Alas, the uncolored test model was what the initial pre-release material based their art on, leading to a pale Shantae. This was fixed before the final release.
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