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Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention games reviews
* Format: PlayStation Vita (version reviewed), PS3 * Unleashed: Out Now
* Publisher: Reef Entertainment * Developer: Nippon Ichi Software, Inc * Players: 1
* Site:
http://disgaea.us/dis3vita/
impressive. When it comes to your turn the game gives you a grid to show you where your heroes are able to move. Once you have finalised the movement and attacks of your characters, you end your turn and see what damage you have done to the enemy monsters. It is then their turn to inflict pain onto your roster of characters.
The plot of Disgaea 3 involves Mao, the top student at Netherworld’s Evil Academy, whose dad (the Overlord of the Netherworld) accidentally stands on his SlayStation Portable; losing mil- lions of hours worth of game saves (we’ve all been there). Mao decides that he needs to take down his father and become a hero. This will be dif- ficult seeing as he has an evil quotient of 1.8 million. The script is very funny throughout, with small penguin-like characters calling you ‘dood’ and an equally impressive and memorable cast of teachers and fellow students. The gameplay involves tactical turn- based combat, played out in an iso- metric viewpoint. The characters and objects in the world are simple sprites and you can rotate the viewpoint at any time to see where your characters are positioned, although it can still be quite difficult to see what is going on. If there are too many characters in the same area, the camera angle makes planning your attacks difficult at times. The graphics are more functional than outstanding, although the anime style cut scenes between battles are quite
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As you upgrade your squad you gain more gloriously over the top super moves which can involve multiple characters joining forces to kick your foe up into a hilarious maelstrom of pain. Along with the grid based com- bat there is also the addition of Geo Blocks, which are differently coloured blocks that can be used in combination with Geo Panels, which alter the stats of whoever stands on them. The Geo Blocks can be stacked onto one an- other, or can even be destroyed, so you have to utilise them as best you can as your enemy can also use them to their advantage. Each item in the game contains a randomly generated world which you can dive into to gather extra experience points and to upgrade your items. This is a great way to grind your character through the levels. There is also a homeroom, which is a class- room that you can use to help boost team attacks by placing characters next to each other in the seats of the classroom to maximise effectiveness. If you’ve never played a Disgaea game before you may well initially be a bit lost with all the different areas of
combat, and the menu system can be quite bewildering to first time players. However the basics are pretty easy to pick up thanks to the opening tu- torials which allow you to acclimatise before you gain the courage neces- sary to explore some of the game’s more obscure intricacies. With the game originally coming out on the PS3 in 2008, obviously the graphics are rather dated, and if you were looking to showcase the almost PS3 power of the Vita, then this isn’t a title that will turn heads. Nippon Ichi have added touch screen controls to this Vita remix, but they don’t really add anything signifi- cant to the game. Also we must say that the price is a bit steep at £35-£40 for what is essentially a four year old game, even though all the DLC from the PS3 version is included, and the game has additional story quests and bosses to fight. If you manage to get to grips with the tactical nuances of the game, then there is a lot of fun to be had here. It might be hard for casual or new play- ers to get to grips with, but when they do, this game does enough to warrant dusting down their neglected portable for some truly crazy over the top strategy role- playing.
written by Critical Gamer’s Kevin McCubbin
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