Fans who want a new take on the anime RPG experience may appreciate the Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise, especially for the ones with an attachment to irony and satire. Newcomers to the franchise may be surprised to learn that the anime game series is actually a satirical take on the videogame industry as a whole, with Hyperdimension Neptunia characters being based on video game consoles.
In turn, players can expect each game in the RPG series to explore quite a wide variety of gaming-related phenomena as a key focus of their stories. The franchise has tackled topics such as generational transitions across consoles, piracy, and even the rise of Vtubers. Gamers curious enough to try the franchise may want to consider checking out the following games.
10 Hyperdimenson Neptunia: Producing Perfection (PS Vita)
Considering how Neptunia is catered to parodying various elements of the game industry, it’s no surprise that the series would at some point touch on the idea of the visual novel in Hyperdimension Neptunia: Producing Perfection. In the game, the pop idol group MOB48 starts draining the CPUs of Gamindustri of their powers, forcing them to level the playing field by being idols themselves.
Despite its introduction as an idol management variant of the Neptunia game franchise, Producing Perfection is more of a visual novel a la dating sim. Players choose between Neptunia, Noire, Blanc, or Vert to “raise” the perfect idol, and they do so through chatting and other activities. As with other visual novels, players can trigger certain events across the story and unlock various endings. The game is by the far the simplest and the most uncomplicated of the bunch, which is perfect for players who want a more calming experience.
9 Super Neptunia RPG (PC, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch)
It’s not surprising for a franchise that parodies the game industry to release a game revolving around 2D Platformers, and this is exactly what Super Neptunia RPG does. In a recreation of Gamindustri, an amnesiac Neptune discovers herself in a world where an organization called Bombyx Mori rules the land with 2D games. Everyone should make 2D games as offerings to their leader, lest risk banishment to the Trial Grounds. When she realizes she possesses great powers, Neptune defies the system to see if there’s more to gaming than simple 2D.
As players can expect, Super Neptunia RPG takes place in 2D, where players roam around a platformer world comprising various cities and dungeons. The game also takes a jab at Valkyrie Profile gameplay for its mechanics, with combat having characters attached to a face button in order to activate abilities. However, customization takes a deeper turn when characters have Stances that give them access to numerous abilities, giving the title close to a rhythm game experience where more complex battles rest on a player’s memorization of rotations.
8 Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;birth(PC, PS Vita)
With a franchise as large as Hyperdimension Neptunia, it’s no surprise that its first few games would get a remake. This comes in the form of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;birth, essentially serving as remakes of the first three (3) games of the franchise. A core distinction of this remake compared to remade games of other franchises is how the Re;birth titles take only the stories and major mechanics of their respective original games.
Instead of copying overall gameplay, Re;birth instead applies the core gameplay of Victory to its games, giving the older titles a much-needed tactical depth. While a lot of battles in Re;birth are extremely short, there’s fun in the possibility of raising characters to ridiculously-high levels to clear stages. Moreover, the cohesion in combat mechanics allows players to at least focus on the story of the Neptunia games instead of fiddling with the controls every now and then.
7 Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart (PC, PS Vita)
Continuity isn’t the strongest suit of the Hyperdimension franchise, and this is something made apparent by Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart. With each game in the franchise being more or less set in its own contained story, it’s interesting to finally see a Neptunia game tackle the console wars - something that Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart emphasizes. This game also stars Noire, the game’s representation of the PlayStation, in the title’s own world of Gamarket.
Unlike the other games in the series, chibified characters in Noire now partake in a strategy RPG setup that forces players who bought the game for the crazy story to use their noggins more often. Thankfully, the game maintains a certain level of simplicity to its mechanics, ensuring characters immediately understand the core gameplay of each new unit - and this is on top of players eventually understanding how each of the cast is a reference to other popular game franchises. And for players into shipping, being able to power up via kissing is an added plus.
6 Superdimension Neptune VS Sega Hard Girls (PC)
One of the best elements of a Neptunia game would be its stance on the canon - in which, there isn’t always one. Such is the case of Superdimension Neptune VS Sega Hard Girls, a spinoff where Gameindustri has become a post-apocalyptic wasteland and players need to travel across time to save the knowledge of world history. At first glance, the game seems like standard fare for Neptunia games of its generation - even some graphics and music are recycled, with gameplay offering a breath of fresh air for more freedom with its standard-fare action RPG mechanics.
