The Disgaea series has been alive and kicking ever since its first appearance on the Playstation 2 as well as the PSP. Afterwards, the titles have been showing up in many of Sony’s game consoles. But now there is a slight twist as the first Disgaea game has made its way to the PC (via steam) in early 2016. I managed to get a hold of this title and I am excited in sharing with you my opinions of this PC port.
Disgaea PC takes place in the Netherworld where you take control of the character named Prince Laharl along with his group of mischievous penguins. After your main character wakes up from a two-year nap, he sadly discovers that his father has passed away and that other demons are coming in to take over his crown. In response to this situation, Price Laharl takes on these opposing demons in an effort to become the Overlord of his kingdom.
It should be noted that quite the improvements have been made on Disgaea PC for the most part. The user menus and map designs look graphically better and clearer. In addition, there is an option where you can blur out the edges that can be seen on the textures of the characters in order to kind of eliminate the pixelated look. Even so, the visual setbacks inherent in the original PS2 version can be seen here in the PC. The audio on the other hand has held up quite effectively. You get the original voice acting and music that manages to keep things lively and interesting.
If you played other titles of the Japanese strategic RPG genre, then the controls for Disgaea PC should be familiar. Essentially, you’ll be selecting your character, choosing the spot where you want to move to, and finally choosing an action you want to execute. While you can use the mouse for this game, I would still recommend using a controller as configuration is fit by default for this type.
Jumping into the gameplay, you’ll engage in plenty of battles which happen to take place within a given area. In each stage, you have a group of ten characters that you will make use of in attacking your opponents. Where Disgaea PC differs from titles of this strategy RPG genre is that you can establish combo attacks as your surround your enemies. As you progress further in the game, you’ll want to do some recruiting via the Dark Assembly. In this case, you will get the opportunity to get archers, healers, and other types of fighters to join you by spending the mana you earned
throughout your journey.
I must share that there were moments where I witnessed some drops in frame rate as well as bugs in terms of movement and gameplay. This may be limited to my PC experience. Nonetheless, I shall indicate that your experience may vary based on your PC hardware. One thing to point out is that the PC steam version of Disgaea has included the content found in the PSP version of Afternoon of Darkness. This is a welcomed addition as it comes with the hidden Etna mode where you have Etna killing Prince Laharl, in which case she takes over.
In retrospect, Disgaea PC does bring back the nostalgic factor that brings about its charm. It may not be the most perfect port but it does have a place in gamers’ hearts who are fans of the series. As such, if you are looking to replay a classic title with some slight improvements here and there, then Disgaea PC may be worth considering.
