Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero?

Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero?
Developer(s)	Nippon Ichi Software
Publisher(s)	Nippon Ichi
Composer(s)	Tenpei Sato
Series	Disgaea
Platform(s)	PlayStation Portable
Release date(s)	JP November 20, 2008 NA February 17, 2009 EU June 26, 2009
Genre(s)	Platform, Hack and slash
Mode(s)	Single-player
Rating(s)	CERO: A ESRB: T
Media/distribution	UMD

Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero? (プリニー ～オレが主人公でイイんスか?～, Purinī: Ore ga Shujinkō de Iinsuka?), is a 2D side-scrolling adventure video game for the PlayStation Portable, developed by Nippon Ichi Software. It is a spin-off title in the Disgaea series.

Gameplay

Prinny makes use of the PSP's wireless functionality to record, play, and download maps and other bonuses. One of its unique features is that, owing to the game's high difficulty, the player gets 1000 lives.

As the ingame hours to complete the mission tick down, the time of day changes, and so do several of the stages alongside the enemies present in the game. In many cases, this can even change the stage's boss, and may also affect the reward the player gets for defeating the boss.

At the end of a stage, the total time to complete the stage (compared to the record time), the total prinnies dead for that stage (both in the stage and against the boss) and the collection of the lucky dolls is tallied up. This gives the Prinny a rank falling between D to S. Some achievements are earned by either having a fast time or high rank.

The Prinny has various moves utilized in platforming and combat. The Hip Pound is the primary method of stunning, where the Prinny drops on an enemy. Hero Prinny can also double jump to reach higher platforms. The majority of attacking in the game is using the Prinny's swords for slash attacks. By performing a basic attack in midair, the Prinny can also perform a long range aerial attack. Holding the circle button allows the Prinny to spin to avoid most attacks when he glows blue. Pressing left or right during a spin allows him to dash off, making him move faster. Should the player press down during the dash, the Prinny will slide, which also allows him to temporarily become invincible. However, spinning for three seconds or more will cause the Prinny to become dizzy and leave him vulnerable. A Prinny Raid attack becomes available after losing all 1000 lives and starting a new game. By holding Square and R, the player can sacrifice lives to perform a screen-covering attack of exploding Prinnies. If necessary, suicide can also be activated by holding L + R + X.

A Combo Gauge is situated at the very bottom of the screen. This is usually filled up when the player attacks enemies constantly, or Hip Pounds a checkpoint, which automatically fills the Gauge. A reward is usually displayed on the right side of the Combo Gauge. Filling up the gauge will make the Prinny receive the item, usually a food item for points, or an extra hit point, after which the gauge resets with a new reward.

Various items are also left lying around, and can be used in a variety of ways. Bombs can be found on occasion, and only detonate when thrown, making it useful for long range. Vehicles can also be piloted for a period of time when Hero Prinny Hip Pounds into the cockpit. The majority of vehicles have cannons or the ability to fly, and sometimes, are required to reach a certain point in the stage. When the timer on the vehicle expires, it will automatically self-destruct.

As the game revolves around collecting ingredients for Etna's dessert, many enemies and characters are food based, either in design or name. These include the Gourmet King, the Mage Knight twins "Kim" and "Chi", or the apple and corn monsters.

The game also has many traits taken from another Nippon Ichi game, Makai Kingdom, using a large variety of its monster classes (most food monsters, Apples, Corn, Carrots, along with Spectres, Brush monsters, and Lucky Statues; Gourmet Monsters appear as one boss as well), and many of its vehicles, including a large, slow, yet powerful tank called Gear Metal YAY, a parody of Metal Gear Solid, a machine gun firing pogo turret, and a self-automated levitation machine. Asagi, who made her Debut in Makai Kingdom, plays a large role in the game's Alternate mode, though she has appeared in every Nippon Ichi game past this debut.

Plot

Main Storyline

As a Prinny, the player is tasked with tracking down the ingredients for the Ultra Dessert for Etna. She gives the 1000 member squad ten hours to track it down, threatening to kill them all off should they fail. As such, you do not play as any unique prinny in particular, though the speech of the one you play is always the same. Etna only issues one Scarf which prevents a prinny from exploding once worn, and as such, once the Hero Prinny is killed in one way or another, another of the 1000 is simply tossed up to the plate, wearing the single scarf.

Prinnies have to make their way through six different stages of Netherworld during different day time and acquire six random ingredients. Different boss characters await Prinnies to challenge them depending on the time they visit a location. Rewards also change depending on time.

After the six ingredients are collected, the Prinnies head to see Spice-T, a sage who has mastered the art of cooking. In order to retrieve the Ultra Dessert, though, Chefbot-9000 must be defeated.

Afterwards, Sir Sweet, a gourmet demon who prefers sweets, steals the Ultra Dessert and runs off to his Sweet Palace, located beyond the Black Dessert Desert, forcing Prinnies to follow him. After defeating Darth Moab (a parody of Darth Vader, so much as to copy some of his lines) and reaching the heart of Sweet Palace, it is revealed that Sir Sweet has kidnapped many Prinnies in order to combine them with the Ultra Dessert and create his masterpiece dessert, G-Sweet. Prinnies battles the demon in one hard final confrontation.

Additional Adventures

An Alternate Storyline (Asagi Mode) is unlocked by either finding the ten torn letters, or entering a code at the title screen. It starts just as the Main Storyline, but have a new plot following the intro. The story features Asagi, another Nippon Ichi mascot and secret character. Throughout the 7 stages of Alternate Storyline, Asagi battles Prinnies for the right to be the Main Character of the game, but is defeated.

