I like Disgaea and the brand new title Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless. It’s a singular sequence, to say the least; mixing tactical SRPG parts with a comedic storyline and a few arguably ridiculous mechanics. In what different SRPG are you able to throw your allies throughout the battlefield or slap your enemies with a pile of your mates? Sadly, the sequence has had a tricky time of it just lately with the latest entry, Disgaea 6, prioritising 3D visuals however shedding a few of the distinctive sense of favor and selection the sequence is understood for. The preliminary launch on Swap had a bevvy of efficiency points in addition, and while the releases on different consoles mitigated this considerably, the sport as a complete by no means actually felt completed.
With Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless, Nippon Ichi appears to have gone again to its roots and recognised what made the sequence so beloved within the first place.
Like each earlier entry, Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless takes place within the Netherworlds; basically a multiversal illustration of parallel hells populated by quite a lot of demons, devils and souls. In earlier video games, they have been proven to all have their very own equal of the satan; an Overlord, however 7 appears to streamline the lore slightly for the advantage of new gamers. On this sport, you’re offered (at the least initially) with a single demonic realm – Hinomoto – with a higher emphasis on Japanese theology and themes than what we’ve seen to date.
Somewhat than having merely an Overlord, Hinomoto is dominated by a bunch of demonic magistrates who’re suppressing the cluster’s beforehand honourable “Bushido” status. The plot follows Fuji; a lone warrior with a mysterious previous, and his benefactor Pirika; a lover of all issues Hinomoto and a profitable businesswoman – as they seek for the ability to overthrow the oppressive magistrates and restore the Bushido code.
After the ridiculousness of D6’s tremendous reincarnation storyline, it’s good to have a extra grounded-feeling plot which follows the sequence’ traditions. Fuji, Pirika and the remainder of the supporting forged really feel fully at residence on this new world, and the Japanese inspirations refresh the Netherworlds simply sufficient that it appears like a breath of contemporary air. While I’d argue that D5’s plot was higher general, it’s a enjoyable romp which underlays the meat of the expertise – the satisfying SRPG fight – with panache.
The sport performs as a sequence of turn-based battles in an isometric world, with gamers ready to make use of as much as ten models per battle. While D6 simplified these battles, Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless takes the standard of life updates; autobattle included, while bringing again the deep degree of character customisation and talent utilization the sequence is understood for. It flows so a lot better in Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless, with enemy selection a lot improved over the earlier entry and environments feeling extra diverse and attention-grabbing than ever earlier than. As at all times, you are taking turns transferring your models, partaking assaults and utilizing a combination of single-target and AoE abilities, however there feels to be much less wasted time and busywork right here and that’s at all times appreciated.
As soon as once more, you might have various distinctive and recruitable models to come across which may be levelled and improved nearly infinitely. A widely-held criticism of D6 was the dearth of character courses which then translated to a lesser degree of customisation in your squad. Fortunately many lacking character varieties are again, as is the break up between monster and humanoid models. While you might argue that lots of them are merely gender-swaps of different courses, it’s good to have a bunch of customisation again and with it the flexibility to actually select the paths of your models. Including to that is the return of weapon abilities, which once more provides to the potential versatility on supply.
One other subject with D6 was the over-inflation of the sport’s stats. Disgaea is beloved by many for the straightforward reality you may degree your models nearly infinitely, maxing stats by way of reincarnation and turning your squad into your individual private powerhouse military. Sadly, D6 took the ridiculous heights of D5 – max degree of 9999 and stats within the tens of millions – and escalated issues over that within the first few hours.
Taking the extent cap to 99,999,999 and stat values to the billions was a step too far and made development really feel much less satisfying consequently. Objects nearly felt nugatory compared to a unit’s base stats, as a single level-up dwarfed any merchandise profit. Fortunately, Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless has returned to an affordable degree of silliness. You may nonetheless find yourself with stats within the tens of millions, however the identical is true for objects they usually’ve rebalanced these parts for a extra satisfying development curve.
A few of the options you’d hope for have additionally returned. The Merchandise World has been rejigged and now has a smaller variety of ranges per run, however in doing so that they’ve opened up the doorways for merchandise reincarnation and merchandise evolution feels extra significant because of it. They’ve additionally introduced within the capacity to ship Prinny squads into the merchandise world to grind for you and a model new mechanic – Jumbification. It’s clearly a little bit of a gimmick, however I like the flexibility to unleash a kaiju-sized aoe assault each every now and then.
There’s additionally hell mode, which is basically a brief increase state for sure characters; which once more is a pleasant change. I additionally just like the dimension sightseeing characteristic, which provides you entry to every Netherworld after you’ve completed the chapter and presents secret objects, optionally available battles and minigames to take pleasure in. Lacking nonetheless are Magichange, chara world and tower abilities, however Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless appears like such an enchancment from the earlier sport that I can forgive these omissions. I simply hope they return within the inevitable sequel.
Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless Trailer
Lastly, we’ve the visuals and audio to think about. Like D6, Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless is in 3D, however they’ve lastly discovered the proper midpoint between the high-quality pixel visuals of the sooner sequence and the 3D fashion they clearly needed to implement. Fortunately, the attraction is again in spades and it appears like a visible return to kind on so many ranges. Efficiency can also be a lot improved on Swap, although there may be the occasional dip in FPS throughout sure talent animations. The music and VA is strong although, with some splendidly composed eastern-inspired tracks to enrich the number of worlds you’ll go to.
Total, I’ve only a few complaints about Disgaea 7 Vows of the Virtueless. It actually appears like a return to kind after the disappointing D6, bringing again numerous character courses, beefing up the fight complexity and restoring steadiness to the general gameplay. While the plot isn’t as revolutionary nor the expertise fairly as full as that seen in Disgaea 5, it is a solidly fulfilling entry within the long-running sequence and one I can simply advocate to newcomers and veterans alike.
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