Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness
2006
- role-playing (rpg)
- strategy
- turn-based strategy (tbs)
- tactical
- action
- fantasy
- comedy
- single player
The story
Disgaea is a tactical role playing game. Battle gameplay takes place on a map divided into a square grid. The player controls a squad of humanoid units and monsters, which each occupy a single square of the grid and do combat with a group of enemies. Depending on the character and attack selected, the player will be able to deal damage to a specific enemy unit or a designated region of the map. Combat ends when all enemy units or all of the player's units are destroyed. Humanoid characters may lift and throw other units across the map in order to allow allies to move further or force enemies to keep their distance. This even allows the player to capture enemies by throwing them into the base panel; these enemies then become allies, and can be used on subsequent maps. The chance of capturing an enemy in this manner depends on several factors. Failure to capture the enemy will result in the death of all characters inside the base panel, and the enemy will survive.
What it’s like
Bright, saturated anime sprites on a chunky isometric grid, with a palette that leans hard into pinks, purples and infernal reds against pale stone and gaudy magic effects. The Netherworld settings feel like a candy-coloured underworld: floating platforms, ornate demon castles, dark skies lit by spell flashes. Presentation is cheerful and cartoonish, with bouncing character portraits, exaggerated hit animations and a bustling J-pop-leaning orchestral score that loops with a mischievous, march-like pulse. Its vibe is brisk, silly and warmly chaotic, and it suits a long evening on the couch or a handheld session on a train, where a few quick battles fit between stops. Pacing is methodical within each map, with turns that tick along at a satisfying clip, while the story moves in goofy, deadpan episodes around a spoiled demon prince and his unruly underlings. Violence is cartoonish and bloodless, with monsters exploding into sparkles and puns flying during fights; it is mild, with no gore and no sexual content. It is for strategy players who enjoy grid-based puzzles and tactical depth, and for anyone who wants a playful, irreverent escape rather than something tense or grim.
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