is a series of role-playing video games created and developed by

Compile Heart is a Japanese video game developer founded on June 2, 2006 as a subsidiary of Idea Factory. The company was formerly managed by Compile's former executive Masamitsu "Moo" Niitani, most well known as the creator of the '' Madou Monogatari'' and '' ...

and

Idea Factory is a Japanese video game developer and video game publisher, publisher founded by former Data East employees in October 1994. A division of the company makes otome games under the name of Otomate. An international branch, Idea Factory Internatio ...

. The series debuted in Japan on August 19, 2010, with the video game of the same name for the

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on November 11, 2006, in Japan, November ...

, later re-released as an enhanced remake under the name ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1'' for the PlayStation Vita. Two sequels, '' Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2'' and ''

Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory is an action role-playing game developed and published by Idea Factory with the assistance of Compile Heart. It is the third installment in the ''Hyperdimension Neptunia'' franchise. Set in the year 1989, the story takes place after '' Hyperdim ...

'', in addition to the remake titles for both of them and five spin-offs on the PlayStation Vita, have been released. Another sequel on the PlayStation 4, titled ''

Megadimension Neptunia VII is a 2015 role-playing game in the ''Hyperdimension Neptunia'' series. It was released in Japan on April 23, 2015, in North America on February 2, 2016, and Europe on February 12, 2016. The Windows version was released on July 5, 2016. A Ninte ...

'', was released in 2015. In addition, a remake of that game was released in 2017. Multiple spin-offs on the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 have been released. It has branched off into a manga,

light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a '' wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English languag ...

and

anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

media franchise series. An anime television series adaptation, titled '' Hyperdimension Neptunia: The Animation'', aired in Japan between July and September 2013. An OVA, titled ''Nepu no Natsuyasumi'', was released in July 2019. A second OVA, titled ''Nep Nep Darake no Festival'', was released in October 2022, and third OVA, titled ''Hidamari no Little Purple'', will be released in April 2023.

Setting

Games within the series takes place in the world of , which is divided into four regions/nations which are each ruled by one CPU: Planeptune, Lastation, Lowee, and Leanbox. Each region is completely different from the others in appearance and atmosphere, with each representing a specific

video game console A video game console is an electronic device that outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can be played with a game controller. These may be home consoles, which are generally placed in a permanent location connected to ...

. Lastation represents the PlayStation, Lowee represents the Wii, and Leanbox represents the Xbox, while Planeptune represents the cancelled Sega Neptune. In the beginning of the story, the four goddesses are fighting each other for "shares" in a war known as the Console War. Shares are the manifestation of the belief citizens put into their goddess, and without shares, a goddess dies. Because some of the games feature time and/or dimension travel there are slight differences in the settings for each title.

Development

Prior to Q3 2009, Compile Heart was conceptualising a new RPG project centred upon character designs by

Tsunako is a Japanese video game creator and illustrator who worked for Idea Factory. She has designed and illustrated characters for various games and print media. She is best known for illustrating the ''Hyperdimension Neptunia'' video game series, publ ...

, with the intention of collaborating with a partner company. This game was originally planned to feature three princess sisters and a protagonist. However, the partnership deal fell out, and as a result the project plans were redesigned and eventually became "Neptunia" close to the end of 2009 following the completion of '' Trinity Universe''s development. During the early stages of the project, the characters Noire and Blanc were originally coloured red and blue respectively, however their colour schemes were changed to black and white so that they could better fit in with the new game setting and plot. The release of the first sequel to the original game, ''Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2'', saw the introduction of a reworked game engine and the replacement of various components such as the battle system and dungeons, which were completely rebuilt from scratch. ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory'' later built on this, with the parts from ''mk2'' which were considered "weak" by the developers removed and improved, eventually setting ''Victory'' as the foundation for the design of future titles within the series. Following Compile Heart's collaboration with

David Production is a Japanese animation studio founded in September 2007 and is based in Nishitōkyō, Tokyo. Notable works from the studio include ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'', '' Cells at Work!'', and ''Fire Force''. Establishment The company was founded b ...

to produce the ''Neptunia'' television animation series, the developers were able to change their approach to direction and script-writing based on their experience with the anime development staff, which resulted in the changes to the narrative found in the ''Re;Birth'' games on PlayStation Vita.

Release history

Hyperdimension Neptunia is a series of role-playing video games created and developed by Compile Heart and Idea Factory. The series debuted in Japan on August 19, 2010, with the video game of the same name for the PlayStation 3, later re-released as an enhanced rem ...

