Disgaea 4: A Promise Revisited

'A Promise Revisited' mostly uses spritework for the game, and it looks pretty good. The characters are relatively well detailed, given their size, and the HD nature of the sprites themselves lend to a very well-drawn, quality touch. In addition to these sprites, some story scenes also show the characters close up on a typical 2D background, a semi-typical presentation in Japanese RPGs. While the characters are talking, they'll exhibit a variety of poses to be a caricature of sorts for their emotions, but what makes it look good is the fact that 'A Promise Revisited' actually animates these bits, instead of simply having static character pictures like other games of the series. It gives the characters a bit more life, and makes it feel authentic… well, as authentic a game about demons and explosive penguins can get.

In comparison, the maps and backgrounds themselves are a step below. The maps are rendered in 3D, and while the locations may seem interesting, the art style of the maps are mostly uninspired; obviously, it's not a big driving point of the game to exhibit pretty maps, but it can still be underwhelming at times visually.

'Disgaea 4: A Promise Revisited' actually has a fair amount of voice acting in it. Every major scene (and even some of the minor ones) are fully voiced, and in the later chapters when there are a bunch of characters chiming in at every scene, it's rather impressive. The English voice acting is also rather strong, though if you end up not liking it the Japanese track is available to switch to at any time. One odd quirk, though, is that the BGM can often drown out the character's voices; however, the levels of the music and voice volume can be set separately in the options menu, so it's only a minor gripe.

The music, on the other hand, is the typical 'Disgaea' fare. Some of the tracks are very good and really stand out, but others sort of just blend into the background… they aren't bad enough to stick out, but they also aren't good enough to be noteworthy, either. As a result, the soundtrack is full of highlights and (forgettable) lowlights, which isn't uncommon for the genre.

'Disgaea 4: A Promise Revisited' may very well be one of the better Vita titles to make a western release. The game has a decent storyline and is simply fun to play, and the massive amount of postgame content is sure to keep players busy for hours on end.

For those new to 'Disgaea' series, don't let the '4' scare you: 'A Promise Revisited' is probably the most accessible title in the series yet, especially with the inclusion of the Cheat Shop and the way it eases the player into complicated mechanics. The 'Disgaea' games are also only vaguely linked together in terms of storyline, so aside from a couple minor cameos you're not going to be missing out on plot details.

For those that already own 'A Promise Unforgotten', this might be a slightly harder sell. Of course, the main game is still the same, but the inclusion of all the DLC is sure to save you a pretty penny, if you already haven't bought it all. It may be difficult to get back into the game if you already spent hundreds of hours in the original, but the mechanical upgrades do make the grind less painful. Really though, if you're interested in 'A Promise Revisited' and don't mind replaying the main story (or were thinking of replaying it), pick it up: The content additions and the portability of having it on the Vita make it the superior version.