December 24th 2023.
I've been a fan of Disgaea for years, so when Disgaea 7 was released I was stoked. Unfortunately, my excitement was quickly dampened when I realized that the game wasn't much of a departure from the norm. As a series of strategy role-playing games, Disgaea provides an abundance of grinding levels that can keep a nerd like me occupied for hours. But for the past 20 years, the series hasn't seen much progression beyond grinding levels, tinkering with your squad, and a few other core mechanics.
The value of the game is undeniable, and there's enough content to keep you busy for weeks. But the lack of progress and innovation in the series is starting to become frustrating. The characters I've grown to love haven't seen much development either. Adell and Rozalin were an official couple at the end of the second game, yet according to the ongoing lore, they still live with Adell's family in a tiny house. Even though Rozalin could be a queen, some throwaway line in the Disgaea 6 DLC says that the palace makes her feel uneasy.
The last major innovation in the series was the ability for humanoid characters to use monster class characters as weapons. That was great, but it didn't really add much to the gameplay loop. Disgaea 7's big innovation was the ability for allies and enemies to become super-sized, like kaiju-size. Again, it was a cool feature, but it didn't really do anything to vary the gameplay.
The Item World is another area that could use some improvement. Currently, it's not very exciting to traverse. I'd like to see bigger and more diverse floors, with buildings to explore, environmental puzzles, and inhabitants to converse with and do quests for. It would also be nice to see the Item World reflect the item you're in. For example, if you're in a sword item, it should be full of sword castles.
With some imagination and ambition, Disgaea could become a much more sophisticated and enjoyable game. There's no need for Baldur's Gate 3 budgets or development times. All it takes is some clever ideas. And, if done right, I think it would be well worth the effort.
After spending two decades exploring the beloved Disgaea series, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not necessarily a bad thing that there hasn’t been much progress, mechanically or in the story. With each entry, there’s a wide variety of activities and characters to explore, which more than makes up for its lack of progression.
That being said, I can’t help but feel like the series could have been so much more. For instance, at the end of the second game, Adell and Rozalin become an official couple. Yet, according to ongoing lore, they still live with Adell’s family in a tiny house. This makes no sense; Rozalin could have been a queen, and yet she’s subjected to this archaic living arrangement. Plus, she’s the inheritor of a vast fortune and resources, so why isn’t she using them?
The fifth game is also a prequel to the first game, so all the DLC characters are anachronistic. We don’t see the growth of old favorites, which is a major flaw. Similarly, Flonne becomes an archangel in D2 and the change sticks in D4, but in the last two entries we see her in her fallen angel form from the first game. This is another anachronism, as other angel characters hint at a boss who loves superhero anime.
The last great innovation to the series was the ability for humanoid characters to use monster class characters as weapons. This was a welcome addition, but it didn’t add much to the gameplay loop. The same can be said for Disgaea 7’s big innovation, the ability for allies and enemies to become super-sized. This is cool, but it’s not enough to shake up the game.
The Item World, which has been around since at least Disgaea 4, is another area that could be improved. It’s not enough to have secret rooms with treasure chests and legendary items; there needs to be more diversity. Every item should have its own unique environment, full of puzzles, secrets, and inhabitants to interact with. This could be a great way to make the Item World genuinely fun to traverse.
Finally, I think more could be done with the characters. Disgaea 4 had different endings depending on certain conditions being met, but this was too weak and uninspired. The possibilities are endless here; more creativity and ambition is needed to make the game truly stand out.
That’s why I love Disgaea so much; there’s so much potential and I can’t wait to see what Nippon Ichi does with it next.
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