Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice

Okay, so stop me if you've heard this one before: the young and arrogant Prince of the Netherworld is on a quest to make a name for himself and claim the title of Overlord from his father by any means necessary. Sound familiar?

If you're a fan of the series, it's obvious that Disgaea 3's plot isn't anything that hasn't been offered up by the franchise in previous installments, but the title manages to save itself from becoming a simple rehash of the original through Nippon Ichi's trademark charm and originality, not to mention a slew of new and innovative features both on and off of the battlefield.

The third installation in the popular turn-based franchise follows cocky young demon Mao, heir to the Netherworld throne and number one honor student at the devilish Evil Academy - an institute where ditching class and failing tests is rewarded, and only the very worst delinquents show up to school on time or even *gasp* perform chores and extra credit! It's this type of quirky, tongue-in-cheek atmosphere that acts as one of Disgaea 3's biggest draws, as the game offers up an interesting tale cast with hilarious yet endearing characters painted with Nippon Ichi's trademark charm and personality.

Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice

The first thing anyone's bound to notice about Disgaea 3 is its striking visual resemblance it's successors as, quite honestly, it looks almost exactly the same as it's PS2 brethren. There are some beautiful new animations and quirky new character sprites both in and out of battle, but I remember being pretty taken aback when I found out that this was a Playstation 3 title. Thankfully, the Disgaea franchise has never been reliant on its graphical prowess, and in quite a few instances the dated visuals work in the game's favor by offering familiar, friendly environments full of life that never have to worry about slow-down - even when you've just pulled off the most ridiculous Ultimate Attack imaginable.

Now, to what Disgaea is really about: the battles! Disgaea 3's turn-based combat proves as addictive and fresh as ever through a mixture of both old and new gaming mechanics. Disgaea 3 keeps the franchises' trademark randomly-generated battlefields, all the while adding new features such as the Geo-Block system and destructible environments. If you've played any of the previous Disgaea titles, you'll feel right at home in the midst of battle. The game's interface is also a treat, making level-grinding less of an issue through some of the game's newer offerings, such as a greatly improved interface or the opportunity to earn new special attacks and evil abilities (or as they're constantly referred to, "Evilities") off the battlefield by simply purchasing and assigning attacks, spells and skills to your units.

In conclusion, there are only a few things that I can definitively say: if you've never played a Disgaea title before, then head out and grab Disgaea 3. For veterans of the series... yeah, it's more of the same, but with this franchise, when has that ever been a bad thing? Disgaea 3 still manages to carry itself with enough charm and self-referential humor to make it stand out in a wave of "next-gen" role playing games and turn based strategy titles, and is definitely worth a look from hardcore Overlords to fledgling demon wannabes.

Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice

PROS: Hilarious writing, addictive gameplay
CONS: Dated visuals, level grinding gets old

Comments [13]

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mg_sly

First?! Anyway i love the game and the review pretty much nails it. Seriously, if there is one disgaea to try, it's this one.

mg_sly

Why is the red power ranger there?

its the prism ranger. one of the many pop culture references the disgaea series makes

RoadHeadSelf

I have no problem with the graphic but they do seem a bit dated. There has to be some way they can take that old look and make it new.

carlhawkproskater

i dont like the new gamepro site with the new review system... but disgaea is still very awesome.

hiphophippy27

Has been getting some relatively positive reviews. Nice might look into getting this.

ceedubya9

Game is definitely good if you like strategy RPGs. You'll get plenty of hours from it if you can deal with the level grinding that comes with it. Besides that, this game could just as easily been 10 dollars cheaper and on the PSP.

I can look past the graphics overall, but the blurry character sprites are just unnacceptable.

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