Starting as a singular RPG parodying the console wars of the time between the Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox, the Nintendo (Wii) and a fictional realm inspired by the cancelled SEGA Neptune — the Neptunia series has spread its wings out across not only dozens of mainline and spin-off titles but also genres from RPGs, to hack ‘n’ slash combat to an idol raising simulator. Now in 2024, those releases have kept on coming, the most recent of which being Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution.
Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution stands as a standalone entry in the Neptunia series, requiring no prior knowledge of past titles, although experience with previous games is most certainly valued. The narrative centres around an older version of Neptune, the series’ protagonist, who we were first introduced to in Megadimension Neptunia VII. The dimension-hopping alternate version of the series’ protagonist finds herself in a new dimension detached from the core universe, where creators reign supreme. Here, she joins forces with “Failure Goddesses” Pippih, Jagaa, and Reedio—personifications of lesser-known gaming consoles like the Apple Pippin, Atari Jaguar, and 3DO. Together, they embark on a quest to establish a successful game company, aiming to reclaim their status as goddesses. The storyline is imbued with the series’ trademark humour, offering a satirical lens on the gaming industry by poking fun at console wars, the hurdles of game development, and gaming culture at large. While the dialogue is filled with witty banter and clever gaming references that the series has become known for, it occasionally suffers from being overly lengthy and a bit… “much”, sometimes lacking the depth or tension to keep the narrative compelling throughout.
Visually, Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution shines in the areas of the design the series is known for. The character designs are vibrant and detailed, with subtle Live2D animations during dialogues that enhance their personalities and make interactions more engaging. Furthermore, the music tracks set the tone for various scenes, alongside solid voice acting whether you opt for the original Japanese audio or the newly crafted English dub. However, similar to their past works, the game’s environmental graphics tell a different story. The dungeon environments are often repetitive, which leads to a lack of visual variety and makes exploration feel monotonous. It is an area that Compile Heart really should focus more time on – making each hand-crafted level feel truly unique, even if there are fewer of them in turn.
The gameplay structure is a blend of story-driven dialogues, dungeon exploration, RPG combat, and a game development simulation. On paper, this mix promises a varied experience, but in execution, it falls short in several areas. The dungeon design is one of the main culprits. Despite being large in scale, the dungeons lack distinctive features or landmarks, making exploration feel tedious and unrewarding. Navigating these spaces becomes a challenge due to confusing layouts and minimaps that offer minimal assistance. The repetitive nature of dungeon exploration turns what should be an adventurous aspect of the game into a chore.
Combat in Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution is another area that struggles to engage. The system is simplistic, often boiling down to button-mashing with little need for strategic planning or skilful execution. This simplicity leads to encounters feeling repetitive and unchallenging. The limited variety of enemies contributes to the monotonous feel of combat, as players face the same types repeatedly throughout their journey. The game development feature, which allows players to create in-game titles for boons, presents a unique concept but lacks depth. More or less, the system feels like a simple attempt at matching a gameplay element with the theme of the game world. It reminds me of the very first Hyperdimension Neptunia game release in particular – particularly around it enabling players to create game discs with custom art, but essentially amounted to nothing more than a simple skill with a PNG image appearing at one point when it could have been so much more. Ultimately, this mechanic doesn’t significantly impact the overall gameplay or provide a meaningful experience you want to dive into.
Narratively, Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution delivers what it has always been strong on: parodying and satirising the video game industry in a creative world featuring cute well-designed and animated characters. However, the game is undermined by repetitive dungeons, lacklustre combat, and underdeveloped gameplay mechanics that fail to offer a satisfying experience. As someone who has genuinely enjoyed most of the series and thinks that as a studio, Compile Heart is a perfect pick as a neutral party to parody the broad breadth of the video game industry, I feel like they need to pivot from the last decade of side-games and instead deliver a new-gen, flagship title in the series which pushes the boundaries of what the series is capable of – which was last done with Megadimension Neptunia VII. With the changing landscape of the game industry, I would be intrigued to see what a 202X main title in the series would look like.
A digital PlayStation 5 review code of Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution was provided by Idea Factory International to facilitate this review.
Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution is now available on the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch – with an Xbox Series X|S version due to launch later this month.
