Hyperdimension Neptunia Producing Perfection is an Idol maker game. This typical Japanese genre isn’t that known in Europe, since most idol maker games never get released over here. You can compare this genre the best with the football manager genre. The only difference is basically the subject. Instead of becoming the champion of your league, you have to clime the charts and become the number one pop star. The same as in football manager games, you don’t control the idol (team) while performing, although you can help your idol a little bit while performing. Your job is to get your pop idol ready to go when she needs to perform.
Not canon
One of the first things you see when you start up your game of Hyperdimension Neptunia PP is that this game is not canon, in other words, whatever happens in this game will have no affection on the mainline Hyperdimension Neptunia games. The story is slim, but sufficient. Right when you’re getting ready for your summer holiday and play tons of videogames, you get summoned by the CPU’s Vert, Neptune, Noire and Blanc. They are losing power because of a new phenomenon, idols. These CPU`s represent Sega, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo, just like in the Hyperdimension Neptunia RPG´s. They summoned you because they need a producer, to help them climb the charts.
Idol producer
In Hyperdimension Neptunia Producing Perfection it is your job to make sure your chosen CPU does enough marketing, takes singing lessons and takes enough rest. Every day you can select one activity and the chosen activity will either increase or decrease your stats. It´s important not to gather up a lot of stress, since it will be game over if the stress level hits 100%. The performance of your idol will also greatly decrease once she experiences a great amount of stress. That´s why you can relax with her on holiday or have a refreshing walk together. It´s also possible to interact with the other CPU´s, if you built up a bond with them, you can start your own idol group. There are four story lines to follow, but they are best played with playing another game in between them, since there is quite some overlap with events. There is a fast forward option, which is ideal for such moments.
Hyperdimension in concert
The concerts of Hyperdimension Neptunia Producing Perfection put you in the role of camera man and special effects technician. You can select different camera angles, position you idol exactly where you want here to be during the performance and select the special effects to be shown during the performance. You can trigger these special effects during the songs, but you get extra points if you do them when the crowd is cheering. The songs are typical Japanese dance pop songs and are pretty nice. There are five songs in total, 1 for each idol plus a bonus one for the final concert. Don’t mistake this game for a rhythmic game, this is no Hatsune Miku. This game is about producing, not hitting the right button at the right time. That’s why five songs isn’t too little. Maybe you’ll hear them five or six times during your play through of a couple of hours. In other words, the songs aren’t all that important.
Text heavy
The story of the game is fully relayed through fully voiced texts and there are no cut scenes. This means every sentence you have to click next. This means your X button will get a lot of usage. There are a lot of great little bits in this game, which you wouldn´t want to miss if you´re a fan of Hyperdimension Neptunia. Unfortunately there is also a lot of filler and fluff in this game, which makes it feel like you´re just going through the motions to progress the story. If you incline to do so, there is to option to dive into your backlog and read back all the conversations. There are a lot of little references like Backlog in the game, which makes it a very fun experience. Especially the ending credits are incredibly awesome. The characters all have their own charm and are nicely fleshed out. The little sisters (representing handhelds) are cute and adorable.
Conclusion
Hyperdimension Neptunia Producing Perfection is a nice introduction into the idol maker genre. It’s easy to get the hang of things and it’s a nice relaxing ride. The chats with the idols are often funny and extra nice for people interested in the game industry. There is only one downside to this game and that is its price. This game is launched with a price tag of €39,99 on the PlayStation Store. In my humble opinion this would have been a great game for about 20 euro, 30 euro at most. 40 euro is too much for the offered content, but if this game ever goes on discount and you are even remotely interested in the idol maker genre, I can absolutely recommend you to take the plunge.
Score: 71
