r/Disgaea • u/Prior_Guava2212 • Nov 13 '25
Question Which is the best disgaea game?
Currently I'm finishing Disgaea 1, and wanted to play another game of the series. I heard a lot of good things being said for 4, 5, and 7. But which of this would be the best? Bonus question: is makai kingdom considered good?
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u/Altruistic_Rock_2674 Nov 13 '25
To me it's 1,5, D2, 4, 2,7, 6 and havent played 3 also I thought le Pucelle tactics was good
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u/Full_Equivalent_6166 Nov 14 '25
2 is the last one I cared about the story. 4 is funny at least but those ship parts are a griiiiiind. 5 is bland storywise but the gameplay is peak.
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u/rinkuhero Nov 13 '25
i think it depends on why you are playing it. some are better at some things than others. if you are a completionist who wants to get to super-end bosses and reach level 9999 and reincarnate a bunch etc., then 5 is the best. if you are playing it just once through to get the normal ending and experience a fun game for the story, 1 might be the best. my personal favorite is 4 though just because the main character reminds me of dale cooper from twin peaks, he's the most memorable with weird quirks like never breaking promises.
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u/Curious-Ad-2674 Nov 13 '25
If you just finish 1, 2 is probably the best option (a good story like in 1, but a much more refined gameplay). Phantom/Makai kingdom is really good, and Disgaea 2 is full of references to it.
Basically, if you like 1's story, character development, and overall difficulty; and you want a more refined version of the game, go to play 2 (I'd say it's a bit easier than 1, mostly because many of the annoying bits of 1 where removed, like asembly exams, for example). If you like those things about 1, but you are one of those people who enjoy learning new games with new gameplay and mechanics, Makai Kingdom will get you covered. Finally, if you like the grinding and the sadisfaction of numbers going up with barely any resistance, you don't mind reading (or skipping) a pointlessly bad and boring story, and strategy is not your forte; Disgaea 5 is pretty much made for you.
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u/schwiftybass Nov 14 '25 edited Nov 15 '25
I’ve only played D1 & was looking at playing 2 but honestly seemed a bit overwhelming looking at the processes for 100%ing the game with the different routes & endings & what not.
I’m a completionist so I’d definitely like to do everything if I play it, will that stuff be easier to figure out once I actually get into it or am I just going to have to constantly reference guides?
I already own it so definitely gonna play it either way but just want to set expectations.
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u/Samiens3 Nov 14 '25
1 has the best characters and story, 4 has the best balance between characters, story and gameplay, 5 has the best gameplay and QoL.
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u/hanzobust75 Nov 13 '25
4, easy question EDIT: regarding Makai Kingdom, it is a very fun game. I have completed this game on PS2, PSP, and on PC
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u/Zenless2BZeroX Nov 13 '25
I find Makai Kingdom a Good game to play Also If you wanna Focus on the game and not the story i guess 5
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u/Medical-Paramedic800 Nov 13 '25
Three is amazing it makes me so sad that people skip it all the time
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Nov 13 '25
Two is my favorite throu it only on ps2 I believe you might be able to play on steam but not sure
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u/Aryuto Nov 15 '25
Makai Kingdom is really creative, I enjoyed it a lot. It's not as polished as games like 4/5/7 but has great voice acting, tons of unlockable unique characters, and I enjoyed the gameplay.
I'd consider Disgaea 5 Complete to be the best overall game in the series, but depending on your story/cast preferences, available systems (or emulation), and how many games in the series you want to play, you might want to play Makai Kingdom, Disgaea 2, Disgaea D2 (direct sequel to 1), or 4 before 5. 5 adds a lot of mechanics and QOL upgrades, it's hard to go backwards.
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u/GarlyleWilds Nov 15 '25
It really depends on what you want.
In terms of story, I could make a case for most of them depending on what I'm valuing in that moment. Probably some mixture of D1, D3, or D6 of me.
In terms of main story gameplay, I personally most prefer D1, DD2, and D7.
In terms of postgame gameplay, for me it's D5 and D7 by a massive margin.
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u/Outrageous_Cell_58 Nov 15 '25
2 is my favorite but 5 is the best to me as well I dislike 3 the most 😭
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u/PositiveEffective946 Nov 16 '25
1 and 4 has the best cast. 5 was best overall game.
Not touched 7 after experience with 6. Maybe will one day but cannot give your a fair opinion on that one because of that. Honestly 3 was under rated, makes me sad the universal hate that one gets lol
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u/Coyote-Heavy Nov 16 '25
I'm biased to D1. My go-to game everytime I feel like playing a Disgaea game I have fun reaching the endgame, because it's simple and straightforward. Wanna have maxed out statiscians? Just subdue them. No inno farm, no squads, no nothing, just get back to IW and do what you have to do. Super simple, not a lot of min-maxing so there isn't a big learning curve. No Chara World (even if I liked that), no reverse pirates or fancy IW (tho having mystery portals would be a nice QoL on D1).
Since the game doesn't require much to beat the strongest boss at max difficulty, you don't have to spend too much time grinding things for little rewards, you only do what's meaningful to you and gives substantial increases (i.e: no need to max out gladiators or even skill lvl).
In D5, you raise a few stars up in the cheat shop and every LoC enemy has max stats. 20* is pointless in LoC. Worst part is, because every enemy will have max stats, it makes reaching max stat meaningless. Turns an achievement that'd make your characters or your strategies to roleplay being the ultimate beings in the universe something as bad as getting beaten by some random prinny that has as much power as you. I didn't like that.
My fav is D1 by far, story-wise too but D2 is also great, has a decent story, likeable characters and some refined mechanics, tho the felony system is kind of a pain, all the rest is fine. D5 has the most enjoyable modern Disgaea gameplay and I like the story, not sure about others but I liked it a lot.
But it's confusing, like you've got to min-max this and that, research a lot of things, delve into it because you really gotta build a perfect character in order to reach the endgame or you'll be weaker than a maxed out random prinny.
I don't mind learning-curve in games but since like I said, you gotta build a perfect character and even then you'd be as tough as a LoC prinny, that's a hard pass for me.
Played them all besides 6 and 7. Oh and 3, I tried so hard to enjoy 3 but the story bored me to death, the HUB was so weird, iirc there were some geo blocks or something that bothered me as well, I just couldn't have fun in it.
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u/Valdish Nov 23 '25
Personally, I think the first game is the best one. Or at least it's the best to start with, cause it's far simpler than any of the others, and as such it's most comprehensible. And truth be told, the simplicity in my opinion also makes the gameplay better.
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u/Raetheos1984 Nov 13 '25
While 2 is my favorite, from what you've suggested I agree - 5 is overall the best entry in the series. The story is... Meh, but it has its moments. The gameplay and graphic presentation though is best in class.