ZHP: Unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman
- May 10, 2022
- Codeglue
Get on Steam"ZHP: Unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman" is a turn-based rogue-like dungeon crawler set in a training ground called Bizarro Earth. The game allows players to arm themselves with various equipment and use a grid-based Body Modification system to boost attributes and gain beneficial effects. Between missions, players can plan their next move within their home base, access various dungeons, interact with allies, and customize their home base with facilities.
Reviews
- The game features a quirky and humorous story that parodies superhero tropes, providing an enjoyable and entertaining experience.
- Gameplay is engaging with a mix of roguelike mechanics and character progression, allowing for deep customization and strategic planning.
- Despite some content being cut from the original release, the game still offers a good amount of fun and replayability, especially for fans of NIS titles.
- The port lacks transparency regarding the removal of 16 dungeons from the original game, which diminishes the overall experience.
- The saving feature is unreliable, leading to potential loss of progress due to crashes or manual saving issues during long dungeon runs.
- Some players find the game mechanics overly complex and tedious, particularly the hunger and weapon durability systems, which can detract from enjoyment.
- story22 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The story is a quirky blend of satire, irony, and dark comedy, starting as a parody of sentai superheroes before evolving with unexpected twists and a more serious tone. While some players appreciate its humor and charm, others find it tedious and overly generic, with a lack of engaging gameplay to support the narrative. Overall, the game offers a mix of absurdity and wholesomeness, appealing to those who enjoy a comical adventure, though opinions on its execution vary significantly.
“There is a story that starts like a very lazy parody of sentai superheroes that gets a couple unexpectedly good twists in the second half.”
“I love the storyline the most, which is a mix of satire, irony, slapstick, and dark comedy; even just reading responses from idle NPCs ends up being hilarious.”
“All in all, I highly recommend this game for anyone who likes a good roguelike, with a really nice, charming, and super funny story.”
“The humor barely makes up for the over-the-top generic idea of the story; the rate at which the main character grows stronger is so bad it makes Disgaea 6 look like an absolute masterpiece, and simply put, I genuinely wish they would have let this completely outdated and worthless game stay in their past.”
“The story was okay for what I played, but I couldn't finish as I wasn't finding joy in completing dungeons.”
“But I definitely just played through the story and feel like I'm going to stop there, knowing that the endgame isn't going to be anywhere near as fun or interesting as the original release.”
- gameplay17 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by a blend of old-school mechanics and innovative features, offering a mix of dungeon-crawling, character min-maxing, and unique systems like base building and item management. While it retains classic roguelike elements such as grid-based combat and a hunger mechanic, it also introduces quirky mechanics that enhance depth and replayability. Despite some frustrating saving features and awkward translations, players find the overall experience entertaining and satisfying, especially for fans of the genre.
“Very good story, solid mystery dungeon-type gameplay.”
“At its surface level, it's a classic roguelike, with grid-based combat, a hunger mechanic that influences your health regen, items to pick up, etc. Nothing out of the ordinary; however, unlike many of the other roguelikes I've played, this one feels incredibly satisfying.”
“The gameplay works and it's got a lot of entertainment value, but that saving feature is horrible.”
“Failing feeds into the weird leveling mechanic where you get better base stats on every death.”
“On top of that, it seemed like there were too many game mechanics of little value for the added complexity being introduced.”
- humor13 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as quirky and absurd, blending satire, irony, slapstick, and dark comedy, which some players find charming despite its dated references. While the story's over-the-top elements may detract from the overall experience for some, many appreciate the hilarious writing and frequent fourth-wall breaks, making it a recommended choice for fans of roguelikes who enjoy a comedic narrative. Overall, the humor is a significant highlight, contributing to the game's unique charm.
“A quirky game with a funny story.”
“Absurd humor with a bit of wholesomeness in the story.”
“I love the storyline the most, which is a mix of satire, irony, slapstick, and dark comedy; even just reading responses from idle NPCs ends up being hilarious.”
- emotional3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a blend of absurd humor and wholesome moments, appealing particularly to fans of quirky narratives and rogue-like gameplay. Players appreciate the heartfelt experiences and comedic elements that create a unique emotional journey throughout the game.
“I bought it just so I can experience some of the funniest and most heartfelt moments in gaming interspersed with some good mystery dungeon vibes.”
“Absurd humor with a bit of wholesomeness in the story.”
“Mostly recommended for fans of NIS, goofy writing, occasional wholesome moments, badass hero-ing, tokusatsu sentai hero stuff, and games that are like rogue.”
- grinding3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that grinding in the game can feel tedious and monotonous, even for seasoned players, with some finding the process of farming for resources to be overly repetitive. However, there is a viable system in place for effective grinding if players understand the mechanics of monsters and items within dungeons.
“Grinding for cash on easy levels seems monotonous even for a casual Disgaea player like myself.”
“Typical anime storytelling—two good ideas hidden behind tons of tedious, mediocre graphomania.”
“There is a viable farming/grinding system within dungeons if you know how each monster/item works.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game, originally a PSP title, have seen minimal enhancements, primarily consisting of a few filters that some players recommend disabling due to blurriness. While the art direction remains appealing, the sprites and textures largely retain their original quality, merely scaled up for modern displays, with some improvements made to the user interface for better readability.
“Like all NIS ports, I don't really mind the graphical fidelity because they couch a lot of it in things like art direction and style.”
“Not much has been done to the visuals except a couple of filters added, which I recommend you turn off as they make everything look blurry.”
“Some work has been done on the UI side to ensure you're not looking at tiny PSP-era text and menus, but the sprites, artwork, textures, etc. are all pretty much the same, blown up to modern screen sizes.”
“Like all NIS ports, I don't really mind the graphical fidelity (I think this was a PSP game) because they couch a lot of it in things like art direction and stuff like that.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players highlight the high replayability of the game due to its randomly generated dungeons, multiple endings, extensive customization options, and the inclusion of a new game+ mode.
“The dungeons are randomly generated, offering multiple endings and extensive customization options, which greatly enhance the replayability with New Game+.”
“With various character builds and choices, every playthrough feels unique, making it incredibly rewarding to dive back in.”
“The inclusion of different difficulty levels and challenges ensures that there's always something new to experience, keeping the game fresh and engaging.”