Perhaps where the game shines is in its approach to highlighting Sega concepts. In the game’s main hub, players can expect to have Histoire to give them missions. However, this time around, missions have a time limit before they disappear completely - and potentially affect the ending players get. This freedom in mission progression, as well as the unique spin of each mission being built around a Sega console theme, makes Superdimension Neptune a noteworthy entry in the franchise.
5 Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed (PC, PS Vita)
Players looking for a hyper-action take on the Neptunia franchise might be interested in grabbing Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed, set in a world where the CPUs and CPU Candidates of Gamindustri unite to take on various threats. Despite its rather simplistic story revolving around the Console Wars, the most captivating element of the title would be its focus on more intense combat compared to other games.
Similar to the Dynasty Warriors games, players have access to weak and strong attacks that can combo into new abilities. Movement options such as dashing and double-jumping, as well as using stronger abilities, give players a lot of combat options to spice up their gameplay. While much of the game’s monsters are cannon fodder (save for bosses), the sheer thrill of progression in the game and being able to use combo after combo to create visually-stunning effects makes this a decent game for button-mashing lovers.
4 Hyperdimension Neptunia (PS3)
As the adage goes, “nothing beats the original.” And the same could be applied to the first entry of the franchise, Hyperdimension Neptunia. At the time of its release, Neptunia ventures into territory no one has ever done before: parody the gaming scene. In turn, fans are treated to a war between the biggest console providers of all time - Nintendo, SEGA, Microsoft, and Sony - but this time represented by cutesy anime heroines.
Unfortunately, newcomers to the series do need to overcome a few hurdles to fully appreciate the title. Some weird design choices and balancing issues could hinder the player’s progress in the game, and the inherent clunkiness of the RPG title can make it intolerable despite the existence of its rather adorable cast. However, fans who can see past these concerns can see how such a title spawned a franchise that banked on creating rather weird mechanics to “get the message across,” a theme made apparent in other titles.
3 Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory (PlayStation 3)
In a rather hilarious take on one of the rare times Neptunia followed its continuity, Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory roughly takes place after the second game, with a lazy Neptune finally taking things seriously in her godly tasks after losing all her abilities from the previous title. Unfortunately, a bizarre encounter sends Neptune to the very beginning of Gameindustri’s history, one where their ancestors Lastation, Leanbox, Lowee, and Planeptune have been the conflicting goddesses of the time.
Fans might be disappointed as to how the game has recycled a lot of its assets from previous titles. It makes sense, given its nature as a budget title, but all the more interesting in how the story’s “direct continuation” setup gives an in-canon reason for repeated assets. However, the game does make up for its improved take on its strategic RPG elements, with much of the concepts here being monumental in the future mechanics of the other games.
2 Cyberdimension Neptunia: 4 Goddesses Online (PC, PlayStation 4)
With the recent boom of isekai anime and an attachment to MMOs, it makes sense for Neptunia to eventually tackle the phenomenon in a game. This manifests in Cyberdimension Neptunia 4: Goddesses Online, where players are early access players of a new MMO called “4 Goddesses Online” where the Neptunia characters are used as models. Unfortunately, those players who are otherwise just in the game for their personal motives are suddenly tasked to save the world from the Demon King Jester.
Of all action-themed Neptunia titles, Cyberdimension has got to be the most riveting and concrete representation of a hack-and-slash game in the franchise. Players can use a wide range of characters with varying skill sets in a dungeon crawler that demands attention to skillsets and combos, with both gameplay and story representing the hilarious amounts of attention players give MMOs and the attachment to the isekai concept.
1 Megadimension Neptunia VII (PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4)
Transitions are always tough, and players realizing they’re transitioning from one console generation to another can be a tough cookie to swallow. This becomes the core theme of Megadimension Neptunia VII, where Gamindustri has entered a CPU Shift Period where rumors that try to ruin the reputations of Neptune and the goddesses have begun to spread. Unfortunately, when Neptune and Nepgear are about to make their move, they have arrived in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Highlights of the game majorly include its renewed battle system, allowing players to be more strategic with their decisions without wonky mechanics breaking their flow of play. This works well with the wide range of new cast members introduced, such as Uzume (the embodiment of the Sega Dreamcast), as well as characters based on Bandai Namco, Konami, and Capcom. Being able to use them alongside the game’s new approach to gameplay can be a breath of fresh air for fans.