'' is the first game within the series, with the name originally derived from the scrapped

Sega Neptune The 32X is an add-on for the Sega Genesis video game console. Codenamed "Project Mars", it was designed to expand the power of the Genesis and serve as a transitional console into the 32-bit era until the release of the Sega Saturn. The 32X ...

which combined the

Sega Mega Drive/Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...

and

Sega 32X The 32X is an add-on for the Sega Genesis video game console. Codenamed "Project Mars", it was designed to expand the power of the Genesis and serve as a transitional console into the 32-bit era until the release of the Sega Saturn. The 32X us ...

into one unit, originally scheduled for release in 1994 or 1995 before the project was dropped after the release of the Sega Saturn. There are two sequels which have been released under the names '' Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2'' and ''

''. Another game, titled , was released on June 20, 2013, for the PlayStation Vita in Japan and it was released in the west in June 2014 as '' Hyperdimension Neptunia: Producing Perfection'', developed by

and

Tamsoft is a Japanese video game developer, founded on 26 June 1992. Its current president, Toshiaki Ōta, previously worked at Toaplan as one of the six original team members and head of software development.Translationby Gamengai. ).Translationby Shmu ...

. During a streamed interview at

Tokyo Game Show , commonly known as TGS, is a video game expo / convention held annually in September in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA) and Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. ...

2013, Idea Factory and Compile Heart announced that ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 2: Sisters Generation'' was under development,. ''Re;Birth 2'' was released on March 20, 2014. with Noire as the main character, was released on May 29, 2014. On March 16, 2014, two new next-generation games were announced, titled and . ''Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed'' is an action game spin-off exclusively for the PlayStation Vita released on August 28, 2014, in Japan, developed by

, whilst ''Megadimension Neptunia VII'' is a main series title for the PlayStation 4. At

2014, an enhanced remake of ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory'' for the PlayStation Vita, titled ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 3: V Century'', was announced.

Games

Main series

Hyperdimension Neptunia (2010)

Remade as '' Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1'' released in 2013, Choujijigen Game Neptune Re;Birth 1 Plus in 2018, and '' Neptunia re★Verse'' in 2020.

Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2 (2011)

The second game the series. It introduced gameplay mechanics and new set of characters, as well as interpretations of the previous onces, that became a mainstay in the series. The game's plot tackles more about the major consequences on

video game piracy Video game piracy is the unauthorized copying and distributing of video game software, and is a form of copyright infringement. It is often cited as a major problem that video game publishers face when distributing their products, due to the ease o ...

, albeit presented in a

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

manner. It was later remade as '' Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 2: Sisters Generation'' which was initially released in 2014 for PlayStation Vita and Steam.

Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory (2012)

The third game in the series, which mainly takes in an alternate dimension and is based around gaming culture around the early generations until the sixth-generation era of gaming. It received an enhanced version for the PlayStation Vita and Steam as '' Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 3: V Generation'' which was initially released in 2014.

Megadimension Neptunia VII (2015)

The first game in the series for PlayStation 4 released worldwide in 2016. The game's plot is slightly inspired by the shift from the seventh generation of consoles to the 8th generation, as well as the history of the

Sega Dreamcast The is a home video game console released by Sega on November 27, 1998, in Japan; September 9, 1999, in North America; and October 14, 1999, in Europe. It was the first sixth-generation video game console, preceding Sony's PlayStation 2, Nint ...

. The game received a remake, framed as a retelling of the True Ending route, in 2017 as ''Megadimension Neptunia VIIR'' which featured new cutscenes with VR support. Released on the same platforms as the original (except for the Nintendo Switch).

Spin-offs

Hyperdimension Neptunia: Producing Perfection (2013)

An idol-raising simulator game with rhythm and dating sim elements. It is the first game in the series to be on the PlayStation Vita and was the only game in the series to not received a port to PCs.

Neptune Collection (2013)

An online mobile card game for Android and

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also include ...

developed by Idea Factory and hosted by

GREE GREE (derived from an abbreviation of the " Six degrees of separation" concept) is a Japanese social networking service founded by Yoshikazu Tanaka and operated by GREE, Inc. GREE focuses primarily on mobile games and over ninety percent of it ...

starting from February 15, 2013. It is a collectible card game which involves social networking elements. The game's servers shut down on July 31, 2014.

Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart (2014)

Turn-based In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based. Real-time Real-time games have game time progress cont ...

tactical role-playing game which utilizes a battle grid.

Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed (2014)

'' Musou''-type real-time action game.

MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies (2015)

Multiplayer action game.

