I love the Hyperdimension Neptunia series, but for a long time now it feels like I’m a fan of everything but the actual video games. Nep Nep and her crew of humanised game-console gals are unforgettably hilarious and consistently endearing, but there’s been nothing consistent about the Neptunia video games as of late. Each one has been a standalone spinoff adventure with their own canon and their own gameplay – and rather than building off the previous games to improve and expand, each one seeks to rebuild the wheel and comes out equally rough as a result. Despite lifting a lot of the combat and gameplay from its predecessor, Neptunia Sisters VS Sisters, the same issues persist with Neptunia Game Maker (R)evolution.
For fans of the characters and lore in the Neptunia series, I’d say that’s the strongest aspect of Neptunia Game Maker (R)evolution by far. For one thing, longtime fans will appreciate that the protagonist of this game is Older Neptune, a dimension-hopping variant of the usual protagonist Neptune who we haven’t seen since she appeared in what’s arguably the last mainline entry in the game series – Megadimension Neptunia VII. This time around, she’s in a new dimension and helping three failed game console goddesses turn their luck around and form a thriving game company kingdom.
My favorite part of a Neptunia game is seeing what real-life consoles and game series they turn into an adorable anime girl, and this game might have some of my new favourites. Your three girl-failure goddesses are Pippeh, Jagaa, and Reedio – based on the real life Apple Pippin, Atari Jaguar, and 3DO consoles respectively. I’m obsessed with the sporty cat-girl look Jagaa rocks despite being a math-obsessed weirdo, and the playful quirky mad-scientist vibes of Reedio are top-notch.
It’s just a shame that these incredible new characters are strapped to such an unfun video game. Neptunia Game Maker (R)evolution is a blend of the dungeon-crawling action combat of the last game and a light, management-sim style game company management mode. Neither half is all that well developed, though, and they never come together to form a cohesive whole. For the dungeon-crawling side, combat is tedious, floaty, slow and repetitive. Your attack animations have no weight to them, and dodging is so inconsistent that your best option is to mash attacks and character-swaps rather than play in any kind of cerebral manner.
Some enemies will be twenty levels lower than you but be as tanky as an end-game boss. Others will be twenty levels higher than you and die in an instant. Everything about it is inconsistent and unrewarding, and my only highlights are the auxiliary features you get to toy around with outside of battle – like character costume customization or the genuinely fun driveable motorcycle Older Neptune can bust out in any dungeon.
Meanwhile, the management-sim section is incredibly light on management, simulation, and fun. You’re tasked with taking requests to develop new games, find the developers to make those games, and ship titles that will earn you points and acclaim for your goddesses. A lot of this flows through the dungeon-combat – you’ll get points from exploring those, and spend them on the company to recruit new developers and create game discs that both fulfill requests and also add buffs to your team. It’s full of charm, with all the developers you recruit and structures you build being packed full of references – it just isn’t very deep. It all comes across more like a mini-game than a major element of the package, and it’s the piece of the package that I desperately wish had more focus and depth.
I’m a Nep Nep lover for life, but if anyone is looking to get into the series for the first time or have a fun time revisiting the world, Neptunia Game Maker (R)evolution is not the best choice. These characters deserve so much better, and I can only hope with as many fumbles as they’ve been through with these last few entries, the next one finally does right by our game goddesses.
