Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories

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.

Currently, a manga based on the events of Disgaea 2 is being released.

Story

Prologue

Fifteen years ago, a powerful Overlord by the name of Zenon appeared on Veldime and cursed its human population. Since then, all its inhabitants became demons and were 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 defeat Zenon. Adell's mother, a summoner, tries to summon Zenon and failed, and instead summoned 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, and so his family would be human again.

Plot

Along the way, they meet Axel the Dark Hero, who is filming for his low-rated travel show, Tripping with Axel, Tink, who was in Zenon's Palace when it was attacked, and finally Beauty Queen/Demon Lord Etna along with her Prinny lackies who are also looking for Zenon. Later on, Axel kidnaps both Hanako & Taro to get payback for his defeat by Adell. The group is able to rescue Taro and Hanako, but Taro slips and falls into the Dallos River, which leads right into the Cavern of Evil. In the Cavern, they meet the Masked Woman, a servant of Zenon. She gives them a magic flute which can command monsters. Deeper in the cave, they finally find Taro, who has been ambushed by several monsters. The group pull out the magic flute to drive the monsters away, but no one knows how to play it. In frustration, Tink throws the flute away. A moment later, the group hears the sound of a flute, played by Axel. Many of the monsters that were attacking Taro were killed by the monster which Axel drove away using the flute. They then were able to rescue Taro. Taro asked to be Rozalin's servant, and Rozalin grants him that wish. The next day, they meet Yukimaru, a young female ninja survivor of the Snow Clan. She mentions that Zenon is sponsoring a Battle Arena. Adell and the others then enter.

After a battle with the "rest of the Snow Clan", who were turned into Ghouls, Etna and her Prinny lackeys show up. Etna then kills the Ghouls, and walks up to Zenon, about to fight him. Axel then stays behind to film the whole battle. The next day, Etna comes to Adell's house, proclaiming that she has defeated OverLord Zenon, but was wondering why her title was not [Goddess of All Overlords] or even just to [Overlord]. They then conclude that the Zenon that Etna killed was a fake. Adell, Taro, and Hanako's mother then comes out of the house, suggesting to try and summon Zenon. Adell then said, "Wouldn't that take years to prepare again?". She then says yes, but that there are other conditions to make it easier. Since Zenon is a demon, she'll attempt to summon "The most Powerful Demon". But they are missing the key ingredient, an [Overlord's Nail]. Mom then mentions that an equally powerful [Demon Lord's Nail] would work out just fine, They then looked for and found Etna in Alche City. Etna then gives them a fake nail and as a result, is summoned in Zenon's place. Etna finds she has now lost all of her levels in the summon and decides to join Adell and the others to go after Etna's infamous Prinny Squad who now work for a prinny called Big Brother, who turns out to be Fubuki, Yukimaru's elder brother.

The group then proceeds to Shinra Tower to get herbs from Old Man Geo in order for Etna to regain all her levels. But when they reach the top of the tower, they learn that Overlord Laharl ate them because "he was hungry". He then defeats Adell and the others. He saw Rozalin's seal and then attacked it, causing it to shatter. The seal was there only to keep Zenon's blood from coming out and once gone Rozalin becomes incredibly powerful and has a complete personality change. After she defeats Laharl the seal reforms itself. The next day they find out that Fubuki who was still badly hurt, went after Zenon. After Hanako & Taro find out the location of Zenon's castle they go to challenge him, but they were forced to fight the Mask servants of Zenon before they could. Once they are half way to Zenon they help Fubuki in his battle against some monsters because he is too weak to help in the final battle as the group finally came face to face with the Fake Zenon who transformed into a powerful Demon form.

After the battle Rozalin broke her seal as the fake told them she really was Overlord Zenon (the real one) as she killed the fake one out of life itset...

The game has multiple endings. Depending on the way the game was played up to this point, Overlord Zenon (Rozalin) takes over the world, Tink becomes an Overlord himself or Adell will kill Rozalin, then become possessed by the true Zenon's spirit. It may also be noted that, on the Good Ending, Adell kisses Rozalin and one year later Axel becomes very unpopular again, Yukimaru & Fubuki will rebuild their clan, Tink will become his old self again as Taro is at home with his mom & Dad who are human again & Hanako will became Etna's "Student" and serves Laharl with her. (The "Good" endings are the only endings canon for future developments in the Disgaea series or in cameo roles for future Nipon Ichi games of other series. Eg: Prier from La Pucelle being in both Disgaea 1 and 2 as a secret stage.)

