Extra - Review

This is my somewhat objective review on Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories. Can't say any of you will agree with me, but you're not the one running this website.

Story and Plot

Okay, so Disgaea isn't exactly Shakespeare or Xenosaga (nor does it have nearly as many plot holes, lol), but the second game is a tremendous change in direction from the first in terms of storytelling and characterization. To emphasize this, it takes place in a completely different world, the character designs are noticeably different (they're more adult-humanoid and Rozalin has some huge boobs), and there's an actual goal for the characters from the very start.

Characterization is similar to the characterization presented in the first game, but an improvement in my opinion. Instead of Laharl learning the values of love, it is Rozalin who learns the value of friendship while fighting her preincarnation's scars of rejection and the web of lies she was raised in. Several of the characters are unique in this colorful cast, and the addition of Etna was a wise choice by the developers.

All in all, the characters and story are above and beyond for a "typical" strategy RPG where the emphasis is on gameplay.

Gameplay and Graphics

Gameplay is similar to the first game with much touching up. And that's a good thing, becuase there was not much wrong with the original battle system in the first place. Thankfully, Nippon-Ichi decided to return to the square tiles after their experiments with the free-ranged approach in Phantom Brave, which was a very wise decision.

All of the extra stuff is awesome, too. The Dark Court, the Lover bonuses, the Item World expansions... they really did turn a great thing into something greater. Of course, none of these extra things are needed to be exploited to play through the game (except one point where you need to get a felony to proceed). However, they do add another thing for powerlevellers to do.

The artwork is once again done by Takehito Harada, and some guest graphics were done by toi8 and some other dude. The graphics are really pretty! 2D sprites on a 3D background = WIN in my book. The artwork presented throughout the game by the next episode previews or the character portraits are all wonderful. There is nothing to complain about, and on top of all that there's an absolutely delicious anime-style opening sequence!

Sound and Music

Tenpei Sato has outdone himself again. With a few familiar tunes being remixed and a few new tunes added in, along with a slew of new vocal tracks, Disgaea 2 has a lively soundtrack that definitely stands out from the crowd.

Also, I believe the dubbed voices have been, for the most part, an improvement over the Japanese voices. I simply cannot see the "acting" in the Japanese voice acting; for me, it was the English voice actors who brought the characters and story alive for me. On that, I must congratulate NIS America on their localization.

Overall

Overall, this game is awesome. If you don't play it, you're a eunuch loser. Of course, you may as well also enjoy the tactical aspect of the game; that's bascally what it's all about. Powerlevelling to your heart's content so you can dish out major damage is the key to joy in this game.