Chaos Raiden
Avid Gamer & Reviewer
Story
This game takes place in a fictional world called Gamindustri, where games are common in the world for people to play. CPUs are the goddesses that rule their own nations and protect them from threats.
After a battle against an unknown foe in the Gamindustri Graveyard, the CPUs are defeated and captured, along with a CPU Candidate, Nepgear. After three years, only Nepgear was saved by her friends, IF and Compa. The three of them will go into a journey to save the other CPUs, as well as to prevent world destruction.
The story is good, but lacks good plot twists. In comparison to Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory, this game's tone feels a bit more serious. This game also has anti-piracy of games theme as well, but that is not the focus of the game itself. There are also some good humour used in the game, with slight sexual innuendos.
The characters are pretty likable, with their own unique and traditional personalities that can be found in animes, such as tsunderes. Although the characters are stereotypical, they are well fleshed thanks to the good writing and the voice actors' performances.
This game also features multiple endings, with a total of seven endings. To get a certain ending, there are certain requirements to obtain it.
Gameplay
1) Progression and Exploration Section
This game plays like many other JRPGs. The basic objectives to progress in the game is to collect something, visit dungeons, watch cutscenes, and fight bosses. In some Chapters, you need to complete certain mandatory Quests, which either involves you to collect certain materials or defeating some monsters. Completing these Quests will allow you to progress in the game, as well as rewarding you money and items.
Other than those mandatory Quests, you can always complete the optional Quests for items and money. You can use those to create or buy new items and equipment. Each Quests have their own ranks, where higher ranked Quests are more difficult to complete, such as defeating a very high-leveled monster.
In World Map, you just need to rollover to different icons to enter cities or dungeons. In dungeons, you can freely explore for items or to beat monsters. In many cases, you need to initiate many Events in dungeons as well as cities. When exploring dungeons, you will encounter monsters on the spot, and you can attack them on screen for preemptive strike. If your average levels of all party members are higher than the monsters' levels, they will be killed instantly without fighting them in combat.
Another change when completing Quests is the shift of Shares. Different Quests will change the Shares in different cities positively and negatively. There are five main shareholders, which are Planeptune, Lastation, Lowee, Leanbox, and Arfoire. Each of these shareholders have allocated shares in the main cities as well as the small cities. For example, the shares allocated in Planeptune are: Planeptune: 10.0%, Lastation: 10.0%, Lowee: 10.0%, Leanbox: 10.0%, and Arfoire: 60.0%. By doing certain Quests, you can permanently reduces Arfoire's total shares in a city and adding the share to another shareholder's count. For example, the quest you have completed changes the current shares in Planeptune to: Planeptune: 20.0%, Lastation: 10.0%, Lowee: 10.0%, Leanbox: 10.0%, and Arfoire: 50.0%.
Although there is no real significance of changing the shares in different cities at first, this is crucial in acquiring different Endings in the game.
To get certain Ending in the game, you need to fulfill certain conditions like accumulating the required city Shares and getting high Lily Ranks with certain party members. There are multiple Normal Endings, a Conquest Ending, and a True Ending. As you all may know, the last two Endings are usually assumed the endings that are hard to get. However, they are easy to get but are very time-consuming to get due to high requirements, especially the Conquest Ending.
2) Customisation and Upgrading Section
Before entering into battle, you can create your own combo attacks by choosing three different techniques for Rush, Heavy Hit, and Breaker slots, with a total of 9 techniques. By setting up certain combinations, you can execute an additional finisher attack after you execute the first three combo attacks on enemies. However, you need to keep in mind that some Combo techniques will require high AP, which is undesirable if you are low in level.
Like other RPGs, you will get experience points after defeating enemies in battles. By leveling up, your part members will occasionally learn new Skills and Combo techniques, as well as gaining stats increase.
3) Combat Section
For Combo physical attacks, you need to spend AP to execute a Combo attack successfully. If you have enough AP left, you can attack again using either a Rush, Breaker, or Heavy Hits technique. If you have enough AP left by the end of the fourth attack, you can execute a powerful finisher attack called EX Finisher. You can recover AP after every turn.
As for Skills, you need to spend both SP and AP. Skills are powerful techniques that can turn the tides in battle greatly, such as powerful damaging skill like Nepgear's Mirage Dance or useful defensive abilities like healing or buffing. To obtain SP during battle, you need to attack enemies using Combo physical attacks or pass your turn using the Standby command.