Characters

• : 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. Voice actor: Hikaru Midorikawa (JPN)/Shiloh Strong (US)
• : 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. Incredibly snobby, 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. Voice actor: Yukari Tamura (JPN)/Wendee Lee (US)
• : 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)
• : 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)
• : 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)
• : 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) English voice actor: Lara Jill Miller
• : 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)
• : 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)
• : 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)
• : 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)
• : Feared as the , 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. Voice actor: Norio Wakamoto (JPN)/Lex Lang (US)
• : 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 parents. Voice actor: Junji Majima (JPN)/David Lodge(US)/Yuko Sasamoto (JPN)
• : 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. He is very selfish and egotistical. 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)
• : 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)

Gameplay

Disgaea 2's 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.

Holt

The town of Holt serves as a hub for Adell and his party throughout the game. Unlike area maps, Holt is not tile based, and Adell can move around freely and jump on crates and walls. The map can be rotated and zoomed for easier viewing. Several NPCs populate the, and will offer advice or jokes that change each chapter.

Three merchants from the RosenQueen Company sell weapons, armor, and consumable items. The Netherworld Hospital revives characters and replenishes Hit Points and Skill Points after battle. The messenger hands out subpoenas, and the dark secretary, item worlder, and gatekeeper offer access to the Dark Assembly, Item World, and area maps respectively.

Area Maps

Talking to the gatekeeper will bring up a list of areas to choose from. Each area is subdivided into a list of maps, unlocked one after another. Beating all maps in an area finishes the chapter and advances the story of the game. Once a map has been entered, it must be completed before the player can return to Holt. Each chapter automatically returns Adell and company to Holt, but it is at the player's discretion whether to return between individual maps.

Players have a large degree of freedom to proceed through the story at their own pace and with their own style. Because the Item World and Dark Assembly are available soon after the beginning of the game, there is not much more difficulty in leveling up very high-powered characters and items in Chapter 1 than there is in Chapter 13.

Bonus maps

These can be unlocked by passing resolutions in the Dark Assembly. They can be visited by talking to the gatekeeper, as with area maps. These are harder than the main game and are meant as post-game material, although many can be played before the player beats the game. On completion, they unlock hidden characters, reward the player with rare items or allow them to view alternate endings.

Dark World maps

These are "dark" versions of the standard game maps accessible once the player unlocks the Dark Guide, an alternate version of the normal Dimensional Gatekeeper. Once the Dark Guide is unlocked the Dark World versions of standard maps can be unlocked by achieving certain hidden goals like completing the map in a certain number of turns, performing a specific action, or killing a certain enemy. The Dark world has the same terrain layout as the normal maps, but the enemies and geo symbols are radically different, being much higher in level and far more difficult to clear. To up the challenge, the Dark Sun is also present, a powerful entity that hovers above the map and causes random effects such as Revival of Slain Foes, Short Term Class Change or even Automatic Game Over. However, the player has access to a command that allows them to attack the Dark Sun, sacrificing an ally to inflict damage to his HP.

Land of Carnage

Yet another hidden area the player can unlock, which takes the player to an alternate version of the game's main world Veldime, with much harder maps and stronger foes in the item world. Additionally, three Bonus characters can be unlocked in the Land of Carnage but can only be used there.

Features

All the major features from Disgaea have been retained and enhanced, and a few new ones were added.

Character Classes

Disgaea 2 has a huge selection of character classes, including some new classes. Some classes from the original game were either removed or replaced by a slightly different class. In addition, non-story character classes all come in six tiers. Players must now level each tier to unlock the next, making reincarnation more important. Higher tiers of a character class use the same sprite only with a derivation in the color pallet. Higher tiers have slightly higher starting stats, and stronger weapon proficiencies and the possibility of different abilities. Also, all character classes, whether they are story, humanoid or monster all have a passive ability that can increase the character's abilities in combat, for example male warriors do more critical attack damage when their HP is below 25%.