Superdimension Neptune vs Sega Hard Girls (2015)

Crossover RPG with the ''

Sega Hard Girls is a Japanese multimedia project produced as a collaboration between ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Bunko imprint and video game company Sega. The project re-imagines various Sega video game consoles as anthropomorphized goddesses who appear all o ...

'' franchise.

Cyberdimension Neptunia: 4 Goddesses Online (2017)

Action RPG.

Neptunia & Friends (2017)

Interaction/Card game released in Japan for Android and iOS. The localized version was released exclusively for iOS and featured less characters and updates compared to the Japanese version.

Nep-Nep Connect: Chaos Chanpuru (2017)

Free-to-play card battle game, and the first Neptunia game to not be released outside Japan. The game's support was terminated on August 8, 2018. Though it wasn't released outside Japan, the English version of ''Neptunia Virtual Stars'' gives this game the name "Nep-Nep★Connect: Chaos Champloo" when referring to characters that debuted in this game in game's collectible card list.

Super Neptunia RPG (2018)

2D side-scrolling action game. First title in the series to be developed outside Japan, and the first Neptunia title that was released on a Nintendo platform.

Neptunia Shooter (2019)

2D anime bullet hell game. First game to be exclusive to PC. Also the first game to be released on the same day worldwide. First game to be developed by Idea Factory International. First game to be published by Idea Factory in Japan instead of Compile Heart. It was ported to PlayStation 5 alongside Neptunia re★Verse.

Neptunia Virtual Stars (2020)

A hack 'n' slash game with rhythm elements that tackles and parodies culture around social media, featuring various

Vtubers A , or , is an online entertainer who uses a virtual avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated in Japan in the mid ...

. The first game in the series not to receive an English dub due to the amount of guest Vtubers present.

Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars (2021)

Crossover with the ''

Senran Kagura is a video game series created by Kenichiro Takaki, produced by Marvelous and mostly developed by Tamsoft. The franchise revolves around groups of female shinobi, and has received manga and anime adaptations. The anime has been licensed by F ...

'' series.

Dimension Tripper Neptune: Top Nep (2022)

Rail shooter Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs ) are a Video game genre, sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certai ...

game exclusive to PC developed by Frontier Works.

Neptunia: Sisters vs. Sisters (2022)

Action RPG starring the candidates. For the first time, the character models have been remade from scratch. It was released in Japan on April 21, 2022, for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. A Western version is set for a January 2023 release, including Steam. This will be first game to have English dub since Super Neptunia RPG.

Other media

Manga

A manga series based on the game titled began serialisation in November 2010 within the '' Famitsu Comic Clear''. A manga series illustrated by Mikage Baku which complements the television animation, titled , began serialisation within the June 2013 issue of ''

Dengeki Maoh is a Japanese seinen magazine published by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks). It first went on sale on October 27, 2005, and is sold every month on the twenty-seventh. The magazine features information on video games, manga, and light nove ...

''. A spin-off novel of the anime, titled ''Hyperdimension Neptunia TGS Hono no Futsukakan'', was published by MF Bunko J and released May 25, 2013.

Anime

An anime adaptation, ''Hyperdimension Neptunia: The Animation'' was produced by

of Japan and directed by

Masahiro Mukai is a Japanese anime director. In 2004, he joined Sunrise and worked on ''Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny''. After leaving Sunrise, he was put in charge of directing '' Hyperdimension Neptunia: The Animation'' in 2013 and ''Trickster'' in 2017. St ...

. Series composition and script writing are done by Shōgo Yasukawa and a musical score composed by

Hiroaki Tsutsumi is a Japanese musician and composer best known for his work on various anime television series. He started his musical career at the age of 14 when he first started playing the guitar. After winning a guitar contest three years later, he decided ...

, Kenji Kaneko and

Masaru Yokoyama is a Japanese composer and arranger, known for his work on television dramas and anime series. Biography Yokoyama was born in Nagano Prefecture. He started to take piano lessons at the age of three, taught by his aunt who is an alumna of Kunit ...