During battles, you can also do some other commands, like Escape to run from a battle, or the Switch command to switch the current member to her back-row partner. You may also use items by spending AP.
Basically, you need to deplete all enemies' HP in battle. To do so, you have to attack them. Not only they have HP, they have their own Guard gauge. If you have depleted their Guard gauge, they will enter into 'Guard Break' status, and will take more damage. It is recommended to use Breaker techniques to deplete their Guard gauge faster. Winning battles will reward you experience points and money, as well as items occasionally.
For girls who have CPUs as their titles, they can transform into HDD forms, where they gain stats increase. HDD forms are useful to take down tough foes like bosses. To activate HDD form, you need to spend 100 SP. Unlike in normal forms, passing your turn during HDD form will instead drain your SP. It is wise to use the HDD form only if you have SP higher than 150 at least.
Another feature in this game called the Lily Rank System. This system is a system that ranks affection levels between all party members with Nepgear. By increasing their Lily Ranks, each girl will learn new passive effects in combat when partnering her to a front-row party member, such as an ability that allows the partnered member to gain increased experience points. To increase their affection with Nepgear, you need to activate Chirper events whenever it is available during each Chapter. Alternatively, you can increase their Lily Ranks by fighting with Nepgear, but it is much more time-consuming. Also, Lily Rank is another prerequisite when getting different Endings in the game.
4) Gameplay Conclusion
Graphics
The graphcis are unique, using cel-shaded graphic style to emulate anime-styled characters and design. However, the 3D character models used in the dialogue cutscenes are inferior, with less detail and jaggy. However, the cutscenes that uses the 2D character models are superior, but only used during certain Chirper events. I feel that the developers should have relied on 2D character models during cutscenes if they are not confident in doing it, such as this game's sequel Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory.
Sound
The soundtrack is a hit or miss. I find that the game's background music is mediocre, with not much outstanding tracks to remember. The opening song and the ending song of the game are perhaps the best tracks used in the game.
The English voice acting is good, and fitting to the characters that they voice as. If you dislike to hear English voices in a JRPG game, just change the audio to Japanese.
Replay Value
This game has high replay value. You can attempt to play the game again for different endings, tackle optional boss fights in the Coliseum, or complete the game's Quests. Needless to say, it feels repetitive because you have to play the same thing again and again in different playthroughs, but that does not undermine the game's replay value.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this is a very divisive JRPG game that will split opinions between different players, due to the game's design. In a very amateurish way of summarising this game is, I will say this game is aimed towards Japanese fans who like animes, since this game has many stereotypical anime elements, such as tsundere, moe, lolicon, etc. Not to mention, this game has some sexual innuendos that are not suitable for underaged players. If you look past this game's major weaknesses compared to other JRPGs, this game still has good entertainment value for having fun combat, funny story, good humour, and likable characters. This game is not as good as Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory, but it has it's own merits to be liked as well.
Score
Story: 8/10
Gameplay: 5/10
Graphics: 7/10
Sound: 8/10
Final Score: 7.0/10 or 30/40
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Funny as well serious storyline.
- Likable characters.
- Good dialogue.
- Good combat.
- Dual audio.
- Good replay value.
- Cool attack animations.
- Funny Chirper Events.
- Has multiple Endings.
- Encourages playing multiple times.
- Lots of playable characters with different personalities and skills.
Cons
- Combat feels a bit too easy.
- Mediocre 3D model graphics.
- Repetitious gameplay nature.
- Lazy dungeon designs.
- Recycled enemy designs.
- Inappropriate sexual innuendos for underage players.
- Requires moderate level of grinding.
- Will most likely not appeal average JRPG players or non-JRPG players.
Save the older CPU sisters from the clutches of ASIC.
This game takes place in a fictional world called Gamindustri, where games are common in the world for people to play. CPUs are the goddesses that rule their own nations and protect them from threats.
After a battle against an unknown foe in the Gamindustri Graveyard, the CPUs are defeated and captured, along with a CPU Candidate, Nepgear. After three years, only Nepgear was saved by her friends, IF and Compa. The three of them will go into a journey to save the other CPUs, as well as to prevent world destruction.
The story is good, but lacks good plot twists. In comparison to Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory, this game's tone feels a bit more serious. This game also has anti-piracy of games theme as well, but that is not the focus of the game itself. There are also some good humour used in the game, with slight sexual innuendos.
