It occurs to me as I write this, that I am completely under Idea Factory’s spell. I resisted for a time, scoffing at the original Hyperdimension Neptunia for its cliché appearance and questionable portrayal of women. It didn't help that even disregarding its low-rent look, its combo-centric combat was broken at best and dysfunctional at worst.

But the game caught on despite itself, and Idea Factory took the idea and ran with it. Over the years and iterations I played the Neptunia games as they came out, since I'm willing to play anything an editor tosses my way. It sounds bad, but Idea Factory used that time to improve as a developer and refine the formula to a science of bubblegum-flavored complexity.

Neptunia became a series of silliness, accessibility and personalization. I noticed as it became a hit with a much more diverse audience than most “kusoge,” as people like to call the prototypical, low-budget, visual novel/niche-genre mashup games from Japan. It became a surprisingly positive example of games starring girls, despite the occasional cheesecake and spin off handed to less-than-savory devs. The Neptunia cast is a lovable bunch with a wide range of flaws and strengths, defying the trope-y aesthetic and even making recent efforts to dig itself out of dated, pop-culture jokes. But where the series excels is in its combat, which has become some of the most compelling, involved turn-based JRPG dungeon-crawling in recent years.

All of this mulling over the Neptunia franchise finally brings me to Fairy Fencer F, a game I have spent some serious time with over the past few weeks. Released in relative obscurity on the PS3 not long ago, Fairy Fencer F is an attempt at a completely new idea held up by the well-oiled machine of what can safely be called the Neptunia engine. Now it hits PC, as Steam has finally become the bastion of JRPG goodness it was destined to be, thanks to rising development costs and a troubling handheld market.

Not only is Fairy Fencer F a whole new IP, it also boasts an intriguing array of talent. In addition to the team at Idea Factory supplemented by the usual Compile Heart, art is supplied by the legendary Yoshitaka Amano, and the soundtrack is from Earthbound Papas, the awesome band (I've totally seen live, not to brag or anything) fronted by Nobuo Uematsu. The game’s scenario is written by Toshiki Inoue, who has a huge history with Tokusatsu (Power Rangers!) TV shows. That's a lot of talent all in one place.

It pays off. While the overarching plot is nothing special, the characters are all fleshed out and have a ton of chemistry with each other, which is aided by a more than solid English dub. These characters are as deeply flawed as one would expect from an Idea Factory joint, but they all come together to save the day despite themselves. It's a cute little running theme Idea Factory has pretty much nailed over the years, and the familiarity helps nail the new IP. Plus, getting to know these characters is a lot of fun.

The Tokusatsu influence comes out in full force in Fairy Fencer F, both aesthetically and mechanically. Each character is a Fencer, and they have control of awesome weapons powered by Faeries, the central group of which are also full-fledged characters. I'm not sure what the solitary F stands for. The protagonist’s name is Fang, so that, maybe?

Fang and his buddies fight with a super-robust combat system that takes what Neptunia fans may be familiar with and goes a step further into customization heaven. Each character’s weapon is set for the duration of the game, but as you play you earn WP, which can be spent on upgrading the ever loving crap out of everything. You can learn new skills, boost your stats in each individual category, add new slots for additional (programmable!) combo slots and even boost your attack range so that a guy with a sword can attack a monster from across the field. If you thought Neptunia was cool with letting you do whatever you wanted, think again.

One of Neptunia’s big flaws was balance, and Fairy Fencer F seeks to fix that by doing away with the more linear separation of attack types from the former. Now, each weapon can take three different physical forms, and techniques from each can be mixed and matched to the player’s liking. Each form has its quirks, but the properties are consistent enough that you can really fine tune everything to varying results. The best possible combinations aren't very clear, which makes playing around with all available options that much more fun and encouraging.

While the weapons and primary Faeries never change, additional, weaker Faeries are found at the end of each dungeon, which can be equipped for extra star bonuses and new passive abilities. These Faeries can also be plugged into dungeons for a positive and negative effect that can substantially change your combat experience. Need to grind? Get an EXP or WP bonus at the expense of attack or defense. Need help on the boss? Get a damage bonus at the cost of money or experience.

If anything, Fairy Fencer F might have too much stuff to mess around with. You’ll spend a ton of time bouncing around in menus as you tinker, and getting to new stuff can be a serious grind. WP comes in slow, especially early on, and being at your weakest at that point doesn't help matters. Experimenting with different Faeries can also be frustrating, as they also have levels and swapping to a new one will drop your stats big time until you can grind it up to par. The story itself is also pretty long and drawn out, and multiple endings only dump even more time in. This is definitely a game for the patient JRPG enthusiast.

Fairy Fencer F is an attempt to take a break from the popular and plentiful Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise. It’s also an attempt to refine and evolve the increasingly popular combat systems Idea Factory has spent so much time on already even further than before. It is largely a success, with a storied group of talent at the forefront to really get eyeballs on something that, at a glance, doesn't have much brand power behind it. With a cool aesthetic and great music, Fairy Fencer F makes strides in the realm of turn-based combat. Just...be prepared to lose several dozens of hours to this thing by the time it's over.

Hint: They lose relevance as the game goes on, but definitely start with weapon-boosting Faeries. The early damage bump gives you an early edge to focus on grinding WP for combo slots. That's where the real damage is at.

by Lucas White