• Humanoid Classes

Demons in humanoid form. These classes can use any of seven human type weapons, although the speed at which they learn depends on weapon proficiency. Humanoid classes can pick up and throw allies, enemies, geo symbols, and treasure chests. Warriors, archers, mages, and thieves are some available classes.

• Monster Classes

Demons in a more monstrous or less humanoid form, but some story characters that are humanoid are considered monster class instead. Monsters can equip either of the two monster type weapons. Monsters cannot lift or throw, but can be picked up and thrown. Zombies, dragons, golems, and prinnies are some available classes.

• Prinnies

What makes Prinnies special is the fact that if a Prinny is thrown it will explode, inflicting damage. A special monster class, they appear to be stuffed penguins with wooden peg legs and small bat wings. A Prinny damaged by the explosion of another Prinny will itself explode. The special character Kurtis, whose class is Defender, is also a Prinny and will explode when thrown.

Recruiting

The game begins with Adell, Rozalin, and a randomly named Warrior, Healer, and Red Skull. New characters join in one of three ways:

1 - Story characters will join the player as one advances the story or completes side quests.

2 - New characters can be created in the dark assembly using mana. It costs a minimum of 1 mana to create a new character, and new characters have different proficiency level they can start at from Good-for-nothing to Genius. Additional stat points can be given as characters reincarnate.

3 - Enemy monsters can be captured by throwing them onto the base panel. The rules for capture are that the characters in the base panel must have a combined level greater than the monster and that the monster must be one that can be created at the Dark Assembly. If either of these conditions are not met, the base panel is destroyed and that all characters in the base panel are killed.

Ten characters can participate in battle at a time, exhausted characters can be swapped back into the base, and the game allows a huge roster of generic characters in reserve to encourage using a variety of characters.

Master/Student

When a new character is created, the new character is considered the student of the character whose mana was spent to create him/her. This association has many benefits. There is a higher chance for team attacks between the master and their students. The master also gains a small stat growth bonus as their student grows stronger. Finally, the master can cast spells the student knows simply by standing next to their student. Once the spell level of the master reaches level 1, it is then permanently added to the master's skill list. Using this process, story characters are able to learn spells they otherwise would have no access to.

Reincarnation

After a character obtains at least 100 Mana they now have the option to be reincarnated. Reincarnation resets a character back to level 1 and reduces the characters Mana to 0. However, all spells, weapon skills, and weapon proficiency levels are kept to a certain degree. The degree of skill retention is based upon the aptitude selected when reincarnated, e.g. a Genius character will retain more skills than a Good-For-Nothing. Naturally, higher aptitudes require more mana. Reincarnation allows the player to "upgrade" their characters to the next job level without having to completely restart their character. Another bonus of reincarnation is that the more times a character reincarnates and the more levels they accumulate, the more bonus stat points they are allowed to be given at reincarnation. Storyline characters can only reincarnate as themselves, but may have normal stat bonuses granted to them.

There is also a special version of reincarnation for characters who have obtained felonies in the game. Non-story characters have the option to reincarnate as a prinny once they have obtained at least 200 Mana. Reincarnating into a Prinny is the same as normal reincarnation except that their felony counter is reduced to 0 and that the character must become a Prinny until they have obtained at least 400 Mana and passed the "End Prinny Reincarnation" bill at the Dark Assembly. Story line characters do not have this option, instead they have the "Reincarnate to Atone For Sins" option at the Dark Assembly. This is also the same as normal reincarnation except for the fact it reduces the felony counter to 0. This option can be used when the storyline character has at least 400 Mana.

Dark Assembly

By talking to the Dark Secretary in Holt, Adell can visit the Dark Assembly. Players choose one character from those available in their party to bring up a list of resolutions available to that character. Mana gained by defeating enemies in combat is used as a kind of currency in the Dark Assembly. Each resolution requires a cost of a certain amount of mana. Merely paying the mana required does not automatically pass a resolution; it must be voted on by senators. Unlike Disgaea HOD, when you are selecting a bill to propose at the Assembly, you will be given a percentage on how likely the bill is to pass. Bills that require more Mana or that generate a larger effect (Such as opening a secret dungeon) have lower chances than that of a lower cost bill.

