There is not much to say about video games and movies together, except that the former have been inspired a lot by the latter, and lately the same can be said in the opposite direction as well, with the Hitman movie releasing just a little under a year ago and the very much expected Assassin’s Creed movie releasing Holiday season this year. In the latest game in the Hyperdimension series though, our heroine Neptune will fuse both game and film in order to create one of the most badass games to ever grace the PS Vita, while at the same time starring in the same title herself.
In Megatagmension Blanc + Neptune, as the name directly implies, the central character of the story is not Nep Nep herself, even though she features just as much as in the other games. This time, it is the quiet Blanc who takes the central spot in the game. When the adventure starts, we see the school of Gamicademi, where Neptune, Noire, Blanc, Vert and all the other characters of the series, in serious trouble and risking a closing down for good. For this reason, Neptune decides to direct a zombie movie in order to attract attention and motivate students to attend the school so it would not have to close down. Blanc then happens to join the team, more for her selfish reasons to become famous rather than out of generosity to help her two sisters, but nonetheless she agrees to help the crew by writing and directing the movie. Upon starting their filming though the school is invaded by real life zombies, which at first startles a little the girls, who then decide that these zombies will make their movie more awesome than planned because of how realistic these zombies are, since ultimately they are 100% real, so they decide to film the scenes from the movie with these zombies. In the spirit of the movie, I really love how the whole game, including the menu screen, is movie-themed, from the costumes of the lead characters, such as the iconic beret worn by Blanc since she is the director, to the “scene” selection instead of mission in the menus. It is just the simplest of changes, but they do make quite an impact when the whole game moves together in unison.
Unlike traditional Neptune games, this one follows after Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed, where instead of a turn-based battle you have complete control of your character, running about and wreaking havoc on the unfortunate zombies who stand in your wake. At the beginning of the mission you choose two characters, hence the name MegaTAGmension, where if one character falls in battle, you can use the other one to try and complete the level with. There are quite a number of combos you can pull off, mainly starting from a ground position to an aerial strike and then land it all with a devastating smash attack from above. The game also features a very powerful EXE Drive strike, which can be pulled off by holding both triggers and pressing the square button at the same time. Holding all three buttons will charge the meter to make the move more powerful, but doing so one runs the risk of being hit and if your character flinches, you lose both the charge and all the EXE meter accumulated so far. The EXE meter can also be used to call in Compa and IF, Neptune’s trusty friends, to aid you in battle by providing bonuses which will stay active for a short while.
As usual, the character design for the game is as awesome as in other Hyperdimension games. Graphically, the game is very pleasing as well, with the graphics probably a bit sharper than they were in the girls’ last outing on the Vita. There is a new character for this game, Tamsoft, who is making her debut. She appears rather early on in the game too, so players have a chance to play with her quite a lot in the game. Her moves are quite deadly as well, so she will most definitely prove to be quite a fan favourite. The other characters are designed just as well, and their new uniforms suit the girls so well it is fairly easy to think the characters were designed with uniforms in mind.
In proper Hyperdimension style, dialogue is never a chore, and is welcome just as much as the gameplay segments themselves. Cutscenes may be a little long sometimes but it is never an issue, since the writing is so good it keeps the player engaged in the game even though no action is happening at the moment. Each character is also written very well in the sense that his true character comes out really well thanks to these cutscenes. For example Noire’s insecurities and loner nature really have a tendency to come out in Hyperdimension games, and this title is no less. Likewise, Neptune’s bombastic, loud self really shines through the whole course of the game. It is quite a joy to see all these different personalities come through together without ever feeling forced or unnatural.
As it is customary of Neptunia games, the soundtrack is excellent. The tunes selected for the game are spot on, and fit the game perfectly. Even the menu music is catchy, most notably when I find myself playing it in my head. Battle music helps the player get into the action quickly, while background music played during dialogues helps the flow of the scene. It really is some splendid audio work from the whole team at Idea Factory and Tamsoft.
The latest game in the Hyperdimension series does not disappoint, and personally it does not come as a surprise at all. I have been a fan of the series for over a year now, and ever since the announcement of a Japanese release of this title, I have been following news and the like about a localisation so you can imagine the joy when I saw it was going to be brought over early 2016. I recently discovered I had bookmarked the Japanese official website for the game, where some plot, story and characters were being displayed! Ultimately, the game is definitely another delightful entry into a sequence of games which is slowly building up to be a massive library of wonderful and cute experiences. Let’s just hope there are plenty of ideas left for IF and Compile Heart to base games off!
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