When you first start playing MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies on a PlayStation Vita, you’re faced with a very serious decision. You can go through a campaign and figure out what’s going on in Gamicademi and how to save it or head online and start tackling missions with strangers and friends. It’s super tempting to go for the latter, believe me. Every character is unlocked and it’s a much easier means of earning money for equipment, accessories, and upgrades. Sticking with the story, at least for the first two hours, is the best decision.
Part of it is due to the way MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies eases you into altercations. The first few story missions are incredibly simple. You’re forced to focus on Blanc, Neptune, Nepgear, Ram, Rom, and Tamsoft and learn how each one functions in the field. You get a feel for the partnership and see how some basic enemies attack. Since there’s some repetition with these characters, learning how initial mooks behave is pretty beneficial. You learn how to trigger special attacks and get a feel for behavior.
Plus, going through the MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies gives you a chance to start leveling some characters up. Blanc and are the most solid early characters. They have simple combos and deal tons of damage. It’s a good idea to have one of them set as your initial character, then pick someone slightly different or unconventional, like Tamsoft, Ram, Rom, or Uni, to switch to during play. You’ll appreciate that experience.
It also means you’re better prepared for the boss fights. I’m unsure if everyone’s experience will be identical, but the first boss I faced in MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies’ campaign was also the first to show up when I went into multiplayer matches. The first time I encountered him, it was after I went searching for a room and found someone else actually playing. I was so happy to have this opportunity that I stuck around as long as possible, even though it meant I was woefully unprepared for that battle. (Fortunately, my ally was at about the same level as me, so I didn’t have to deal with the guilt of letting someone else down.)
But the best reason to start with the Story is for the encounters. The characters from Neptunia are pretty amazing, with unique personalities. We all have our favorites. Heading into the campaign means you get to see why all these CPUs and CPU candidates aren’t ruling their respective nations and are instead attending a high school. Sure, it’s a flimsy excuse to put them all in school uniforms and send them out after zombified versions of iconic enemies from the series. But it’s full of the same inside jokes and clever quips as the rest of the series.
It’s a great time to get screenshots too. Pressing the down button immediately pauses the action and brings up camera options. You can change the position, zoom in or out, alter the angle, and grab the perfect picture of your favorite CPU or CPU candidate in action. You can take the time to halt everything and see if you can take a pretty neat picture, which you could save for yourself to show off, share, or even use as a background.
The MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies’ story mode problems really have to do with the pacing. Perhaps it’s just me and due to my swapping between modes, but it feels like it takes a bit longer than necessary to start unlocking additional characters. It starts off swiftly enough, with Blanc, Neptune, Nepgear, Ram, Rom, and Tamsoft immediately opting to join the film club and defeat zombies. But then, it tapers off. Instead of getting more CPUs in the third Scene (aka chapter), Dengekiko and Famitsu join up. Noire and Uni don’t arrive until Scene 4, and Vert doesn’t appear until Scene 5.
This wouldn’t be so bad if Scenes were uniform and you knew exactly what to expect from each one, but they’re not. As time goes on, they get longer and longer. MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies’ first Scene only has one Cut (battle). Scene 2 has three, Scene 3 has four, Scene 4 has five, and so on. The further you go, the longer you have to wait before getting new characters or transformed versions of each one.
After Scene 5’s first Cut is a good time to start transitioning from MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies’ campaign to multiplayer. You’ll know what you’re doing, be prepared to start fighting bosses, and have an idea of which character would work best for you. Then, you can start racking up wealth from those experiences with up to four players to get weapons that will make it easier to keep quickly advancing through story levels without feeling like you have to go back and level grind.
MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies will come to the PlayStation Vita in North America on May 10, 2016 and Europe on May 13, 2016.
Published: May 6, 2016 01:30 pm