Once a resolution has been chosen, the view changes to a large auditorium with randomly selected senators. Each senator has a disposition toward the character proposing a resolution. This is the Netherworld, so it is perfectly acceptable to bribe senators with items in the item bag. Giving a senator the right items will improve their disposition toward the character. After bribing, senators will vote based on their disposition. If the yeas beat the nays, the resolution passes. Even if a bill loses the vote, the player can choose to "persuade by force". A base panel appears and the player can attempt to beat the opposing senators. If all opposing senators are killed, the resolution will be passed. Using "persuade by force" with lower level characters is very dangerous, as senators are more powerful than lower levels can handle, and losing means game over.

New to Disgaea 2 are the Legendary Senators, a special type of Dark Assembly senator with various abilities, all of which will radically alter the Assembly environment. Legendary senators have a very powerful voice (their votes count for far more than any other senator) and they will all create some sort of effect before casting their vote. For example, Legendary Senator Ares will strike an adjacent senator on his row, blowing away all senators on that line and eliminating their votes. Legendary Senator Venus will emit a magical aura that will force all adjacent senators to vote along with her, regardless of their dispositions beforehand. While bribing the Legendary Senators alone may not pass a bill for sure, not bribing them is nearly a surefire way to ensure a bill will fail: attempting to "Persuade by Force" with a Legendary Senator in attendance leads to a fight which the player is very likely to lose, if the legendary senator votes against the player, as all Legendary Senators are at least level 1000.

Additionally, as the game carries on, Adell can also gain access to the proposal of "I Want To Become A Senator". If passed, Adell will become a senator and can sit in and vote on special assembly sessions, such as raising the voice power of different parties. When Adell first becomes a senator is voice is 30. The player can increase his voice by passing the "I Want More Voice Proposal". Each proposal passed increases Adell's voice by 30 points to a maximum of 120.

Weapons

The weapons are the same as the original game, Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, except for the slight change in monster weapons. Unlike the original, there are now 2 monster weapons: Physical and Magical. Physical monster weapons are represented by a red wing in the item menu and are more geared to physical monsters by increasing ATK and HIT stats. Magical monster weapons are represented by a purple wing in the item menu and that they are geared towards monsters that use magical special attacks. Magical monster weapons primarily increase ATK and INT.

In addition, all weapons and equipment are now a little more balanced out like the character classes to prevent them from being too overpowered or too underpowered. Specialist population slots have also changed. Normal items can only hold 4 residents, Rare items can hold 5 and Legendary Items can hold 6. However, the population cap can be increased by defeating the Item Kings/Item God and passing the "Increase POP" bill at the Item Assembly.

Resolutions

Resolutions can be used to unlock bonus areas and new humanoid character classes or improve certain character abilities. Some resolutions require prerequisites before they become available. A special Dark Assembly in the Item World contains resolutions to power up that item. See Item World below for more information.

Disgaea 2 offers many new options to improve the chances of passing a resolution. Instead of an assortment of monsters used in Disgaea HOD, only six types appear on the senate floor. They are organized into six parties by their monster type. Each party has either a Weak, Medium, or Strong Voice. Senators with Weak Voices get 10 points in the vote, Medium Voices get 30 points, and Strong Voices get 50 points. Parties with the same voice oppose each other. Cell phones can be used before entering the Dark Assembly to influence the parties. Once Adell becomes a senator, he can attend special assemblies to raise the voice power of the different parties. If the "I Want More Voice" proposal is passed, that parties voice is doubled.

• Orcs - Weak Voice

The Orc Party likes girls. All female characters who propose bills at the Dark Assembly will have a higher standing with them. They oppose Ghosts.

• Ghosts - Weak Voice

Ghosts tend to sleep through voting sessions. A sleeping character will not vote unless awoken with a "Bomb" item, which also decreases their disposition towards the characters. They oppose Orcs.

• Mothmen - Medium Voice

The Mothmen Party likes Monsters. All monsters who propose bills at the Dark Assembly will have a higher standing with them. They oppose Holy Dragons.

• Holy Dragons - Medium Voice

Holy Dragons will not accept bribes. Any bribes offered will lower their disposition towards you. They oppose Mothmen.

