With just a 7-hour runtime, though, it feels like we barely get an opportunity to explore the full potential of this once-in-a-lifetime crossover. It’s a delight to see all of these characters interacting and crossing over, and it’s especially heartwarming to see the Senran Kagura crew return after that franchise has been dormant for so many years. We only get a brief taste of this clan feud, though, as the two tribes are quickly forced to work together when a mysterious army called the Steeme Legion invade and threaten to destroy Gamindustri – thinly veiled commentary that is about 15 years late. Interestingly enough, though, it isn’t fourth-wall-shattering protagonist Neptune who has the 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 Heartland ninjas (our Neptunia heroes) and the Marveland crew (our Senran Kagura characters). Senran Kagura has rarely dabbled in alternate-universe spinoff scenarios, but this is business as usual for Neptunia, wherein the last three major entries in the series have been amnesia-fueled isekai adventures into new worlds. Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars is set in the new alternate world of Gamindustri – a continent shaped like a shuriken where characters from both game series live as deadly ninja defenders. And while the reality of this crossover between anime game giants ends up being a little underdeveloped, it’s still an absolute blast. This is my Sora in Smash Bros moment, make no mistake. Both series are from completely different developers and publishers, so when the seemingly impossible idea of a crossover between the two manifested, I lost my dang mind. For years, both series have been massive guilty pleasures – delivering delightful characters and simple-yet-addictive gameplay in packages sprinkled with embarrassing anime fanservice and eye-rolling humor. I’m a fan of two tremendously niche Japanese action-RPG game series – the first being Hyperdimension Neptunia, and the second being Senran Kagura.
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