Disgaea 6 Complete

Developer: Nippon Ichi Software
Publisher: NIS America
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 (Reviewed), PC
Release Date: Available Now
Price: $69.99 USD – Available Here $99.95 AUD – Available Here

Overview

Over the years Nippon Ichi Software has taken their signature Disgaea franchise and updated past games for release on more current consoles with nearly every title being given some form of update or enhancement to the original experience. That being said, it came as something of a surprise when it was announced that Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny, released exclusively on the Switch last year, would be getting a “Complete” release a year after release. To make things a bit stranger, it would finally bring the title to PlayStation platforms after previously keeping the PlayStation 4 version of the game exclusive to Japan. So now that Disgaea 6 Complete has arrived, does it offer an enhanced enough experience to give another look?

Story

With the release of Disgaea 6 Complete Nippon Ichi Software has bundled all of the original DLC that was previously released for the game and while it may not offer much in the way of actual story content, it does include a number of returning fan favorite characters from past Disgaea games and even a few signature characters. Each of these characters offers a short but entertaining interaction between the character and Zed before being recruited into the party. Unfortunately outside of the addition to the DLC party members, the story remains untouched compared to the original release. This isn’t a bad thing of course as the original game still features all of the signature elements fans of the franchise have come to expect.

The appearance of an unbeatable God of Destruction has thrown the Netherrealms into chaos as no one has managed to stand up to the being and lived to tell the tale, let alone put a scratch on it. As such an emergency meeting of Overlords and other powerful beings is held in an attempt to find a way to defeat the creature and save the land. This meeting is suddenly interrupted when the main character, a zombie named Zed, breaks into the meeting after beating down every guard in his path and announces that he has already defeated the God of Destruction.

While no one believes him, Zed begins to tell his tale of victory through failure as his special ability, Super Reincarnation, allows Zed and his allies to reincarnate into a different world every time they are slain in combat, meaning that not only is it possible for Zed to grow infinitely stronger, but he will never stop even when killed over and over again. The strongest element of Disgaea 6: Complete’s storyline is the way that players never quite know who or what they will encounter next as Zed’s reincarnation ability means players will meet a large number of different allies, all of which have their own motivations for trying to fight and are just as ridiculous and humorous as one would expect from a Disgaea game.

That being said, it is only the side-characters and their growth that actually shine as part of the best parts of the story. Zed’s personality and actions can quickly grow stale, though if you like undead puns then there are plenty to be had at his expense. It is also worth noting that, since the story is built around Zed and crew dying, players should expect the standard win in battle and die in cutscenes to happen over and over again to the point that, while initially funny, becomes a bit old and lacking variety after some time. Things do start to pick up relatively quickly however, so the many side characters, especially the undead dog Cerberus, help keep the story from falling too flat as players make their way through the game and its occasional low spots.

Gameplay

For the most part Disgaea 6 Complete plays the same as most remember as this SRPG features turn based combat that takes place on a grid-based map with the goal being to defeat their foes using basic attacks, skills with various attack ranges that can potentially hit allies as well, throwing enemies and allies, and of course the ever constant Geo Blocks that can add buffs or hazards to parts of the grid depending on the ground color. Attacking enemies from the side or back can deal extra damage and having allies nearby to execute a “team attack” that boosts the damage dealt from any attack rewards careful team placement but it is also worth noting that this game takes things to the extreme almost immediately right from the get go.

While the Disgaea series has always been known for its large damage numbers and character levels, players will quickly find themselves exceeding level 1000 within a couple hours of playing and dealing damage in the millions just a bit beyond that. This is partially thanks to the fact that players can now also choose to Super Reincarnate any unit at will, returning them to level 1 and gaining Karma that can then be used to boost their base stats, allowing units to grow at an incredible rate even without the other mechanics available. Couple this with the Juice Bar, which uses Mana and money called HL to raise levels, weapon mastery, class proficiency, and of course the return of Evilities, the Item World, and even a Cheat Shop that allows players to boost certain earned rewards at the cost of others, and players will find that they are given a wealth of powerful growth options far earlier than any other entry in the series.

This massive level of power boosts right at the start is introduced simply enough through a rather extensive tutorial that eases newcomers into the game and can thankfully be skipped by longtime fans but longtime fans will also notice that their customization is also far more limited than before. A significant number of basic classes found in previous Disgaea games have been removed entirely from Disgaea 6 and even the monster classes have been given a large reduction in number with many classic staple monsters being removed, though some new ones have been added as a result. That being said, the monster classes now simply act the same way as any normal humanoid class and no longer have a special mechanic tied to them in any way, further reducing the amount of options players have access to with even weapon skills being removed.

Perhaps the most interesting and also brand new feature for a Disgaea game is the auto-battle system and Devil Intelligence mechanic. While these games have always featured some level of grind, players can now choose to auto-battle almost any stage that they wish and even repeat auto-battles ad nauseum in an effort to level up, gain Evilities, complete quests, and earn D-Merits. Although a few basic auto-battle systems are available players can go rather in-depth by heavily modifying their units’ AI through Demonic Intelligence to perform certain actions, skills, and movement depending on a variety of conditions to make sure an auto battle runs as smooth as possible. That being said, the fact that the game so heavily focuses on using this auto mechanic is a drawback in itself as players are heavily encouraged on multiple occasions to simply run things automatically rather than learn the game itself, something that is a rather shocking change to the genre and a step in the wrong direction.

For those who have already played the original release, Disgaea 6 Complete plays the exact same game with the only added content being the aforementioned DLC being bundled in. This includes a number of powerful items and boosts that can help players get stronger far faster than before but don’t really break the game any more than players already could. It is nice to note that while the content is mostly the same, the gameplay itself is incredibly smooth and faster loading than ever, especially compared to the Switch release.

Visuals & Audio

Back when Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny was revealed it surprised many longtime fans as it moved away from the previous sprite based character models and shifted to 3D ones instead. For the Switch release this worked alright as most of the models still looked fine and saw some outlandish looking unique skill animations despite the removal of so many previous classes but things were still rough around the edges due to the limitations of the platform as quality options either forced the game to suffer from slowdown and longer load times or dropped the graphics significantly. Now with Disgaea 6 Complete the company has still provided quality options but thanks to the PlayStation 5’s capabilities these issues are no longer a problem even when focusing on graphics over performance.

The soundtrack for the game features some great pieces of music, including a stellar sounding base theme and a number of solid battle tracks. Unfortunately, despite the fact that this is a “complete” version of the game the company has neglected to create an animated opening sequence that has been a longstanding element in the Disgaea series despite having the time to do so. It is also nice to note that players will have the option to select between the original Japanese voice actors and NIS America’s English dub. The English voice actors have done a solid role here as every major scene is voiced by the cast and even the special moves are translated and voiced properly.

Overall

Disgaea 6 Complete finds itself in a bit of a strange place compared to previous enhanced or complete versions of past Disgaea titles. Arriving a little over a year after the original release this version of the game is easily the best way to experience what Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny has to offer between improved load times and graphic quality, smooth gameplay, and of course the included DLC but it really doesn’t change anything else about the original game. This means that the various underlying issues remain the same and while those who waited for a port of the game will find plenty to enjoy, those who have already played the previous Switch exclusive may find this Complete release a bit lacking.

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