“Disgaea: Dark Hour” was born in 2D to avoid comparisons with “Final Fantasy VII”: “We will suffer serious damage”

Select focus 2D graphics Every Disgaea: Dark Hour This isn’t just a stylistic decision. Sohei Niikawa, the series’ creator and former president of Nippon Ichi Software, said in a recent interview with Dengeki Online that there was a precise strategy behind the choice to allow the studio to survive in a competitive market. Quick transition to 3D.

Before Disgaea, Nippon Ichi had released La Pucelle, a game that Shinkawa was particularly fond of, but Failure to achieve expected sales results. “It was a game that I personally loved, and it seemed destined to be a hit. But it didn’t sell very well, and I didn’t know how to make it sell,” he recalls.

2D survival

Faced with this situation, Shinkawa decided to approach his next project in a less cautious manner. “Since this company may not exist next year, let’s play a game filled with all the entertainment content without hesitation,” he thought. It was from this philosophy that Disgaea: Dark Hour was born, which Shinkawa himself describes as a A “mix” of ideas and characteristics.

The game is here Game Console 2 At the time, the industry was increasingly embracing three-dimensional graphics. Instead, Nippon chose to retain the 2D pixel art character, a decision Shinkawa sarcastically called a “survival strategy for the weak.”

In fact, the hypothesis of making a 3D “Disgaea” has already been considered. What most convinced Shinkawa not to pursue this path was the example of Final Fantasy VII, the first chapter of the “Square” series that decisively turned to three-dimensional graphics.

“When I saw Final Fantasy VII on PlayStation, I thought, ‘Our company should never go down this path.’ I told myself that if a company with such limited resources tried to imitate it, we would suffer a serious loss,” Shinkawa explained. So the idea is Avoid direct comparisons with richer, more structured worksbut instead focus on the characteristics that Japan is actually capable of developing.

After a Disgaea event in the US, we finally decided on the direction we wanted to follow. Shinkawa said he was shocked by how American audiences reacted to the game’s typically Japanese jokes and parodies. “When I saw fans laughing at our Japanese parody jokes, I started to believe All otakus in the world are gay We have to believe in what we think is interesting and make it happen,” he said.

This idea helped define Disgaea’s personality: rather than trying to compete with the great RPGs of the time in the realm of 3D graphics, Nippon One instead opted for enhanced humor, 2D pixel art, and a host of gameplay systems that would become unique to the series.

Xinchuan is working on a new strategic project today, Demon Night Feverdeveloped by Arc System Works. The game revolves around the growth of the little demon Giga Super Death, the many evil deeds he has committed, and the sacrifice of allies in the battle. The game is expected to be released on PC, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch in 2026.