REVIEW : Neptunia ReVerse (PS5)
Neptunia ReVerse is an improved version of the Vita remake Hyperdimension Neptunia Re; Birth 1 is based on the original Hyperdimension Neptunia for PlayStation 3. This fun-filled RPG series has come a long way since its humble beginnings, and it is now available for PlayStation 5 and better than ever. The plot follows a group of goddesses representing real-world hardware manufacturers as they compete in the console wars.
It’s a very meta game that’s also quite funny. Fortunately, the character designs are fantastic; there’s a full English voice cast that gives each character tonnes of personality, the music is extremely energetic, and it’s a fun-filled adventure in the end. Plus, if you haven’t gotten into the series yet and are curious about it, Neptunia ReVerse is a great place to start, so give it a shot if you want to see what this strange franchise is all about.
Neptunia’s coolest features are its battle system, which requires you to move your party members around circular arenas while attacking enemies as efficiently as possible. Meanwhile, to gain the upper hand, you’ll need to spread out and take defensive positions to avoid taking too much damage, as well as deploy a wide range of skills and combo attacks. In between battles, you can improve your party by equipping new gear that you can find, buy, or make, as well as setting up formations, combos, and other tactics. It’s a very satisfying RPG formula, and when you add in the rewarding dungeons, guild quests, and boss fights, you’re looking at one fun journey.
So, what makes Neptunia ReVerse unique? The most significant addition is Arrange Mode, which I immediately jumped into because I’m very familiar with the original game. This mode grants you access to all 27 characters, which is fantastic. I had a lot of fun swapping them out and discovering what each character was capable of on my way to putting together a solid party that suited my play style. You also get an absurd amount of costumes and accessories that change the appearances of the characters and their base stats. There are many adjustments put in place to help with balancing, and it all works beautifully for the most part.
That being said, there will be times when you’ll need to grind to be strong enough to deal with new enemies, which can be frustrating when you want to forge ahead.
Another useful addition is a fishing mini-game, which can be enjoyable, though if you make a mistake, you may have to fight an enemy, which got on my nerves after a while. That being said, catching new types of fish is rewarding, and the fact that the DualSense is used in clever ways by utilising its motion controls, haptic feedback, and adaptive triggers is admittedly quite cool.
Speaking of PlayStation 5 features, Neptunia ReVerse performs especially with virtually no loading times, allowing you to seamlessly jump in and out of battle, making exploration of the dungeons feel much more immersive. The graphics are also solid but not spectacular. As a result, I wish Neptunia ReVerse’s visuals had been improved even further for the current gen.
Finally, while Neptunia ReVerse is a fantastic game in and of itself, I feel like something is missing. Because this is Neptunia’s tenth-anniversary game, I was expecting some museum-style content. I would have liked to see developer interviews, art galleries, soundtrack menus, unlockables, character model viewers, and so on.
PREVIEW : Dream Engines: Nomad Cities (PC)