The characters are pretty likable, with their own unique and traditional personalities that can be found in animes, such as tsunderes. Although the characters are stereotypical, they are well fleshed thanks to the good writing and the voice actors' performances.
This game also features multiple endings, with a total of seven endings. To get a certain ending, there are certain requirements to obtain it.
Gameplay
1) Progression and Exploration Section
Complete certain conditions to obtain different Endings.
This game plays like many other JRPGs. The basic objectives to progress in the game is to collect something, visit dungeons, watch cutscenes, and fight bosses. In some Chapters, you need to complete certain mandatory Quests, which either involves you to collect certain materials or defeating some monsters. Completing these Quests will allow you to progress in the game, as well as rewarding you money and items.
Other than those mandatory Quests, you can always complete the optional Quests for items and money. You can use those to create or buy new items and equipment. Each Quests have their own ranks, where higher ranked Quests are more difficult to complete, such as defeating a very high-leveled monster.
In World Map, you just need to rollover to different icons to enter cities or dungeons. In dungeons, you can freely explore for items or to beat monsters. In many cases, you need to initiate many Events in dungeons as well as cities. When exploring dungeons, you will encounter monsters on the spot, and you can attack them on screen for preemptive strike. If your average levels of all party members are higher than the monsters' levels, they will be killed instantly without fighting them in combat.
Shift the shares in different cities to obtain different Endings.
Another change when completing Quests is the shift of Shares. Different Quests will change the Shares in different cities positively and negatively. There are five main shareholders, which are Planeptune, Lastation, Lowee, Leanbox, and Arfoire. Each of these shareholders have allocated shares in the main cities as well as the small cities. For example, the shares allocated in Planeptune are: Planeptune: 10.0%, Lastation: 10.0%, Lowee: 10.0%, Leanbox: 10.0%, and Arfoire: 60.0%. By doing certain Quests, you can permanently reduces Arfoire's total shares in a city and adding the share to another shareholder's count. For example, the quest you have completed changes the current shares in Planeptune to: Planeptune: 20.0%, Lastation: 10.0%, Lowee: 10.0%, Leanbox: 10.0%, and Arfoire: 50.0%.
Although there is no real significance of changing the shares in different cities at first, this is crucial in acquiring different Endings in the game.
To get certain Ending in the game, you need to fulfill certain conditions like accumulating the required city Shares and getting high Lily Ranks with certain party members. There are multiple Normal Endings, a Conquest Ending, and a True Ending. As you all may know, the last two Endings are usually assumed the endings that are hard to get. However, they are easy to get but are very time-consuming to get due to high requirements, especially the Conquest Ending.
2) Customisation and Upgrading Section
Customise your girls' equipments and appearances.
Like other JRPGs, you can customise your party member's equipment such as her weapons and armours. You can also attach accessories for bonus effects, as well as change their appearances by using certain items.Before entering into battle, you can create your own combo attacks by choosing three different techniques for Rush, Heavy Hit, and Breaker slots, with a total of 9 techniques. By setting up certain combinations, you can execute an additional finisher attack after you execute the first three combo attacks on enemies. However, you need to keep in mind that some Combo techniques will require high AP, which is undesirable if you are low in level.
Like other RPGs, you will get experience points after defeating enemies in battles. By leveling up, your part members will occasionally learn new Skills and Combo techniques, as well as gaining stats increase.
3) Combat Section
Move around the battlefield and conquer your enemies with girl power.
The combat plays a bit like Tales games and Arc the Lad games on PS2, but it is turn based. Depending on your current controlled character's MOV stat, she can either move in small or great distances. If your enemies are in range, you can attack them using Combo attacks or use Skills. Bear in mind that to do both attacks, you need to spend both AP and SP.For Combo physical attacks, you need to spend AP to execute a Combo attack successfully. If you have enough AP left, you can attack again using either a Rush, Breaker, or Heavy Hits technique. If you have enough AP left by the end of the fourth attack, you can execute a powerful finisher attack called EX Finisher. You can recover AP after every turn.
As for Skills, you need to spend both SP and AP. Skills are powerful techniques that can turn the tides in battle greatly, such as powerful damaging skill like Nepgear's Mirage Dance or useful defensive abilities like healing or buffing. To obtain SP during battle, you need to attack enemies using Combo physical attacks or pass your turn using the Standby command.
During battles, you can also do some other commands, like Escape to run from a battle, or the Switch command to switch the current member to her back-row partner. You may also use items by spending AP.