Also, if enough Lucky Dolls are found (70 to be certain), the player can enter Martial Tower (also known as Cave of Ordeals), an extremely hard level where two optional boss fights involving characters from the original Disgaea series are located (in order to fight the second boss, player has to play through the Tower two times). These encounters also explains some of the game's backstory.

If the player manages to get 100 Lucky Dolls, they are awarded with the optional battle against demon lord Etna herself. The battle includes many cameos from original series.

Three additional downloadable stages with guest bosses from the series could also be bought in PSN store.

Downloadable Content

There are only three downloadable stages for Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero? To play these stages you must first get the dimensional guide and then talk to her.

• Flonne's Castle: Adds a new stage and Flonne as a boss. Released on 25 February 2009.
• Marona of Phantom Isle: Adds a new stage and Marona as a boss. Released on 18 March 2009.
• Li'l Asagi Comes Home (Martial Tower 2): Adds a new stage and a new form of Asagi as a boss. Released on 29 April 2009.

Reception

The game was generally well received, with praise about its sense of humor, boss fights and visual design, but criticisms about its imprecise controls and difficulty. This game received a 3.5 out of 5 stars from X-play, a 8.3 out of 10 from IGN and a 8.0 from GameSpot.

Sequel

Nippon Ichi Software of Japan released a sequel, Prinny 2: Dawn of Operation Panties, Dood! The game picks up where the original ended, this time, with the Prinny Squad being sent to retrieve Etna's panties.

Story

Main Story

The story begins where the original Prinny game ended, though is not directly related to the first game. The game opens with the tutorial, in which Prinny first meets up with the Phantom Thief, a legendary thief of the Netherworld who steals Rare Items, though Prinny doesn't know who he is yet. When the Prinny Squad enters Etna's castle, she informs them that her panties were stolen, and forces the Prinny Squad to look for them by sunrise, or else she'll turn them into panties. A note left by the Phantom Thief tells the Prinnies that he stole the panties, so the Squad goes looking for a Rare Item to lure him with.

Asagi Wars: The Vengeance of Asagi

In this bonus story, Prinny Asagi and Flonne are watching TV, when a promo for a new tournament called the Asagi Wars appears. Various Asagi dopplegangers are entered in the tournament, but Prinny Asagi, despite being the real Asagi, was not invited to the tournament. When she hears that "outside interference is encouraged", Asagi goes out to get vengeance on her dopplegangers.

Gameplay

Prinny Gameplay

The gameplay is retained from the first game: the player must navigate through dangerous levels defeat the boss at the end of each stage. Just like the first game, the player has 1000 lives to compensate for the game's difficulty. Introduced to this game are three new moves, which can be accessed by entering Break Mode when the Combo Gauge is filled by collecting sweets. Break Mode increases attack power until the Combo Gauge is empty. The Husky Hip Pound is an advanced version of the Hip Pound that also deals damage. The Prinny Cyclone is an advanced version of the spinning dodge move. By enlarging the red scarf, the spinning dodge also deals damage. Finally, the Prinnikaze is a spinning air tackle that rockets into the ground.

The game comes with the ability to choose from three difficulties. Normal mode retains the original gameplay as the first game. The Prinny can take three hits before he dies. In Baby Mode, the scarf icons are replaced with diapers, and areas that would normally deal damage are covered by destructible blocks. In Hell Mode, the Prinny gets no scarves, and as such, instantly dies in one hit, which can prove difficult later on in the game.

Prinny Laharl is unlockable when you defeat him. You can pay an NPC to play as him, and when you enter the stage, Laharl smashes the current Prinny, reducing your lives by one. Unlike the Prinnies, he uses a unique set of moves, and doesn't utilize swords. When performing the aerial slash move, Laharl fires off fireballs that deal significantly more damage than the normal air slash. At the peak of the double jump, Laharl can perform a Blazing Knuckle, a powerful move that forces him to smash into the ground. After three seconds of the spinning dodge, Laharl also automatically performs a short range burst that stuns, unlike the normal Prinny, who becomes dizzy. Laharl's taunt also fills the Combo Gauge.

Prinny Asagi Gameplay

In the special story mode, Asagi Wars: The Vengeance of Asagi, the player takes control of Prinny Asagi. Unlike the original gameplay, Prinny Asagi doesn't have a hit count to determine health; instead, her health is determined by the Ratings Gauge, a large meter that appears at the top of the screen. By performing flashy moves and following the audience, the Ratings Gauge will fill up. When Asagi takes damage, the Ratings Gauge will drop. If the Ratings Gauge reaches 0.00%, Prinny Asagi automatically explodes.

Unlike Prinnies, Prinny Asagi has access to a large arsenal of weapons, which can be cycled through with the L and R shoulder buttons. However, like all Prinnies, she can use the Hip Pound and the spinning dodge. Her weapons consist of the Asagi Wonder Buster, the Asagi Gatling Gun, Asagi's Awesome Drill, Asagi's Happy Flamethrower, Asagi's Ridiculous Bazooka, the Asagi Shotgun, the Asagi Cat, an eggplant, and an electric guitar. Though some weapons aren't practical for combat, using specific weapons can make the Ratings Gauge increase. For example, the electric guitar causes the Combo Gauge to fill, which induces Break Mode, which fills the Ratings Gauge. Asagi is also limited by ammo for each weapon she owns, with some exceptions, such as the eggplant and the electric guitar.

During the normal story, when Asagi is playable, her gameplay remains the same, spare two exceptions. Whenever a stage is started, Asagi will crush and destroy one Prinny, resulting in the loss of one life. Instead of having the Ratings Gauge, her health is governed by scarves, like all other Prinnies.

External links

• Japanese official website
• American official website
• Official Strategy Guide
• [1] - The game's page on Disgaea series Wiki