Max completes his Force military training and returns to his village to meet his family and to find news of his missing brother. Later, the village is attacked by monsters later suspected as remnants of the Legion as well as the appearance of a mysterious figure that seems to know of his brother. This reasons compel Max to seek out the Legion threat, hoping in the process to also find his missing brother.

Shining Force: Neo is a third-person perspective "hack-and-slash" RPG. The player controls Max as the main character and has a maximum of two companions (out of eleven available) in the party to help him in his mission. Max and his group eventually develop "Force" abilities, enabling RPG character development into either a Fighter or Mage type character. Items (weapons, armor, etc.) can also be customized (Force Arts). The players will also be able to teleport from certain areas to their HQ in the beginning town later in the game.