Disgaea 2
Sequel to Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, released on DVD-ROM.
Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories is a tactical role-playing game from Nippon Ichi Software, released for the PlayStation 2. It follows 2003's Disgaea: Hour of Darkness and precedes Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice. Unlike earlier Nippon Ichi titles and the Japanese and European versions of the first Disgaea, this game came on a DVD-ROM and features an animated opening movie.
The game is split into 13 chapters, each starting with cut scenes that set up protagonist Adell's next objective. Players control Adell in his hometown of Holt, which serves as a hub for story maps, side quests, the dark council, and the item world. New areas unlock at the start of each chapter, each containing multiple maps that must be cleared to proceed. Players can revisit beaten maps through the gatekeeper. Some cut scenes, including those at chapter beginnings and endings, cannot be skipped.
Gameplay builds directly on the first Disgaea, with players commanding a party on a 3D isometric grid. The Item World mode returns, letting players enter any item in their inventory. Its levels are randomly generated, with enemy difficulty based on the item's rarity or power. Players descend by defeating all enemies or using exit portals. Guardians, special enemies, can be freed to grant stat bonuses to the item, and can later be moved between items freely. The deeper a player goes, the greater the stat increases.
Fifteen years before the story, the Overlord Zenon cursed the human population of Veldime, turning them into demons. Adell, the only human unaffected, seeks to break the curse by defeating Zenon. After his mother fails to summon Zenon, she instead summons Zenon's daughter, Rozalin. Adell and Rozalin then journey to find Zenon, return her to him, and defeat him to lift the curse.
The game received generally favorable reviews, with a Metacritic score of 84/100. It was named one of Gaming Target's "52 Games We'll Still Be Playing From 2006" and won IGN's "Best PS2 Strategy Game" in their Best of 2006 awards.
A PlayStation Portable version, released in Japan as Disgaea 2 Portable and in North America and Europe as Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days, includes bonus content: an expanded character roster (including three characters from Disgaea 3), an "Axel Mode" storyline, new creatable monsters, stronger spells, and features from Disgaea 3 like an enhanced Magichange system, Pass & Toss, and Level Sphe
- Developer
- Nippon Ichi Software
- Publisher
- Nippon Ichi Software
- Platform
- PlayStation 2
- Genre
- Tactical role-playing game
- Release
- 2006 (original PS2)
- Sequel to
- Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (2003)
- Predecessor to
- Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice
Lore & Background
Disgaea 2 is divided into 13 chapters, each beginning with cut scenes that explain the protagonist Adell's next mission. Players control Adell in his hometown of Holt, which serves as a gateway to story maps, side quests, the dark council, and the item world. The gameplay builds directly upon that of Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, with players controlling a party on a 3D isometric grid map. The Item World mode returns, allowing players to enter any item in the party's inventory, with randomly generated levels and difficulty based on the item's rarity or power. Special enemies called Guardians can be freed to impart stat bonuses to the item.
The plot begins fifteen years before the game's events, when the Overlord Zenon appeared in Veldime and cursed its human population, turning them into demons. Adell, the only human unaffected, seeks to defeat Zenon to lift the curse. His mother attempts to summon Zenon but instead summons Rozalin, Zenon's daughter. Adell and Rozalin then quest to find Zenon and return Rozalin to him, so that Adell can defeat him and restore humanity to the world.
Reader's Guide
Disgaea 2 received generally favorable reviews, with an aggregate score of 84/100 on Metacritic. It was mentioned in Gaming Target's '52 Games We'll Still Be Playing From 2006' and won IGN's 'Best of 2006' prize for 'Best PS2 Strategy Game'. The game was re-released for PlayStation Portable as Disgaea 2 Portable in Japan and as Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days in North America and Europe, featuring bonus material including an expanded playable character line-up, an 'Axel Mode' storyline, more creatable monsters, and features from Disgaea 3 such as an enhanced Magichange system, Pass & Toss, and Level Spheres in the Item World. A PlayStation 2 Classic Edition was released for U.S. PSN on January 22, 2013. A PC port titled Disgaea 2 PC was released on January 30, 2017, including all content from the PS2 and PSP versions, all three DLC characters removed from the western release, an updated interface, and mouse and keyboard support. The game's legacy lies in its expansion of the tactical RPG formula established by its predecessor and its continued availability through multiple re-releases.
Did You Know?
- Disgaea 2 is the first Nippon Ichi game released on DVD-ROM with an animated opening movie.
- The game's Item World features randomly generated levels and Guardians that can be freed to boost item stats.
- The PSP re-release, Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days, includes three characters from Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice.
- The PC port released in 2017 includes all DLC characters that were removed from the western PSP release.
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