Announcing Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution, which has been 20 years in the making, are developers WayForward and publisher Limited Run Games with the surprising reveal that it will be for Game Boy Advance. The long-lost sequel to the original Shantae is back in development after being put on the shelf for nearly two decades. Building off the original game code from the early 2000s, this once-canceled title will be completed and released physically on a Game Boy Advance-compatible game cartridge.

This game reunites the design team of Shantae creator Erin Bozon, series director Matt Bozon, and programmer Michael Stragey, who are using GBA-era development tools to authentically complete the handheld experience that was planned so many years ago. Previously existing only in unfinished demo form, Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution will be released as a full game with all of the hair-whipping, belly-dancing action that Shantae fans have come to expect, along with multiple chapters, numerous towns and labyrinths, six creature transformations, fierce bosses, and a soundtrack by acclaimed composer Maddie Lim, plus a 4-player battle mode.

For fans of the lore, this game is filling in the gaps between the original Shantae (2002) and Shantae: Risky's Revenge (2010). Shantae protects Sequin Land from a twisted new plot orchestrated by her nemesis, the pirate Risky Boots. Using a secret subterranean device, Risky is able to rotate and rearrange the continent, plunging it into chaos and giving her more coastal cities to plunder. Fortunately, by harnessing this technology and the knowledge of the Relic Hunters, players will be able to turn the tables on Risky, giving Shantae new paths through environments and a chance to thwart the villain’s scheme.

Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution will be released in 2024 as a physical Game Boy Advance-compatible game cartridge. Would you ever expect a new GBA game in this era of gaming?