Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories

TotalPlayStation

There is no better value for your buck than getting a game that supports HUNDREDS of hours of play time, and Disgaea 2 does that. The sheer amount of character building and fantastic humor all make for a game that you WANT to play for that long too.

Into Liquid Sky

Disgaea 2 is certainly a game that stat whores will waste hours on. You can get to ridiculous levels and do attacks that would make Final Fantasy lose it's lunch.

netjak

Nippon Ichi has done the impossible with Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories – taking a successful game and improving it on every count for the sequel. The battle system was tweaked in just the right ways, the graphics and sound were improved, and the new story is deep and faithful to the style of the series without copying too much from Disgaea: Hour of Darkness. The result is what will probably be best game of 2006.

Gaming Target

It comes to gameplay Disgaea 2 is far superior to any of NI’s previous works.

AtomicGamer

Buy this game. Now.

Worth Playing

It is proven that if you give Disgaea 2 a bit of your time, it can swallow your life. Submit to its will.

GamingTrend

This is a solid contender for RPG of the year (along with "Oblivion" and the unreleased "Final Fantasy XII"), and is easily the best SRPG to come along since Disgaea itself, if not Final Fantasy Tactics.

Console Gameworld

The bottom line is that if you loved the original Disgaea, chances are you will love Disgaea 2 with a burning passion.

VGPub

Better sound, more strategy and more of those lovable psychotic penguins is what you’ll find contained in this single disc game.

Gaming Age

A SRPG player’s dream. A person could spend hours just wandering around the item worlds leveling up characters and items, or one could just go straight through the game without turning back.

GameShark

Disgaea 2 is ultimately about the characters you create, the battles you fight, the equipment you improve, and the party you level up and kit out. Like many of the best games -- Civilization, X-Com, Diablo, Pirates -- Disgaea 2 is about the story you create in the playing.

Yahoo! Games

If you're not having fun, you just plain don't like tactical RPGs.

GameZone

Anyone who’s played "Fire Emblem" or the original Disgaea must know by now that this is a must-own strategy/RPG.

Play Magazine

Fans of the original will need little convincing, but for the rest of you, trust me when I say this game's well worth your time. [Aug 2006, p.57]

Eurogamer

Nippon Ichi's games are good but Disgaea is undeniably the best. While some might begrudge the ostensible dumbing down with the return to grids and more tightly controlled play (there's no chucking enemies off the maps into oblivion or picking up map furniture as impromptu weaponry here) in reality this makes the game more accessible, more easily understood and ultimately more fun.

eToychest

Its difficulty and sometimes confusing nature continues to keep the game from being appropriate for newcomers to the genre itself, but memorable characters and dialog, deceptively deep mechanics, and a promise of future sequels make this series, the flagship of Nippon Ichi and NIS America, one of the crowning achievements of this console generation.

Thunderbolt

You know what the weird thing is? I hate RPGs with a passion. Yet there’s something about this game that just works.

games(TM)

This is an intimidating prospect for the casual PS2 gamer, but a worthwhile purchase for anyone who derived any pleasure from any tactical RPG on any platform. [Oct 2006, p.122]

Gamestyle

Putting an estimate on how many hours you would need to devote to the game to complete everything is both pointless and a little scary to imagine, but we dare say that someone out there in a very dimly lit room will be attempting it. Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories is a joy to behold, you can dip into it for a short time or lose several years of your life.

IC-Games

If you are a serious player then another slice of deep role-playing may be appropriate, personally I didn’t feel devoid of this in my life (God knows I felt I could still squeeze more out of the original instalment!) enough to need Disagea 2, but then again I do also review a wide-ranging portfolio of games, those who purely RPG are likely to see this as a second coming.

Game Informer

Like its predecessor, Disgaea 2 isn't for everyone. If sinking 40-plus hours into a game just to see the basic ending and none of the secret or hidden content doesn't appeal to you, feel free to pass on by. But if dropping dozens of hours into leveling up for the sake of having obscenely powerful characters sounds good, or you're looking for some fun tactical battles and a clever story, I can't recommend this highly ennough. [Sept. 2006, p.92]

RPG Fan

If you want a short, fun, quirky, and sometimes sentimental Strategy RPG that knows its market and takes jabs at it with impeccable humor, you should get Disgaea 2. If you'd prefer a game that allows you to play for hours on end (like, over 200 hours) with new events to keep your interest now and then, but you don't want it to be an MMORPG, then get Disgaea 2.

PSX Extreme

It’s a fantastic game, to be sure, but it’s catering to a very specific set of gamers.

Pelit (Finland)

Does not offer anything drastically new compared to its predecessor. An excellent strategy-RPG, nonetheless. [Jan 2007]

Just RPG

Even though the characters aren’t quite as interesting as those seen in the original, Disgaea 2 remains one of the best strategy-RPGs out there.

GamerNode

At its core, this game is very similar to the first adventure, but there are enough improvements to at least make THIS title your new addiction and give you a reason to (finally) set Disgaea on the shelf for a little while.

