Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories
Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories (魔界戦記ディスガイア2, Makai Senki Disugaia Tsū?, lit. "Netherworld Battle Chronicle: Disgaea 2") is a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation 2 video game console. Disgaea 2 is the sequel to 2003's Disgaea: Hour of Darkness for the PlayStation 2 and was released in Japan on February 23, 2006 and North America on August 29, 2006. It is also the predecessor to Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice for the PlayStation 3.
Unlike Nippon Ichi's previous games, Disgaea 2 is on DVD-ROM and has an animated opening movie.
It was re-released for the PlayStation Portable as Disgaea 2 Portable in Japan and as Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days in North America and Europe.
Gameplay
Disgaea 2 is divided into 13 chapters. Each chapter begins with cut scenes to explain Adell's next mission. Players then take control of Adell in his hometown of Holt. The town serves as a gateway to story maps, side quests, the dark council, and the item world. At the beginning of each chapter, a new area is unlocked. Each area consists of multiple maps which must be beaten to advance to the next chapter. Talking to the gatekeeper of Holt will give players the option of exploring the new area or repeating any maps that have been beaten. Many maps also have cut scenes. Scenes at the beginning and end of each chapter cannot be skipped.
The gameplay in Disgaea 2 builds directly upon that of Disgaea: Hour of Darkness; players control a party of characters to do battle on a 3D isometric grid map.
The Item World game mode returns from Disgaea: Hour of Darkness. Players can select any item in the party's inventory and enter it. The levels within are randomly generated, and the difficulty of enemies depends on the item's rarity or power. There are two ways to descend through the Item World: by defeating all enemies on a given level, or by using exit portals located somewhere on each level. Special enemies, called Guardians, can be freed by defeating them, imparting certain benefits to the item, such as increased attack or defense values. Once they are freed, they can be moved between items freely. The further a player descends through a given item's Item World, the higher the stat bonuses it will receive.
The land of carnage was added to Disgaea 2 which is another home hub with all the missions that have been completed, but enemies levels are the original times twenty and plus two hundred.This place can be optained by collecting 16 pirate maps from the different pirates of the item world.
Plot
Story
Fifteen years ago, a powerful Overlord by the name of Zenon appeared in Veldime and cursed its human population. Since then, all its inhabitants have become demons and are to remain that way if the curse was not broken. However, a young man named Adell was the only human unaffected by the curse. Wanting to save his family and return them back to their true form, Adell decides to seek out Overlord Zenon and defeat him. Adell's mother tries to summon Zenon and fails, but instead summons Rozalin, Zenon's daughter. They later go on a quest to find Zenon and return Rozalin to him, and then defeat him so that the curse would be lifted, making his family and the rest of the world human again.
Characters
- Adell (アデル, Aderu?): The main character of Disgaea 2. Adell is the only human left on Veldime, and has been training for years to defeat Zenon and lift the curse. Courageous and determined, Adell dislikes women, demons and lies, and will never back down from any challenge or resort to dirty tactics. He is nice to those he cares about and will never ever break a promise. The reason Adell was not affected by Zenon curse is because he was born from a pure blood demon. Voice actor: Hikaru Midorikawa (JPN)/Shiloh Strong (US)
- Rozalin (ロザリンド, Rozarindo?): The only daughter of Overlord Zenon. Rozalin was summoned during a failed attempt by Adell's mother to summon Zenon. Due to the summoning contract placed on her, she is unable to leave Adell and must help him find Zenon. Rozalin is unaware of the world around her due to her pampered life, with her books being her sole source of information. Because of this, she has no battle experience and tries (and fails) to get Adell killed indirectly on several occasions. In addition, Adell's vow to bring her back to her father begins to make her think differently. Rozalin's true identity is that she is the actual God Of All Overlords Zenon, even though she doesn't realize it herself due to memory loss when she reincarnated. Voice actor: Yukari Tamura (JPN)/Wendee Lee (US)