Basically, you need to deplete all enemies' HP in battle. To do so, you have to attack them. Not only they have HP, they have their own Guard gauge. If you have depleted their Guard gauge, they will enter into 'Guard Break' status, and will take more damage. It is recommended to use Breaker techniques to deplete their Guard gauge faster. Winning battles will reward you experience points and money, as well as items occasionally.
Lily Rank is important to get different Endings as well as bonuses.
For girls who have CPUs as their titles, they can transform into HDD forms, where they gain stats increase. HDD forms are useful to take down tough foes like bosses. To activate HDD form, you need to spend 100 SP. Unlike in normal forms, passing your turn during HDD form will instead drain your SP. It is wise to use the HDD form only if you have SP higher than 150 at least.
Another feature in this game called the Lily Rank System. This system is a system that ranks affection levels between all party members with Nepgear. By increasing their Lily Ranks, each girl will learn new passive effects in combat when partnering her to a front-row party member, such as an ability that allows the partnered member to gain increased experience points. To increase their affection with Nepgear, you need to activate Chirper events whenever it is available during each Chapter. Alternatively, you can increase their Lily Ranks by fighting with Nepgear, but it is much more time-consuming. Also, Lily Rank is another prerequisite when getting different Endings in the game.
4) Gameplay Conclusion
Acceptable but mediocre gameplay.
Overall gameplay is good, but without much interesting or great features. Although the combat is fun, other gameplay features are weak or mediocre. Exploration is extremely limited, since the dungeons used similar layouts and not unique enough. Progression objectives are fairly too straight-forward and generic, which may bores certain players. Enemy designs are fairly repetitively designed, with lack of enough variety of enemies. From what I have watched the first Hyperdimension Neptunia's gameplay on Youtube, I am fairly convinced that this game has much better and easier to learn gameplay system compared to the first game.Graphics
I prefer this 2D style cutscenes compared to 3D style cutscenes in this game.
The graphcis are unique, using cel-shaded graphic style to emulate anime-styled characters and design. However, the 3D character models used in the dialogue cutscenes are inferior, with less detail and jaggy. However, the cutscenes that uses the 2D character models are superior, but only used during certain Chirper events. I feel that the developers should have relied on 2D character models during cutscenes if they are not confident in doing it, such as this game's sequel Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory.
Sound
Mixed bag soundtrack and fitting voice acting.
The soundtrack is a hit or miss. I find that the game's background music is mediocre, with not much outstanding tracks to remember. The opening song and the ending song of the game are perhaps the best tracks used in the game.
The English voice acting is good, and fitting to the characters that they voice as. If you dislike to hear English voices in a JRPG game, just change the audio to Japanese.
Replay Value
High replay value.
This game has high replay value. You can attempt to play the game again for different endings, tackle optional boss fights in the Coliseum, or complete the game's Quests. Needless to say, it feels repetitive because you have to play the same thing again and again in different playthroughs, but that does not undermine the game's replay value.
Conclusion
Acceptable JRPG with some good concepts, but may not appeal to mainstream RPG fans.
In conclusion, this is a very divisive JRPG game that will split opinions between different players, due to the game's design. In a very amateurish way of summarising this game is, I will say this game is aimed towards Japanese fans who like animes, since this game has many stereotypical anime elements, such as tsundere, moe, lolicon, etc. Not to mention, this game has some sexual innuendos that are not suitable for underaged players. If you look past this game's major weaknesses compared to other JRPGs, this game still has good entertainment value for having fun combat, funny story, good humour, and likable characters. This game is not as good as Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory, but it has it's own merits to be liked as well.
Score
Story: 8/10
Gameplay: 5/10
Graphics: 7/10
Sound: 8/10
Final Score: 7.0/10 or 30/40
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Funny as well serious storyline.
- Likable characters.
- Good dialogue.
- Good combat.
- Dual audio.
- Good replay value.
- Cool attack animations.
- Funny Chirper Events.
- Has multiple Endings.
- Encourages playing multiple times.
- Lots of playable characters with different personalities and skills.
Cons
- Combat feels a bit too easy.
- Mediocre 3D model graphics.
- Repetitious gameplay nature.
- Lazy dungeon designs.
- Recycled enemy designs.
- Inappropriate sexual innuendos for underage players.
- Requires moderate level of grinding.
- Will most likely not appeal average JRPG players or non-JRPG players.
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