• Baciels - Strong Voice

Baciels always show up to the Dark Assembly Drunk. Drunk characters vote erratically and are very tricky to bribe, having a hard time recognizing the items they are given. They oppose Wood Golems. (If a Baciel or any other senator is Drunk when "Persuade by Force" is chosen, they will begin the fight affected by the Amnesia ailment.)

• Wood Golems - Strong Voice

Wood Golems oppose Baciels.

• Legendary - Huge Pull, Special Powers

On occasion extremely high level humanoid senators will appear. They have no affiliation with a party but usually have the largest pull. Additionally some have abilities that alter the final vote. Legendary Senator Venus(an Archer) has the power to make other senators near her change their votes to match her own, Legendary Senator Ares(a Heavy Warrior) will attack any senators to his left and knock them completely out of congress, removing their votes, Legendary Senator Morpheus (a Red Skull) puts nearby senators to sleep, removing their votes from the final tally, and Legendary Senator Tengan (A Geo Master) may occasionally appear and ask for a specific item (often one that isn't in the player's inventory). Handing it over to him (when available) will cause him to immediately vote in your favor, while ignoring him (or not having the item) causes him to jump up and down in rage and vote against the player.

Bribes

Senators are shaded blue when they show some degree of support or red if they are hostile. The more blue or red the senator is, the more extreme his view. Demons are unreliable, however, so good disposition improves chances of a yea vote but there are no guarantees. Moving the cursor over a senator will give a text description of disposition. Selecting a senator will bring up the item bag to choose bribes.

Each bribe can be a MUST HAVE!, INTERESTED, SLIGHTLY INTERESTED, NOT VERY INTERESTED, or DOES NOT WANT. The more interested a senator is, the better the disposition bonus. Interest in an item is based on rarity and differs from one senator to another. The bribe will have a strong effect on the senator receiving it, and a weaker effect on senators in the same party. It will also have the opposite effect on all members of the opposing party.

For example: Adell bribes an Orc Senator with a Mint Gum. The senator's disposition improves from Either Way to Leaning Yes. At the same time, all Orcs improve their disposition by a slight amount. All Ghosts (the party opposing Orcs) give a slight penalty to disposition.

Some items used as bribes can have special effects on senators such as waking, sleeping, intoxicating and sobering. These items are rare and hard to come by early in the game. There are also purchasable items that will always have a MUST HAVE! or INTERESTED status regardless of who they are shown to.

Item World

Another returning feature of the original Disgaea, Item World is the world within every item in the game. In order to enter Item World, the player must talk to the thief near the three merchants. The item must be unequipped and be in the inventory. Once inside the Item World, the player must go through at least ten randomly generated maps. These maps can either be cleared by defeating all enemies on the field or by entering the red dimensional gates, which transports the player to the next map. The maximum amount of floors all depends on the rarity of an item. Common items will have 30 floors, rare items will have 60, and legendary items will have 100. Although items can have a max of 100 floors, the level of an item can exceed the level 100 limit through the use of certain mystery rooms in item world. In order to leave the item, the player must choose the option to leave after completing at least 10 floors or must use the item Mr. Gency's Exit (Emergency Exit).

Specialists

Most items will contain specialists. These specialists can increase certain stats or have special abilities, such as raising the levels of other specialists or creating specialist offspring. While in item world, a specialist may appear. If the player defeats one, it is subdued. Subdued specialists can be moved from item to item. Specialists can also be combined to make room for more specialists. There are also item bosses, which appear on the 10th level of every item and will usually appear in the middle of the stage, sometimes on higher ground. Item bosses do not function like normal specialists as they cannot be viewed outside of the item nor can they be moved. However, defeating an item boss will grant the item bonus stats, alongside the normal stat gain, upon leaving the Item World.

Disgaea 2 also features several new specialists. Perhaps the most unusual added specialist is the "Lover," which does not come on a new item, instead spawning on an item when a given character uses the same item for a large number of battles. For example, if a Prinny uses the same weapon for long enough, a Prinny Lover may eventually appear on the weapon. Lovers give a base 1% boost to all stats of the user as long as they match the user's class or monster type, up to a maximum of 25% from a Level 25 Lover. Also, Lovers amplify the passive skills of their users, usually by one percent per level of the Lover. A Wood Golem monster, for example, regains 20% of his max HP every round. For every level of Wood Golem Lover attached to his items, however, he regains an additional 1%, up to a total of 45% per round with a level 25 Wood Golem Lover. This is every bit as incredible as it sounds, as Wood Golems have an amazing amount of HPs and are extremely hard to kill even without the 20% regeneration, much less a Wood Golem which regenerates nearly half of its health per round.