- Taro (タロー, Tarō?): Adell's eleven-year old brother. He and his younger sister Hanako are demons, having been born after their parents were cursed. He starts to admire Rozalin soon after meeting her, and refers to her as 'Princess'. He is a little timid but also a little sarcastic. He is not as confident as the other characters, but he tries to help as much as he can. He is also commonly referred to as 'Tardo' (Taro-chan in the Japanese version) by his sister, Hanako. Voice actor: Hiro Shimono (JPN)/Wendee Lee (US)
- Hanako (ハナコ, Hanako?): Adell and Taro's younger sister. She is bothersome and very cocky, constantly wishing that Adell would take her with him when he goes out to fight. She has great culinary skill. She also uses her cooking pot as a weapon. She adores Etna and wants to be a Demon Lord like her one day, but also wants to be sexier than Etna. Voice actor: Kaori Mizuhashi (JPN)/ Stephanie Sheh (US)
- Tink (ティンク, Tinku?): A servant of Overlord Zenon and a childhood friend of Rozalin. After a mysterious person attacked Zenon's castle, he was transformed into a frog. Tink has two forms. In his normal blue form, he is usually very polite, yet very cowardly. On occasion, he will transform into his red form. In this form, he is lecherous and rude, known for causing trouble wherever he goes. Voice actor: Chihiro Suzuki (JPN)/Dave Wittenberg (US)
- Yukimaru (雪丸?): One of the surviving members of the Snow Clan. Yukimaru is a skilled ninja, at the age of twenty, looking to defeat Zenon and avenge the destruction of her clan. While she is skilled, she has little confidence in herself, and may try to commit suicide if she is unable to complete her mission. Yukimaru ends her sentences with the word zam (de gozaru in the Japanese version) as a way of storing ki. Voice actor: Kana Ueda (JPN)/Lara Jill Miller (US)
- Etna (エトナ, Etona?): The devious vassal from the first Disgaea. After a fight with Laharl, Etna resigned from her position as vassal and became a Demon Lord. She is now in Veldime alongside her infamous Prinny Squad in order to defeat Zenon and obtain the title of Overlord. She is as devious as ever, using Adell and Rozalin to get to Zenon before any other Overlord does. Voice actor: Tomoe Hanba (JPN)/ Michelle Ruff (US)
- Axel (アクターレ, Akutāre?): A demon who prides himself about once being popular. Axel was once a famous demon action hero and rock star known by many as the 'Dark Hero', a mastermind of evil. Unfortunately, he is now a reporter for a travel show called 'Tripping with Axel'. Despite this new role, Axel will occasionally try to add action scenes to the show, much to the director's dismay. In the Japanese version, Axel's name was originally Akutare (sometimes romanized as Octalley). In the North American version, Axel's band is actually named 'Akutare'. He never had a band in the Japanese version. Voice actor: Nobuyuki Hiyama (JPN)/Grant George (US)
- Fubuki (斧雪, Fubuki?): Yukimaru's brother. A mysterious ninja bent on defeating Zenon in order to avenge the Snow Clan. A skilled ninja in his own right, Fubuki is cold hearted and will do anything to destroy Zenon. Voice actor: Takehito Koyasu (JPN)/Kirk Thornton (US)
- Mom & Dad (ママ, Mama and パパ?, Papa): Adell, Taro, and Hanako's parents. Zenon's curse branded Mom with a third eye on her forehead, as well as a purple tail. Dad gained some sort of creature on his chest referred to as a "pimple", as well as gray skin, a horn on his head and longer than average arms. Mom is caring, although at the same time demented due to Zenon's curse affecting her mind. She is very skilled at summoning, though her recent attempt failed to summon Zenon. Dad is more pitiful in his new condition, but still very friendly and worries about everyone despite knowing that everyone but Adell is a demon. Voice actor: Eriko Hara (JPN), Rokuro Naya (JPN) Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (US)
