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Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness by Atlus
Product SummaryBrand: NIS America Release Date: 2007-10-30 Platform: Sony PSP Model: DG-00125-3 Publisher: Atlus Product features: - Completely remastered to take full advantage of the Sony PSP Portable
- All-New story focus means a new experience and all new ending
- Geo Cubes can turn a battle in a moment, use them well or have them used against you
- All-new multiplayer modes - Battle, Defeat the Leader & Capture the Flag
- Pick up and play wherever you go
Video Game Reviews of Disgaea: Afternoon of DarknessCustomer Review: The PS2 Classic Goes Portable Summary: 5 Stars
The Original Disgaea on the PS2 was a sleeper hit. Creeping into the gaming scene. Those who played it were blown away by it. Eventually word of mouth helped the game become incredibly popular. However, the original Cult Classic on the PS2 is hard to find. And when you do find it, it often comes at unreasonable prices. Luckily, if you're a PSP owner, you can play the original game in a whole new light. You are essentially getting the same game, only with several extras.
For those who never played the original, Disgaea centers on Laharl. The prince of darkness who has been asleep for some time. As Laharl and with a gaggle of allies, your job is to conquer the Netherworld. The adventure is full of a lot of fun. Some hilarious antics as well as a really likeable cast of characters. The release on the PSP is even better than the original, and it's easier to find.
Disgaea takes the simple formula of a strategy RPG and mixes in its own little quirks. Battling in Disgaea is quite simple. You send your units into battle and you move them into attack position and then you execute your strategy accordingly. Unlike many tactical RPGs, battles in Disgaea can go fast. The maps are also incredibly large. In battle characters can also use abilities. The more times you use an ability, the more abilities you gain. Another great part about battle is that if your characters are standing next to one another and attack the same enemy, they'll perform a duel attack. As battles progress you'll also fill up a battle gauge in the corner of the screen. The more you fill up the gauge the more bonuses you get at the end of the battle.
There are a couple of things about Disgaea's system that separate it from other strategy RPGs. Some of them bizarre, others not so much. First there's the Geo Panel system. On the maps you'll certain tiles that are a certain color. These are Geo Panels. There are also Geo Symbols which have certain effects. Placing Geo Symbols on a specific color will make that Geo Panel color correspond with the effect of the Geo Symbol. Therefore, if you place a Geo Symbol that increases a characters attack on a yellow Geo Panel, all yellow Geo Panels will have an attack up. However, you can also destroy Geo Symbols. This causes a chain reaction that either turns all Geo Panels into the same color as the one which the Geo Symbol you destroyed was placed on or causes the Geo Panel to be destroyed completely. Either way, it racks up bonuses for your battle gauge.
Disgaea has other things that make it stand out above the rest of the crowd. Particularly in its smaller elements. Using items, for example, may cause them to become something else. For exaample, after you use Mint Gum it becomes ABC Gum and can actually be used again. A Drink will become an Unopened drink. Just the same, there's almost no limit to character raising. As the game progresses you'll discover that your level can increase into the hundreds and keep going until you're literally in the thousands.
Even better for Disgaea is the senate of the Netherworld. Battling will net you Mana Points which you can use in the Senate to recruit characters (the more Mana you spend the better the character) and assign him a job. Just the same, however, the senate has power over certain aspects of the game such as what items are available in the shops and whatnot. You can appeal to the senate and they'll vote on certain issues. You won't always win, but you can persuade by force, meaning, battle members of the senate who do not side with you. It's kooky and weird, but it works. There are also exams the senate gives you which are battles Laharl must fight alone.
Lastly, there's the item world. Throughout the game you can go into certain items and venture ten floors in and fight a boss. Doing this power ups items. The item world is no joke, however, as it's incredibly hard to conquer. Disgaea itself is not the easiest game around. There are many moments of the game dedicated to simply raising characters.
In terms of what's new to the PSP version, there are plenty of new missions to take on as well a couple of new secrets. This is much more than just one or two missions. There are plenty of hidden missions exclusive to the PSP version. Also, there is now a completely new game mode players can undergo. Lastly, there's multiplayer where you can play against a friend. In other words, there's enough new content here to justify the game to be a buy even for those who played the original to death.
In terms of production values, Disgaea looks exactly as you expect a Strategy RPG to look. It's pretty cute looking with sprites, but it's very colorful and runs smoothly without any problems. It's perhaps one of the fastest loading PSP games out there. The dialog presented throughout the game is also funny. The music is pretty catchy as well. If there was anything wrong with Disgaea, it would be that the voice acting isn't up to par with the rest of the fantastic game. The characters don't sound bad, but the voice acting doesn't have much feeling or emotion to it. Many scenes through the game that were funny would've otherwise been all out hilarious had the voice work been better.
Despite the voice work, that's a small price to pay. The game is still better than the original PS2 version and has a ton of gameplay behind it. This is an RPG that will last you hundreds of hours. Disgaea is quite possibly the best Strategy RPG you can find on the PS2.
Description of Disgaea: Afternoon of DarknessA deep strategy RPG experience with an exceptional story, a fantastic script, and a host of loveable characters and settings. Upgraded graphics and art for the high resolution widescreen PSP Display. Geo Cubes add special effects in the battlefield, completely shifting the balance in the blink of an eye. The first time for multiplayer in the Disgaea series.
Sony PSP Games
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