PGNx Media

The game includes a solid 40 hours of gameplay for the main story line, but you can get countless other hours building up your characters and exploring every bit of the game.

Game Chronicles

Like America's own Blizzard Entertainment, Nippon Ichi Software is a developer that takes what other people first thought of and makes it so polished, so addictive and so fun that there's no way any fan of the tactical RPG genre won't enjoy what they have to offer.

PALGN

Still as life-draining as the original. It'll suck you in for hours upon hours, only to let you go when you need to have a toilet break.

IGN

An awesome strategy title that manages to provide an obscene level of depth and strategy with at least 8 endings, hundreds of characters to create or discover, a new court system and an additional Shadow World on top of the Item World.

DailyGame

Simply put, NIS America's latest tactical role-playing game is a must-have for genre fans, but a little too extreme for the common gamer.

Play UK

Considerably better, more balanced and ultimately enjoyable than either the first title or the abysmal sister title from Nippon Ichi Software. [Issue 144, p.79]

GameSpot

Just like the first Disgaea, this strategy role-playing game is best suited for fans of other stuff like it, and it's chock-full of depth, lasting value, and surprisingly good humor.

Jolt Online Gaming UK

The stylish look and off-the-wall story certainly make up for a lack of hardcore role-playing depth.

PSM3 Magazine UK

A very, very good game, but only for those willing to dedicate a large chunk of their life to it. Hardcore types, basically. [Nov 2006, p.87]

Gamezilla!

The gameplay is deep, fun and exciting but to fully enjoy it you’ll also have to enjoy manipulating some unintuitive and at times dense mechanics. Nippon Ichi’s writing and humor is top notch, but as with the gameplay, its wackiness might turn some people off.

NTSC-uk

The complexities of the customisations and battle tactics available in this sequel are as huge as ever and although this is largely the same game with only a few tweaks; these tweaks work well. Disgaea fans will rejoice.

ZTGameDomain

Exactly what fans of the genre want. A solid SRPG that takes everything the original did right, tweak it, and throw in enough subtle nuances to make it feel fresh.

Gaming Horizon

Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories is a fun trip for anyone who enjoys a light-hearted RPG that utilizes a lovely dose of deviant humor.

GamePro

Still, the rock-solid strategy and engaging character developement system make Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories a strong contender for tactical RPG crown regardless of its audio/visual shortcomings. [Oct. 2006, p.99]

Deeko

I think I found myself enjoying the original game more than the sequel simply due to the story, which is simply a tad bit better.

G4 TV

It’s been said that tactical RPGs are similar to recreational drugs. If that’s the case then Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories is definitely not a gateway drug. The gameplay is almost too complex and deep for newcomers. However, if you’re already addicted to this genre or are interested in it then this game will keep you hooked for a long, long time.

Gaming Nexus

The only problem that it really has is that there is nothing terribly new here.

Games Radar (in-house)

The sense of danger is there, as are the endless arenas for customization, but the best part will always be the characters and their dead-on voice work.

PSM Magazine

It's got drama, humor, and crazy characters, which will keep you coming back for more. [Oct 2006, p.79]

Games Master UK

A sweet RPG with a wicked centre - well worth giving a punt. [Oct 2006, p.84]

Detroit Free Press

The story and characters just don't have the magic of the first game. Still, Disgaea 2 is an incredible value for your gaming dollar. Hard-core RPG players will love it; it might be an acquired taste for others.

Electronic Gaming Monthly

If you regularly immerse yourself in the crazy s*** that comes out of Japan, Disgaea 2 probably won't faze you. Everybody else: You've been warned. [Sept. 2006, p.99]

Official Playstation 2 Magazine UK

Restrictive and ponderous in places but more often immense and rewarding. Disgaea 2 is an underrated RPG with surprisingly commendable depth. [Oct 2006, p.104]

Edge Magazine

It's a whole that still offers an intricate series of diversions - some old, some new - but one that has lost some sparkle, despite its sharper, more colourful looks. Most players will get sick of Disgaea 2 long before Disgaea 2 gets sick of them. [Sept 2006, p.80]

GameSpy

For the right kind of player, the multiple endings, secret characters, extra bosses, and obscene potential for stats and damage (a Japanese strategy guide published a record of over two billion points) could provide a pleasurable diversion that can literally last hundreds of hours. It is, however, something that's definitely not for everyone.

Digital Entertainment News

Ultimately, the combination of familiar game mechanics, a lack of progression on the graphical side of things, and a story and characters that mostly fail to live up to the game’s predecessors all add up to a bit of a disappointment, and while the gameplay here is still very solid, this game is still difficult to recommend.

AceGamez

The deepest RPG I've ever played. There's so much going on under the surface, so much to do and find, so many characters to create and train, and so many, many battlefields to conquer, all of which adds up to one of the best value for money games you could ever purchase - that is if you're not put off by the clumsy dialogue, often daft story events and rudimentary presentation, which some will see as charming and others as just plain poor.

1UP

Disgaea 2 adds only one significant new feature to its gameplay: the ability of stacked characters to attack.