Pirates

On each floor, with the exception of the item boss floors, there is a random chance that pirates will appear at the end of the enemies' turn. There are 18 different types of pirates. The pirates may be a group of enemies or a single yet powerful foe. With the exception of the final two pirates, all pirates carry a treasure map. Upon defeating a pirate who carries a treasure map, the player will obtain a treasure map. There are sixteen treasure maps, and if the player is able to collect all of them, he or she will have access to the Land of Carnage. In addition, certain pirates may have useful bonuses such as extra specialists and a portal that will allow the player to skip several floors.

Mystery Rooms

While going through Item World, a player may encounter a yellow-green dimensional portal. This portal will lead to a Mystery Room. What is contained in the mystery room is random. There are a total of 14 Mystery Rooms, each one containing something different. One important thing to note is that if a player comes across a store, they can only access that store once per visit. Since the Mystery Room is not considered a map, the player can access their inventory/warehouse freely. Additionally, most to return to the item world, a player must talk with the Ghost or complete the battle (if there is one). Additionally, once a player runs across a Mystery Room, and regardless if the player enters or not, the gate will not appear again for at least another 3 floors (except for boss floors).

Innocent Towns

After at least 10 floors, an Innocent Town may appear. These towns are similar to Holt. The player can heal his/her allies here, find treasure chests, or talk to the residents in town. The town also contains its own Dark Assembly, known as the Item Assembly, which contains bills that can power up the item even more or add properties that the item normally wouldn't have, such as added Movement. It is also possible to use the Item Assembly to create a name for the item. To leave the Innocent Town, the player must talk to the ghost. The player can choose to go further into Item World or return to Holt. There are other properties of the Innocent Towns such as wanderers that include Prism Orange, Axel (Akutare), and Prinny Kurtis. That aside, the most substantial random appearance in the Innocent Town is the Hide-And-Go-Seek Prinny. The Hide-And-Go-Seek Prinny will offer that if you find him a number of times, he will give you a substantial prize.

Bailiffs and the Dark Court

During the game, the messenger, located next to the Dark Assembly secretary, will have subpoenas. These subpoenas state the crime a character has committed (eg. Too high HP) and contain a bailiff specialist. The level of the bailiff indicates which floor the player can enter the Dark Court. In order to get to the Dark Court, the player must enter the Item World of the subpoena. Once the player reaches required floor, a blue portal will appear on the field. The player must choose a character (does not have to be the character specified on the subpoena) to enter that portal. Once entered, the character will be judged by the Dark Court and be pronounced guilty of their crime. Depending on the crime, the character will gain a certain number of felonies and will also be rewarded with either items or HL. Felonies will actually benefit the character. A character with a lot of felonies will pass bills in the Dark Assembly more easily. Characters with felonies can also gain more experience points depending on the number of felonies a character has. Although only 99 felonies can be shown on a character, the effect of felonies will be maxed out at 300 felonies. Although it is not necessary, Atonement Reincarnation will make it easier to keep track of the player's felonies, as Atonement Reincarnation will remove the felony stamp, but not the effects.

Note: If a character is carrying other characters upon entering the Dark Court, the felony is granted to the character and all characters he/she is carrying.

Reception & Awards

As of July 6, 2008, the game has an 85% on GameRankings.com .

Awards

• Won IGN's award for Best PlayStation 2 Strategy Game of 2006.
• Gaming Target - 52 Games We'll Still Be Playing From 2006 selection .

References

See also

• Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
• Nippon Ichi
• Tactical role-playing games

External links

• Official Japanese Page
• Official English Page
• Game screenshots
• Review of Disgaea 2 at Netjak
• Disgaea 2 Wiki
• Tokidoki Journal's Interview with Tenpei Sato
• Tokidoki Journal's Interview with Souhei Niikawa
• Tokidoki Journal's Interview with Takehito Harada
• NeoGAF's interview with Steve Carlton
• Disgaea wikia