- Overlord Zenon (ゼノン?): The game's main antagonist, feared as the God of All Overlords (魔王神, Maōshin?), who single-handedly defeated 99 rival Overlords in a single day and has killed over 1000 all together. Due to the numerous enemies looking to kill him, Zenon constantly hides. An Overlord known for his cruelty, Zenon is responsible for the curse on Veldime that turned its inhabitants into demons and the destruction of the Snow Clan. Rozalin, his daughter, is constantly spoiled by him. In the ending it is revealed that he was really a demon that had been defeated by Zenon, and when the real Zenon reincarnated he mind controlled her to make her believe she was his daughter for revenge. Voice actor: Norio Wakamoto (JPN)/Lex Lang (US)
- Masked Man & Masked Woman (仮面の男, Kamen no Otoko and 仮面の女?, Kamen no Onna): Zenon's servants. Nothing is known about them except that they are obedient to Zenon. After hearing that Rozalin disappeared, Zenon sends them out to find her and eliminate those who caused her disappearance. Later in the game on the way to Zenon's castle the masked man and woman are defeated and it is discovered that they are actually Adell's biological parents. Voice actor: Junji Majima (JPN)/David Lodge(US)/Yuko Sasamoto (JPN)
- Laharl (ラハール, Rahāru?): The main character of the first Disgaea and current Overlord of his Netherworld. He is also upset that he is no longer the main character. Laharl travels to Veldime to drag Etna and the Prinnies back to the castle and become the main character of Disgaea once again. Voice actor: Kaori Mizuhashi (JPN)/Barbara Goodson (US)
- Flonne (フロン, Furon?): The third main character from the first Disgaea. After the events in Celestia, Flonne became a fallen angel and continued to work under Laharl. Even after Etna leaves, Flonne stays and continues to aid Laharl. She travels to Veldime hoping to end the fight between Laharl and Etna and, like Laharl, wants to be a main character again. Voice actor: Yuko Sasamoto (JPN)/Sandy Fox (US)
Reception & Awards
Disgaea 2 has received generally favorable reviews, obtaining an aggregate score of 84 on Metacritic. It received a mention in Gaming Target's selection of 52 Games We'll Still Be Playing From 2006.[12]
Re-releases
The official website for Disgaea 2 Portable opened on December 29, 2008.[13] It was released in Japan on March 26, 2009.[1] NIS America announced that they were publishing the PlayStation Portable version under the name Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days. It was released in the United States on September 8, 2009.[2]
The re-release features bonus material over the original, including an expanded playable character line-up(including three of the main cast from the sequel Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice; Mao, Raspberyl and Mr. Champloo), an Axel Mode storyline, more creatable monsters and more powerful versions of existing spells. Features from Disgaea 3 are also introduced, including the Magichange system, Pass & Toss and Level Spheres in the Item World.
Keeping with the tradition of Disgaea PlayStation Portable re-releases, Music Shops and Data Shops are available, giving the ability to purchase in-game music to play during forays into Item World. Additional content, such as the ability to create female Ronins, is unlocked by having a Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness save file on the same memory stick as the Dark Hero Days save file, as well as Downloadable content. The DLC includes; Pram from Makai Kingdom; Marona and Ash from Phantom Brave; Dark Eclair from La Pucelle; Almaz and Sapphire from Disgaea 3; Gig from Soul Nomad & the World Eaters; Pleinair, a recurring character who's the mascot of Character Designer Takehito Harada; Miabel from a future title called "Princess Antiphona's Hymn: Angel's Score OP"; And a Humanoid version of Disgaea 2's Hanako from 10 years the future, known as "Demon Lord Hanako". Disgaea 2: Dark Hero. Gig, Miabel, and Dark Eclair are only available in Japan due to coding errors by the translation staff. There are no plans to fix this and the 3 will remain unavailable until further notice. The North American versions of the DLC, which include Sapphire Rhodondite and Pleinair from Disgaea 3, were released on November 25, 2010 on the PlayStation Network for free due to complaints. They remain free to this day. The complaints were due to players receiving error messages while saving their game data saying that saving their data will prevent them from using the DLC. The error was caused by players saving their games without purchasing the content. NIS Software received complaints, and has rended the game's first upcoming DLC Pack to be absolutely free as an apology.
See also
References
External links
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