Genre: Strategy RPG
Developer: Nippon Ichi Software
Publisher: NIS America

Subtle magic, like the demon-esque pointed edges on the curls of Laharl's cape, demonstrate a level of artistic quality uncommon in video games. Unfortunately, like a lot of texture-mapped polygon art, the stages are rather drab compared to the richness of the illustrative character portraits. Yet Disgaea manages to forge its own uniqueness all while sticking with the established conventions of the genre, such as the isometric perspective.

The video game soundtrack of the last decade has gone from catchy, well-composed melodic masterpieces to horribly derivative and forgettable Hollywood-trailer orchestra rubbish. Yet aural selections like those in Disgaea clutch madly at the shirt-collars of video game music, preventing it from finalizing its plummet into history. And the English voice acting is unforgettably splendid.

Like many of the best role-playing games, Disgaea forces the player through strictly constrained paths, but provides the player with dozens of mechanics by which to thwart those constraints. Unlike many games of this genre, Disgaea's depth is discovered more through character preparation than actual stage-time strategy, but savvy gamers can still utilize the in-board mechanics to snatch a cerebral victory.

The lever for all of these mechanics is time; drop enough time on the lever, say around two hundred hours, and you can fully appreciate and exploit the plethora of mechanics in this game. Minimally, a hefty fifty-five hours or so is required to complete the main story, and it is between this requirement and the game's many learning curves that make Disgaea a title solely for the dedicated.