I was extremely excited for the release of Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos on Steam. It meant that Idea Factory International was finally working on bringing their games back to Steam, especially after Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution skipped the platform. While I still hope it appears on Steam in some capacity, knowing that Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is now available, and that Touhou Spell Carnival is on the way too, gives me some optimism.
I got access to the game and immediately gave it a try. I first tested it on Steam Deck to see how well it performs. On the Steam Deck, it maintained a consistent 60 FPS. Controlling the bike felt snappy and even better than it does on the PS5 version.
In my opinion, Steam Deck is the best place to play this game. I then tested it on Windows and encountered a strange issue. The game did not read my save data from the Steam Deck, despite Steam Cloud being enabled. Even stranger, I could not save the game at all on my Windows PC. I tested it on my ROG Ally as well, and the result was the same. The save file was missing, and I still could not save my progress.
I replayed the tutorial at least a dozen times, trying different troubleshooting steps. I attempted to save and then close the game, turned off Steam Cloud syncing, and even tried manually migrating the save file.
My current Steam Deck is the OLED model with a 90 Hz screen, and Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos often runs at up to 90 FPS. If you’re wondering whether you should play this on a Steam Deck, I highly recommend it. It runs well and feels great to play in handheld mode.
Now let’s talk about the PC port of Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos running on a full desktop setup. I’ve experienced a few strange issues, so please don’t take my anecdotal experience as universal. I noticed occasional stuttering when playing on my 1440p monitor. After some digging, I found that the problem wasn’t the game itself but rather Windows. Once I turned off the Windows taskbar, all the in-game stuttering disappeared.
However, my main gripe with the PC version of Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is something I often encounter in AA titles: the settings menu. It leaves a lot to be desired and feels like an afterthought.
You can change the resolution, text language, voice language, and even the button icons. These are all great settings to have access to. However, my main issue lies with the things you cannot control in-game, such as FPS caps, graphics quality, and even the model and texture settings. None of these are adjustable from within the game itself. Most of it relies on your system’s automatic configuration.
How do I know this? If I switch monitors, the FPS changes. I wish I could manage that directly in-game instead of having to tweak things in the Windows settings.
I prefer having full control over all aspects of a game’s settings. This ties into a broader issue with modern titles and their use of newer technology. More and more games automatically optimize settings behind the scenes, often without explaining what they’re doing or giving players the choice to adjust things themselves.
To show an example of what I’d like to see more AA games adopt, here is the settings menu from Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero.
In a similar situation where a console game gets a Steam port later on, I really appreciate when I’m given control over the experience. Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a great example. It allows me to adjust settings like FPS limits, water reflections, anti-aliasing, and more.
For car enthusiasts, it’s like the difference between driving a manual and an automatic. Those who are really into cars prefer manual transmissions for the added control, being able to shift gears and manage RPMs exactly how they want. Casual drivers tend to go with automatics because they don’t think about optimizing their experience.
I’ve been deep into PC gaming for a long time, and I genuinely enjoy tweaking settings. I like being able to toggle features on and off, and I love seeing how different configurations affect the way a game looks and performs.
Overall, I do think the Steam version of Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is the best version of the game. It clears the Nintendo Switch version, and it controls better than the PS5 version, making it the definitive version to buy. Luckily, you can still get the Magazine edition, which is the best version to get for the posters and the magazine. As I noted in my review of the main game, it isn’t worth it just for the game. It takes about two to three hours to finish the game. Wait for a sale if you want only the game.
Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos is available for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Steam, and Nintendo Switch. You can get the Magazine Edition on the Idea Factory International website.
