Neptunia Riders vs. Dogoos

I still fail to understand the idea behind dropping these terrible Neptunia spinoffs every six months or so. Is this Idea Factory’s plan to keep the franchise under the spotlight at all times? Because I don’t think we are constantly being reminded of them for the good reasons. Neptunia Riders Vs. Dogoos is yet another example of an unfunny, uninteresting, short and lazy spinoff that relies way too much on fanservice to mask how shallow it really is. I don’t get who this is for, and I really struggled to have any kind of fun with it.

As a side or minigame, Neptunia Riders vs Dogoos might be kind of fun…for about an hour, but as a nearly full price game, something like this is tough to swallow. The whole thing can be beaten in a few hours, and the gameplay is entirely derivative, bland and lacking much in the way of anything interesting. Idea Factory should stick more with the ecchi games or themes, as that's what they're best at.

While an undeniably novel concept with strange characters and antics… it simply isn’t terribly interesting or fun to play

Sadly, Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is stuck in neutral and isn't able to shift into high gear.

Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is a complete miss. It feels like a glorified DLC pack for a previous game that never approaches anything deserving of its own release. The story and presentation feel like the first draft of what could have been special, and the driving itself is lackluster and boring. A proper racing game along the lines of Mario Kart could have been impressive, especially considering the roster of console waifus throughout the series. Instead, it is a creature collecting driving games that is extremely disappointing and barely worth your time.

There are a few good things about Neptunia Riders vs. Dogoos. The silly story provides a good vehicle for the shenanigans of Nep Nep and her friends, and going for a completely different genre is always a welcome move. It would've been nice if the game were actually good in every other area. The gameplay loop is far from exciting, especially since it gets very repetitive rather quickly, and the graphical presentation is terrible when you consider the hardware the game is running on. This is also a painfully short experience without any multiplayer capabilities, despite the format being perfect for team or versus play. Unless you're in the habit of collecting every Neptunia-related game, stay away from this title.

Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is one of those spin-offs that leave a sense of incompleteness, with too short a longevity and a total lack of depth in the gameplay.

For fans of the series, it’s fun and hits all the right notes. It’s just over way too quickly and the developers missed a real opportunity to make this a dynamite multiplayer experience.

Although its silly premise, English dub, and character dialogue are amusing, Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos has underwhelming level design, a short campaign length, and pushover opponents. Nonetheless, it still may provide some fun for series fans or those seeking an unorthodox motorcycle action experience.

Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is not the follow-up that Hyperdimension Neptunia fans want or deserve. There are specks of charm and fun to be had here, but you'll have to dig deep, and after just two or three hours of digging, it'll all be over.