NEO: The World Ends With You is a title that was always fated to struggle against the weight of lofty expectations. Releasing 14 years after the original The World Ends With You, it's a sequel in the unenviable position of being compared to a cult classic JRPG that received glowing praise from fans and critics alike. Consequently, NEO faces the prospect of needing to be more than just a good game in its own right, but also measure up to title known for its innovative battle system, memorable characters, and vibrant soundtrack and style.
It's only natural NEO doesn't succeed at this by every metric. Luckily for JRPG fans, though, it manages to recapture much of the charm of its predecessor in an addictive game with zany characters and unique combat mechanics. While fans of the original may note that protagonist Rindo Kanade never really comes into his own in the same way that Neku Sakuraba did in the first game, the colorful supporting cast tends to make up for the comparative blandness of the lead.
NEO tells the story of Rindo as he finds himself mysteriously drawn into the deadly "Reaper's Game" of Shibuya. Run by denizens of the afterlife known as Reapers, the game is a series of escalating challenges that occur over the course of seven days. Those who fail face erasure, while those who succeed are promised anything they desire. Rindo doesn't have what it takes to survive the game on his own, but he recruits a team of gifted allies: his best friend Fret, an insightful girl named Nagi and the uncooperative genius Sho Minamimoto.
These initial four characters are expected to carry the story in its early hours -- and this is easily the game's greatest flaw. Rindo, Fret and Nagi appear to be shallow and one-note, while Sho doesn't get enough screen-time to shine. Later twists in the story prove there's more to each character than meets the eye, but it's frustrating that it takes so long to become invested in them.
Rindo fares the worst of the lot. He gains depth through his struggle to be a decisive leader, but his lack of personality and backstory make it difficult to root for him. The evolution of Fret's character, on the other hand, was surprisingly well-executed. He starts off someone players will likely find annoying, but he gradually reveals himself to be a complicated-yet-sympathetic teenager.
Still, the unfortunate reality is that none of the new leads are as memorable as Neku, Shiki, Joshua and Beat from the original. This would relegate NEO to mediocrity were it not for a rich cast of side characters. Most of the returning characters from the first game -- including Sho, Kariya and Uzuki -- continue to be charmingly eccentric, and (outside of the aforementioned leads) NEO's new characters feel in tune with the over-the-top style of the first game.
Rindo's rival teams in particular steal the show. The Deep River Society is hilariously earnest in their obsession with rivers, the Purehearts are front and center for the greatest twist in the game and the Variabeauties serve the story well during its most serious moments. The casual antagonism Rindo has with his idiosyncratic rival teams and the disaffected, working class Reapers absolutely carry the story.
As for combat, NEO exceed expectations given that much of the first game's innovation stemmed from using the Nintendo DS' functionalities in new ways. The dual screen battles may be gone, but the developers have kept the unique spirit of the original combat system intact. Battles are now based around equipping pins to each party member that allow them to wield different psychic powers known as psychs. These are mapped to various buttons, resulting in a fast-paced frenzy of controlling multiple characters at once and timing attacks to achieve combos. The wide variety of equippable pins allow players to explore and fine-tune their preferred combat style throughout the game.
NEO's deviations from the usual turn-based and hack-and-slash combat systems of JRPGs help battles remain interesting even though the variety of opponents can be lacking. The game may appear to have a large bestiary of opponents, but many of the various animal-inspired Noise Rindo will fight across Shibuya are simply reskins. On the upside, boss battles have been upgraded from the first game to have more distinct visuals and unique tactics. The developers clearly focused on boss battles rather than ordinary foes.
It's important to note that the combat system as a whole is also aided by an uncommon emphasis on customization. This is vital to keeping the combat entertaining and should honestly be copied by other RPGs. NEO allows players to easily adjust not just the difficulty settings, but the characters' level on fly, with rare item drop rates increased the higher the difficulty level and the lower the characters' level are set. This rewards players for fighting difficult battles and prevents overzealous grinding from making the rest of the game boringly easy. It's a simple but effective mechanic that actually makes RNG entertaining instead of soul-crushing.
The soundtrack is worth mentioning as well, seeing as NEO is one of those games where music is a major draw. Composed by Takeharu Ishimoto, the game boasts a diverse soundtrack of pop, rap and electronic tracks that give flavor to the Shibuya setting. While some songs are instantly catchy and others slowly convert you into liking them as you travel the city streets to their beat, it's a standout soundtrack overall. Original songs and remixes from the first game are included along with several new tracks that blend seamlessly with the rest. If you're exclusively following NEO for its soundtrack, you'll likely find several new songs to enjoy alongside longtime fan favorites like "Twister," "Calling" and "Three Minutes Clapping."
Fan reception towards NEO will likely be mixed, and for good reason: while it's a fast-paced game with an eccentric charm, it still remains in the shadow of its predecessor in many ways. Nevertheless, in an era replete with predictable, cliched JRPGs, NEO: The World Ends With You is a welcome revival to a unique series.
Developed by Square Enix and h.a.n.d. and published by Square Enix, NEO: The World Ends With You releases July 27 for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch, with a PC port releasing later in the year. A review copy was provided by the publisher.