Too Meta? – Cyberdimension Neptunia: 4 Goddesses Online Review

While the Goddesses of Gamindustri have always been one for meta humour, after all, the game is based on personified versions of the Playstation, Xbox, Wii, and Sega’s unreleased console, while spitting out jokes about video games and pop-culture as a whole. However this time, they might have gone too meta.

Don’t believe me? Well then…

Cyberdimension Neptunia is a video game about 4 video-game-console inspired goddesses playing a Massive Multiplayer Online Video Game about 4 goddesses who are in their exact likeness. So you get to play a video game inside a video game series based on personifications of video game consoles as themselves.

The game starts with Neptune, Noire, Blanc and Vert logging into the latest version of 4 Goddesses Online after being offered access to the game while in beta. While attempting to play the game normally, they are tasked with reviving the divine Goddesses of legend by collecting 4 items and defeating the Demon King. Players take on the role of any of the 4 goddesses and the CPU sisters (Nepgear, Uni, Rom and Ram) in the MMO in attempt to complete the task.

While the main titles in the Neptunia series have been focused more on action oriented turn-base battles, Cyberdimension follows more of a MMO style game. Players come equipped with a basic attack and is able to customize their load-out with 4 other power moves, which require SP to use. The combat is relatively fast pace however can be repetitive.

To help change things up, players can select any of the 8 characters who have their own class, weapons and abilities. Neptune plays the Paladin with heavy sword strike, Noir the Black Knight uses a lance to give extra range, Blanc plays the healer and Vert the enchantress, both uses special abilities to keep players healthy and do extra damage. Nepgear and Uni also play the range class with mage and thief respectively keeping opponents back with magic and guns, while Ram and Rom play the Ninja and Samurai class, giving you the choice of speed or power.

Online play also comes as a first for the series, allowing players to team up in groups of 4 to take on special hunting missions. During the times I’ve played, I found very little problems with the network and the game played rather smoothly online. However, the extra human players felt like it took away from the experience of the game and made things way to easy.

As mentioned, the Neptunia games are filled with meta humour and Cyberdimension is no different. From mistakes with screwing up the camera so that Neptune accidentally looks up everyone’s skirt, to Noire being mistaken as a Noire fangirl designing her character after her, to Blanc flat-chest insecurities (she added more to the slider but not too much so that Neptune and Vert would make fun of her), the basic Neptunia series humour is here and serves a great distractions between combat.

Cyberdimension Neptunia: 4 Goddesses Online may not be the best of the series and newcomers to the series are likely to get lost in the meta of the game, however fans will definitely find something to love with this faux-mmo.