Fourth (or possibly seventh, depending on how you look at it) mainline installment in the Hyperdimension Neptunia series, Megadimension Neptunia V-II tells an enjoyably silly, satirical and allegorical story about the upheaval that comes to the games industry any time there’s a new generation of hardware.

Developer: Compile Heart, Idea Factory
Publisher: Idea Factory International
Available on: Windows PC, PS4

Cover Game Articles

Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Introduction - Since its original appearance in 2010, the Neptunia series has grown from a niche-interest RPG into one of developer Compile Heart’s biggest success stories. This is a particularly remarkable achievement, given that the first installment in the series didn’t have a strong critical reception at all — while review score aggregation isn’t an exact science by any … Continue reading Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Introduction →

Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Historical Context and Mechanics - The Neptunia series may only have been with us since 2010, but it’s already a mainstay of the modern Japanese gaming landscape. It wasn’t an entirely smooth ride for the series in the early days, though; in many ways, given the extremely poor critical reception the first game, it’s surprising that we’ve seen as many Neptunia games over the years … Continue reading Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Historical Context and Mechanics →

Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Narrative, Themes and Characterisation - While dismissed by many mainstream critics as lightweight, disposable moe fluff, the Neptunia series actually has some of the sharpest, most on-point writing in the business. Both strongly allegorical and satirical, the series as a whole has evolved its treatment of its narrative themes and characters from installment to installment, roughly in keeping with trends in the gaming business … Continue reading Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Narrative, Themes and Characterisation →

Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Sights and Sounds - One of the most appealing elements of the Neptunia series for fans is its consistent and instantly recognisable aesthetic. This is largely the work of artist Tsunako. In fact, the Neptunia series at least partly came about as a result of developers Idea Factory and Compile Heart wanting to give her artwork a more prominent role after her previous … Continue reading Megadimension Neptunia V-II: Sights and Sounds →

Other Articles about Megadimension Neptunia V-II

Some Thoughts on Localisation - Localisation is, it seems, a somewhat thorny issue these days — but it’s one worth discussing. Before I begin today, I’d like to emphasise that by no means am I attempting to present a “definitive” opinion here. By its very nature, this is a topic that is highly subjective and a matter of opinion, and … Continue reading Some Thoughts on Localisation →

Happy Birthday, Asami Imai - Today, March 16, is the birthday of Japanese voice actress Asami Imai, one of the most distinctive, recognisable voices in modern Japanese entertainment. Since her debut in 1999, she has racked up an impressive number of roles to her name across a variety of different media. Among enthusiasts of Japanese gaming, she’s probably best known … Continue reading Happy Birthday, Asami Imai →

From the Archives: Drawing the Line - Any dedicated JRPG fan will know what an uphill struggle it is to get people who have found themselves drifting away from the genre to actually play one of your favorite games. All too often, people are keen to dismiss the whole genre as “Japanese bullshit” at best, depraved disgusting sexist paedophilic misogynist nonsense at worst. Ever-determined … Continue reading From the Archives: Drawing the Line →

Waifus I Have Loved - As Valentine’s Day rolls around once again, I find myself keenly aware that not everyone in this world is fortunate enough to be blessed with a partner, lover, spouse or otherwise significant other as understanding, tolerant and patient as my good wife. At times like this, a man often turns to solace in the arms … Continue reading Waifus I Have Loved →

Ten Great RPGs That Came Out After Final Fantasy VII - As we saw recently, there are those among us who believe that the Japanese role-playing game has been in consistent decline since Final Fantasy VII, and that only now are we starting to see a “comeback”. We’ve already talked about how this is a load of old nonsense, and that in fact the role-playing game … Continue reading Ten Great RPGs That Came Out After Final Fantasy VII →

Are JRPGs Primed for a Comeback? No; They Never Went Away - If IGN’s Colin Moriarty is to be believed, then Japanese role-playing games have been in a “steep decline” since Final Fantasy VII. You and I, as fellow enthusiasts of Japanese gaming, both know that this is perhaps a somewhat questionable claim to make, but it’s also worth examining, particularly in light of the fact that Moriarty … Continue reading Are JRPGs Primed for a Comeback? No; They Never Went Away →

Goddesses of Gamindustri: Noire - With the Western release of Vita title Hyperdimension Neptunia: Producing Perfection, a character-centric idol management game-cum-dating sim-cum-visual novel based on Compile Heart’s popular RPG series, I thought it high time we took a closer look at the game’s cast. And, since Noire — also known as Black Heart — is indisputably my favorite member of … Continue reading Goddesses of Gamindustri: Noire →

Goddesses of Gaming - The time I finished Compile Heart’s moe PlayStation 3 RPG Hyperdimension Neptunia was the time I proved beyond a doubt that review scores were completely and utterly useless to me. I kind of suspected this already, but the fact that I devoured and loved a game that Eurogamer gave a 2/10 spoke volumes about how far my tastes had drifted from the mainstream … Continue reading Goddesses of Gaming →

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