Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero Review
A beloved game of my childhood, Phantom Brave, that I finally finished just last year, got a surprising sequel 20 years later. How would a cult classic translate into the modern era? How would the charm and quirkiness stand up against 20 years of game design? Pretty well it would seem.
After the success of the original Disgaea, released in 2003, there were 2 spin off games, Makai Kingdom and Phantom Brave both for the ps2. There were a few enhanced editions of these games, often porting them to a new system, but never any true sequels. Instead, Disgaea received multiple iterations and seemed to become the focus.
When confirmation came last year that there would be a true sequel to Phantom Brave, I was ecstatic. It had both gameplay ideas and a setting and tone that felt completely unique, while still borrowing a lot from the Disgaea series. When I finally got my hands on this game, I was glad to see it still feels unique, and I like it a lot, but with some caveats.
Taking place directly after the events of the original, Marona and Ash are attacked by the ghost ships known as the Shipwreck Fleet while sailing the world. A mysterious figure appears, and manages to steal a portion of Marona’s powers. Ash is able to get Marona to safety, but is forced to stay behind. Marona washes ashore, meeting a phantom named Apricot. They form a fast friendship and team up to save Ash, and find Apricot’s missing father.
I never play Disgaea games for their story, but I did find the original Phantom Brave resonated more than other games. Sadly, this time around I don’t quite feel the same. The original focused largely on Marona’s growth, and her relationship with Ash. This time around it’s an ensemble cast and their adventures, and while the cast is likeable enough, something does feel lost.
The characters don’t feel as gimmicky as Disgaea characters, which lets them be a bit more well rounded, but also makes them a bit more boring as a result. Other than snarky first mate Rouen, these characters will quickly fade in my memory. You can see them gesturing to character arcs that I think could be effective with some sharper writing, but it mostly falls flat.
Luckily, the gameplay doesn’t fall flat. Marona has the power to “confine” phantoms to objects, allowing them to take physical form and aid her in battle. Different objects offer minor stat boosts, and can give or receive “protection” that can have a wide range of effects. You’re also limited in the number of phantoms you can summon, and each phantom has a turn limit for how long they can stay in battle.
All these different considerations make each map feel like a puzzle. Which character should I confine to which object, and when is the best time to do so? Are there any troublesome objects providing protection to the enemies that I need to deal with before I take on the enemies themselves? Taking time to assess the situation and create a plan at the beginning of each battle is quite satisfying.
Some new wrinkles to this formula come in the form of “Confire” and “Confriend”. Confire allows you to confine a phantom to a piece of machinery, allowing it to come to life and assist you in battle. You can make use of cannons, catapults, and fans placed on different maps, or summon a few gadgets of your own, like a tank or a robot.
Confriend allows Marona to fuse with a phantom, which lets her inherit their stats and skills in order to turn the tides of battle. As you build affinity with phantoms Marona can take up to 5 consecutive actions. It does feel a tad broken, but I often forgot about it, and only used it in a pinch, or when up against powerful foes. Besides, finding ways to feel like you’re cheating the game is half the fun.
Marona can create a wide variety of phantoms, each having their own set of abilities, and weapon types they excel at. In addition to swords, guns, and staves, phantoms can also be given less conventional weapons, like rocks, grass, fish, and candles to use in battle. These weapons have levels of their own, and mixing and matching phantoms and weapons is a lot of fun.
Like the original Phantom Brave, there are a ton more systems in this game. Item fusion to power up your weapons, the juice bar to stock up and dole out experience, and salvaging to find new items. There’s always something to tinker with, and plenty to juggle, but it’s rolled out over a few chapters, and probably more approachable than the mainline Disgaea series.
Since Disgaea 6, the series shifted away from 2D sprites to 3D models, Phantom Brave 20 years later is no exception. I loved the 2D sprites, and never quite loved the 3D models as much, but I also think they’ve never looked better. They do have a chibi quality to them, but I think it suits Phantom Brave fairly well.
The color palette is bright, and the world feels fun and whimsical. Battles could be a bit more readable though, as which objects can be confined, and which is sending protection where is a little tough to see at times. The battle animations are also sadly lacking. The original didn’t have the same flashy animations as Disagea, but they still feel like a step down.
Surprisingly, I rather dislike the UI they went with. Disgaea 7 felt like it had a solid UI, so I was taken aback at how many weird choices were made. There’s no status option in the menu, so you have to go to equipment and then pull up detailed information from there. There are good sorting options in the items menu, but when selling to the merchant the same options aren’t present. I had to look online to figure out how to delete a phantom.
The game’s performance is pretty good on PS5, though I did have one hard crash. There seems to be a possible memory leak issue, as the game will have some slowdown the longer it’s been open, so I started closing the game after each play session. I’ve heard the switch performance is pretty rocky, which, unfortunately, seems common for most modern games released on switch.
Like Disagea and the original, there will still be plenty to do long after I’ve seen the credits roll. With post game bosses, random dungeons, a new game plus, and dlc on its way, I’ll be playing this game for quite a while yet.
Overall, I’m very happy with this sequel. The unique gameplay ideas and setting remain, though I do think it lost a bit of its charm and quirkiness. The story doesn’t have quite the same sincerity that really endeared me to Marona, though I was still happy to see the next phase of her adventures. The strategic battles, multitude of systems, and customization options are plenty of fun, even if there are a few rough edges, there’s more than enough reason to look beyond them.
