Disgaea 5 Alliance of Vengeance originally launched on PlayStation 4 in the West back in October of 2015. It was painfully clear, though, that the game lacked a handheld counterpart. Fast forward a year and six months and we finally have just that, though it does not come to a PlayStation system in the Vita but rather the Nintendo Switch as Disgaea 5 Complete.
I spent a good amount of time with the PlayStation 4 version of the game, you can read my review here, but I still jumped at the chance to be able to review the game again on Nintendo’s new hybrid system, the Switch. While I didn’t spend any time in my previous review lamenting the lack of a handheld version of the game it still surprises me that one wasn’t available for the PlayStation Vita. I think these kinds of games lend themselves really well to portable systems as well as home consoles; just look at the Fire Emblem series.
The Nintendo Switch, then, offers an interesting possibility as both a home console and a handheld device. Disgaea 5 Complete comes to the system with all of the DLC content from the original included but lacks any new content or updates that I can tell. That being said, I don’t remember having too many complaints with the PS4 version bar a few minor annoyances here and there. It’s a shame those haven’t been fixed but they never affected the gameplay or enjoyment of the game in any major way, to begin with.
Disgaea 5 Complete is a port and with that comes some concern that I’m sure many out there share but in all honesty, the game runs perfectly both docked and in handheld modes. If the game had received a PlayStation Vita version no doubt there would have been limitations and possibly even downgrades in terms of quality. The Switch version, however, runs and looks as smooth and crisp as it did on PS4. In the time I have been playing on the Switch version I have not found any issues whatsoever and even find it a more enjoyable experience given the fact I can ‘Switch’ from docked to handheld with ease.
Verdict
Disgaea 5 Complete is a fantastic addition to the Nintendo Switch library since Nintendo’s own flagship Fire Emblem series is noticeably absent on the system so far. You can see from my review of the PlayStation 4 version of the game that I love my time with it and found it even more enjoyable this time round given the adaptability the Switch offers. If you’re a Disgaea fan and own a Switch then you should definitely pick up Disgaea 5 Complete even if you have played it already!
Review copy provided by NIS America