In a 2020 interview with SiliconEra, series co-creator Matt Bozon described the development and distribution of each entry in the series as reflective of various changes in the video game industry and its treatment of smaller developers.

The eponymous first title was pitched for multiple platforms, including the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, PlayStation, and PC before eventually landing on the Game Boy Color due to the industry relying on deals with big-name distributors; Bozon stated that "If retail and distribution deals had come together more quickly for SNES, PSX, or PC, Shantae would have launched there."

Nintendo's establishment of WiiWare and DSiWare allowed WayForward to more readily develop a follow-up in the form of Shantae: Risky’s Revenge thanks to the digital distribution model making it less expensive to develop and release a smaller-scale title for systems that were otherwise demanding increasingly complex games. Later, The Nintendo 3DS' "split delivery system" that allowed digital-only games to be released at retail prices was a boon to the making of Shantae and the Pirate's Curse.

Shantae: Half-Genie Hero and Shantae and the Seven Sirens meanwhile benefitted from the greater prioritization of digitally distributed games on home consoles by the start of the 2020s, with the rise of premium physical media imprints such as Limited Run Games further helping offset costs.

There's unused longer versions of each dance jingle used in the game.

According to Shantae co creator Matt Bozon, during development of the first Shantae game, publishers were having a hard time accepting the idea of having a female lead character rather than a male character.

''The most common reaction to Shantae back in the '90s was "Hey, great looking game. But who do the guys play as?" Like, we must have messed up and put the "Player 2" character in the "Player 1" spot. It felt like our work was being dismissed for no good reason, and it made no sense to me. But eventually I came to understand that these people genuinely knew their markets, and that the game would probably not sell, and that was even more irritating. So, I feel like Shantae had to exist, even if it was just to reach out and see if there was an audience reaching back."

Shantae was later picked up by Capcom in 2002 and was released on the Gameboy Color.