NEO: The World Ends with You Reviews
Overall, NEO: The World Ends with You is a fantastic followup to 2007’s The World Ends with You, and both expands the universe and introduces different gameplay styles to keep even the most veteren of JRPG fans engaged. The exceptional visual style and musical flair work together to create a vibrant and stylish game that I just couldn’t get enough of. The narrative is satisfying and fits firmly in the hyper-stylised world of JRPGs, and will delight fans of Kingdom Hearts, Ni No Kuni, and Persona. Despite some minor critiques, NEO: The World Ends with You is a surprise hit, and has the potential to pave the way for another successful Square Enix franchise.
In conclusion, Neo: The World Ends With You was a wonderful experience to play, and while it has a lot going on within the game, it teaches these different mechanics slowly and expertly. With the combination of a good story, great dialogue, complex puzzles, and flashy combat, Neo was a welcomed surprise and is a truly unique game. Comparisons would not be worthwhile for the most part. The closest comparison that could be made would be to Kingdom Hearts, but that might be an insult to Neo. It is an action RPG with many complex mechanics going on, but it won’t leave players confused and the combat isn’t as finicky. There are a lot of things that are packed into this long game, but they are done very well and are able to work in tandem with one another smoothly. This game is truly unique and would be worthwhile to buy to experience how this sticker bomb of a game manages to keep its punk aesthetic and be a game that is difficult to describe but not hard to recommend in any capacity.
NEO: The World Ends with You was absolutely worth the fourteen year wait. Its unique battle system, beautiful art, and accessibility for multiple audiences make it worthwhile. Beyond that, the lack of a grind and ability to play as you want make this JRPG worthy of being added to your collection. Although the menus can contribute to information overload and the game itself is fairly linear, NEO: TWEWY succeeds in telling a unique and engaging story without the slog of other games in the JRPG genre. In short: NEO: TWEWY is outstanding; be warned: you will become addicted.
It has lost the original edge of the first chapter and it's not a technical powerhouse, but Neo The World ends with you is nonetheless a brilliant action rpg with one of the best soundtracks to grace the medium in a long time.
Review in Italian | Read full review
NEO: The World Ends With You may not be as great as its predecessor, but it's still a good game in its own right.
After 14 years, the best soundtrack on the Nintendo DS has been met with its sequel – now the best soundtrack on the Nintendo Switch. Delightful deja vu, this sequel revives everything that works and delivers it all over again with vibrant new life. Just excuse the disappointing new cast and technical hiccups for one of the year’s most stylish surprises.
Fans and newcomers alike are going to be enthralled by NEO: The World Ends with You, that rare belated follow up to a beloved cult classic that manages to live up to, and even exceed, the original.
After 14 long years, The World Ends with You gets its long awaited sequel. Finding a balance between adapting the gameplay to a single screen while carving its own niche was a tall task. Nevertheless, NEO mostly succeeds by creating a satisfying follow-up for its patient fans despite getting in its own way often with some puzzling design choices.
Though there may be a whopping fourteen year gap between the first and second game, NEO: The World Ends With You makes easy work of slipping into the role of seemingly-direct follow-up to the events prior.
Coming back to the reaper’s game with this scope and grand vision has proven to be a risk for Square Enix that sadly has not paid off. Sales may not have met expectations for the venerable publisher and this would mean that Neo: The World Ends with You could be the last reaper’s game ever. It is a shame because this bold title has proven to be one of the best action RPGs that Square Enix has ever made and is highly recommended.
NEO: The World Ends With You can be described as a sequel that respects and surpasses the original in many ways. The new title simplifies and improves some aspects coming from its predecessor, but it also brings new systems and expands them incredibly to create its own identity. This is not a title I recommend only for those who loved the original, but also for any RPG fan due to the quality present in each of its aspects. I consider NEO to be one of the essential RPGs in the PS4 library and I can only hope that we'll see more titles from this excellent series soon.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Neo: The World Ends with You is the sequel that fans have been awaiting. Despite the move to 3D it feels, looks, and sounds just like the original game. If anything, its flaws are almost the same, with a messy (but fun) combat system and an even messier plot. Despite those flaws, I enjoyed the game almost from start to finish. Newcomers should play the original first, but for those who've been waiting to see where the universe of The World Ends with You goes after the first game, Neo finally provides what you've been waiting for.
NEO: The World Ends With You is an excellent RPG that satisfies fans wanting more, or newcomers who want a unique experience from their games. However, there are some annoying points where it could worsen your experience.
NEO: The World Ends with You is everything a fan of the series could ever ask for in a sequel. It feels modern and contemporary without losing what made the original unique.
Neo: The World Ends With You exudes style and sophistication, its presentation is modern and its gameplay is gripping with a pace that never lets up. Elements of action, adventure, RPG, visual novel and puzzle genres collide with gusto to create an epic experience that will keep you hooked until the credits roll. If you like games with plenty of variety in their gameplay, or games that tell a compelling story, look no further; this is an outstanding RPG unlike any other.
2021 is quickly turning into an argument for the Switch being a top 3 RPG console ever, and we're only at the end of #JRPGJuly. NEO: The World Ends With You is living up to the hype I was feeling when it was announced and then some as it took everything I already loved about the original and made it work on a single screen in the modern day. Don't miss it.
NEO: The World Ends with You is a good RPG in its own right, but it does not live up to its predecessor's legacy. Combat eventually opens up to become chaotically fun and the series' sense of style is as fresh as ever, but the story leaves a lot to be desired. Beyond spotty pacing at times, the script lacks the strong character focus that defined the original. There's too much focus on world building and epic plotting instead of the intimacy that made TWEWY compelling to begin with. The fact that Final Remix's A New Day epilogue plays such a foundational role in the narrative doesn't exactly help matters either. NEO: The World Ends with You has a frantic battle system that only gets better, but the story is sure to disappoint.
NEO: The World Ends With You is Square Enix's bid to revive a game that achieved cult status. Unfortunately, this sequel does not dare to take risks and, consequently, it is not very endearing. With a slow start, after so much pressing buttons you will question whether to continue the adventure, fortunately, the pace of the game improves over time and the charisma of its characters will make you continue to the end.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
There are enough changes and improvements to make this a worthy, modern follow up to an overlooked classic. A bustling world with great and unique gameplay and surprisingly good writing and plot. The perfect sequel.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Everything else about NEO is sublime, though. Once the introductory ten hours are pushed through and the game starts proper, it’s an efficient burst of energy and excitement, with one of the best soundtracks you’ll ever find in a game, one of the most explosive, dynamic combat systems you’ve played in a JRPG, and a colourful, energetic, and exciting celebration of Japanese youth culture and Shibuya itself. No doubt this will be the final roll of the dice for TWEWY as a franchise, and hopefully, it has done enough here to graduate from cult status.