. Character designs are done by Hitomi Takechi, based on the original designs by

along with art direction by Masanobu Nomura and sound direction by Jin Aketagawa. The twelve-episode series aired on

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV, branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city. It competes with Nippon TV, TV Asahi, NH ...

on July 12, 2013, and were later aired on BS11, KBS, Sun TV and tvk then finished on September 27, 2013. The series was acquired by

Funimation Crunchyroll, LLC, previously known as Funimation from 1994 to 2022, is an American entertainment company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony as a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex that specializes ...

for online streaming in North America with both the English dub and the original Japanese dub with English subtitles. The opening theme is "Dimension tripper!!!!" by Nao and the ending theme is by Afilia Saga. "Go→Love&Peace" by

Ayane Ayane (/aˈjaˌnɛ/) is the romanization of a feminine Japanese given name. Literally translated it means "colorful sound" (彩音 or 綺音). * or Junko Hirata, Japanese singer-songwriter *, Japanese television personality *, Japanese badminton ...

is used as the ending theme of episodes 3 and 4, in addition to by Afilia Saga on episode 10. It was broadcast within the United States on

Funimation Channel Crunchyroll, LLC, previously known as Funimation from 1994 to 2022, is an American entertainment company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony as a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex that specialize ...

. A new original video animation (OVA) titled ''Nepu no Natsuyasumi'' was announced to be in production. Returning staff members include Masahiro Mukai as director, Hitomi Takechi as character designer, and Shōgo Yasukawa as scriptwriter, with animation by studio Okuruto Noboru. It premiered on July 8, 2019. A second OVA titled ''Nep Nep Darake no Festival'' was bundled with "Dimensional Traveler Neptune Generator Unit ver." 1/7 scale figure, which was released on October 26, 2022. A third OVA titled ''Hidamari no Little Purple'' will be bundled with the "Neptune Little Purple ver." 1/7-scale figure, which will be released on April 26, 2023. The anime television series adaptation received a mixed response, with praise for its original story and humor revolving around video game industry in-jokes, and criticism for its use of melodrama.

Music

Most of the original soundtracks created for the Neptunia series were composed by Kenji Kaneko, with additional composers for Megadimension Neptunia VII and later games. The first, titled ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Sound Track CD'', was released on August 19, 2010, and was bundled with a Japanese Limited Edition of the game. The soundtrack for the second game contained 13 tracks and was released in Japan with the limited edition on August 18, 2011. It was later repackaged with the western limited release on February 28, 2012, which featured 18 tracks and was titled ''Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2: Sounds of Gamindustri''. The soundtrack for Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory was released on August 30, 2012, with the Japanese Limited Edition and contained 16 tracks. Similar to the second game, the soundtrack was released overseas with the Limited Edition of the game with 24 tracks, titled ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory Sounds of that other Gamindustri''. The Megadimension VII soundtrack, ''MEGA DIMENSION NEPTUNE VII Dream Edition DG-ROM'', was included with the Japanese Dream Edition and released in a 50 track, 3 disc format on April 23, 2015. Its overseas release, ''MEGADIMENSION NEPTUNIA VII Official Soundtrack'' was included exclusively with the Limited Edition online, containing only 45 tracks over 2 discs. Most recently, the soundtrack for 4 Goddesses Online was released on February 9, 2017, with the Royal Edition of the game. For each title in the Re;Birth series, the soundtracks were re-released following each game's initial release, usually with a few additional or missing tracks. Re;Birth 2's soundtrack, titled ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth2: SISTERS GENERATION ~ "Sisters' Melodies" Soundtrack CD'' was released exclusively on Idea Factory International's website with the Limited Edition of the game and contained 19 tracks from the game. Compile Heart and Idea Factory International later made the Re;Birth series available for the PC on the Steam platform, in which DLC included digital releases of the soundtrack for each game. In addition to the game soundtracks, there have been

CD single A CD single (sometimes abbreviated to CDS) is a music single in the form of a compact disc. The standard in the Red Book for the term ''CD single'' is an 8 cm (3-inch) CD (or Mini CD). It now refers to any single recorded onto a CD of any si ...

releases for the opening and ending themes for each game. The voice actresses for each character have also released individual singles, in which they perform original in-character songs. Various Drama CD series have also been released in which voice actors perform original episodes. The anime series also released singles for the opening and ending themes, alongside a drama CD and 7 special "Animation Processor" discs, which contained a variety of different audio media including songs, voice actor commentary, and drama episodes. A compilation of the main vocal tracks from each game (including character songs) was released as a 5 disc series on August 27, 2014.

Mobile applications

Alarm clock applications and mobile skins/themes featuring ''Neptunia'' characters have also been released for Android and iOS.

Reception

References

External links

* {{Okuruto Noboru Anime television series based on video games David Production Funimation Idea Factory franchises Kadokawa Dwango franchises Magical girl anime and manga Manga based on video games Mass media franchises Multiplayer video games Okuruto Noboru Raising sims Fiction about robots Science fiction video games Science fantasy video games Seinen manga Shōnen manga Single-player video games Superhero video games Video game franchises Video game franchises introduced in 2010