Neptunia x SENRAN KAGURA: Ninja Wars – Review

Our Score: 8/10

Neptunia and SENRAN KAGURA join forces in Neptunia x SENRAN KAGURA: Ninja Wars an action packed RPG! Pair up 10 playable characters to slice through enemy hordes, channel the elements, and perform special character attacks. Then find your center with the Peaches & Cream Meditation minigame before taking on the post-game challenges of Yomi-Training!

The two warring nations from the Neptunia and SENRAN KAGURA series have finally teamed up in one action-packed role-playing game! Choose two characters from a list of ten characters, including two new characters. Yuuki and Goh, to go on your adventure. In battle, quickly flip between your two chosen heroes! This version also contains the Alternate Costume DLC and a new difficulty setting option!

Way of the Ninja

The new alternate world of Gamindustri – a continent shaped like a shuriken. Where characters from both game series live as fearsome ninja defenders. Senran Kagura has rarely dabbled in alternate-universe scenarios. But for Neptunia, where the last three main entries have been isekai voyages into other worlds. The game acts as if this world is where these characters have always lived and belonged. Deadlocked in a ninja war between the Heartland ninjas (our Neptunia heroes) and the Marveland crew.

Interestingly enough, it isn’t fourth-wall-breaking protagonist Neptune who has amnesia this time. The game acts as if this world is where these characters have always lived and belonged. Deadlocked in a ninja war between the (our Senran Kagura characters). The two tribes are swiftly compelled to work together when a strange army known as the Steeme Legion invades and threatens to destroy Gamindustri. A thinly disguised commentary around 15 years late.

Crossing Streams

It’s wonderful to see all of these characters interacting and crossing over. And it’s especially touching to see the Senran Kagura crew return after such a long absence. However, with only a 7-hour length, it feels as if we barely have a chance to fully explore this crossover. The game spends significantly more time creating and growing the ho-hum crew of original Steeme Legion characters. And their evil plots than it does making humorous references to past Senran Kagura games.

The fact that just three non-playable Neptunia characters feature in the plot, and no Senran Kagura characters other than the four playable heroines, is incredibly disappointing. With virtually no focus on fanservice-y CG scenes or obscene double entendres, it’s also a breath of fresh air to see the Senran Kagura characters having some extra attention spent on their personalities and weird senses of humour in the brief story mode.

Master your Technique

Despite having the same logo and cover art as Senran Kagura, Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars is a Neptunia game rather than a Senran Kagura game. I’m not just talking about the lack of Senran Kagura characters in the tale; this game is mostly produced by the team behind the Neptunia series, and as much as I admire those games for their charm and design, their action fighting has been continuously sloppy and clumsy for quite some time. While Neptunia X Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars lacks the variety and bombastic combat of the original Senran Kagura games, it remains the most enjoyable and polished Neptunia game I’ve ever played.

Missions send you into bite-sized dungeons with little pockets of 3-7 adversaries and the occasional big mini-boss cropping up in various places of the map. You have one button that fires a single identical combo at your adversaries, and a triangle button that fires shuriken and kunai missiles at them. Everything in this game feels wonderful, unlike past Neptunia action games where the limited combat tools felt shallow and empty due to awkward animations or a lack of weight. The characters’ moves and attacks are beautifully animated and full of dynamic weight and speed – you may only be punching the same attack button, but their movements equal any big-budget character action game.

Final Verdict

Neptunia x SENRAN KAGURA: Ninja Wars is a fun crossover game that fans of both franchises will enjoy. The experience might be short but it was enjoyable and fun. So if you’re a fan of either game, you will like this game too.