Publisher: NIS America
Developer: Nippon Ichi Software
Release: June 29th, 2021
Reviewed on: Nintendo Switch
Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny is probably one of the most, if not the most, anticipated games released this year by NIS. And for good reason, the series is a staple for NIS and introduced us to their mascot, the Prinnies. While previous entries have always done well, Disgaea 6 really has outshined them all. It takes the basics from the previous entries and builds upon those in Disgaea 6, my new favorite entry in the series.
The thing that I feel makes this the best in the series is the story. While the other games were interesting enough, this game revolves around the story of a zombie named Zed and his quest to vanquish the God of Destruction. Of course, he has a reason to embark on this quest, which you’ll find out as you play through the game, but the story itself really drew me into this Disgaea more than previous entries. You still have the off the wall humor, but this story feels like it has more heart than previous games.
The voice acting is well done and adds to the story by giving it more dimension. Another unsung feature in the game is the music. The music in your home base is in this jazz/lounge singer style, and I was blown away the first time I heard it. Contrast that with the songs that are playing during battle. If you are in a boss battle, the music becomes very dramatic. If I had one complaint it’s that the music can be a bit louder than the voice acting. It’s a minor sound mixing problem.
If you have played previous Disgaea titles, then you understand how the battle system works. The game is a strategy RPG and there is a lot to think about when setting up your characters to do battle. One of the fun features returning to the game is the team battle aspect. As you set up your characters, you can have them surround the enemy with each of them attacking separately, but when you execute the attacks, you deal team damage. You can also set up your characters side by side, so that when one attacks, all the characters in range will deal a combined amount of damage. The team cutscenes and special attacks also give off an anime vibe.
Leveling up your character is done through your main base, the Netherworld. Here you can buy new equipment for your characters, level up your skills at the skill shop, and earn prizes at the hospital. You even have an option to go to a cheat shop and change the settings in the game to make your experience easier or more difficult.
One of the more interesting features in the game is super reincarnation. When you start over, all the mana you collected is cleared out and you start over at level one. However, you get to keep your base stats and you’ll earn karma points based on the level you were at when you reincarnated. Karma points are used to obtain different capabilities, so while it seems counterintuitive to start your level over,it’s a great way to level up your character in the long run.
Super reincarnation can be done through the dark assembly, but that’s not the only thing you can do at the dark assembly. It also allows you to do several different things through proposing bills: create new characters, delete characters, get new items at the store...the list goes on. And as you continue to play through the game the number of “bills” you can propose increases. Each bill that you propose to the dark assembly does cost mana, the more extravagant the request the more mana it will cost. For instance, creating a bill for triple experience will cost you a whopping five thousand mana points. Spending the mana points only calls the assembly together, you still need to make sure you secure the votes and this is where you can bribe the different senators. Each senator will have things that they like and you can try to bribe the senators by giving them the items that they prefer. This is a totally optional feature, but it adds a different flare to the game.
Final Grade: A
If this is the swan song of the Disgaea series it has gone out on a high note. The basics of what fans enjoy about the game is still intact, from the strategy aspects of attacking your opponents, to the uber amount of damage and absurd character levels you can reach. On top of all that the game’s story is the best in the series and the amount of effort gone into making the experience a memorable one can certainly be seen on full display. Between the anime look, the music, and the quirky but loveable characters, fans of the Disgaea series will be pleased with this entry. Even if you never played a Disgaea game before, Disgaea 6 is a perfect entry level game.