Prinny 1-2 Exploded and Reloaded (Switch) Review

CLASSIC DISGAEA CHARM MEETS PLATFORMING MADNESS

While it may be immature at times, Disgaea has always been a crazy series full of strange mechanics and twists on the tactical RPG genre. Where the series shines is the sheer amount of options players can mess with, especially their team composition, and the consistency of the game’s worlds. Leveling up various soldiers and monsters is addictive and the games’ visual flair keeps things interesting. Back in the days of the PSP though, developer Nippon Ichi Software released a deviation to their formula with Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero?, a platformer starring the series mascot. More than ten years later, Nippon Ichi and NIS America bring forward both Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero? and Prinny 2: Dawn of Operation Panties, Dood! with all of the DLC content and better visuals as Prinny 1-2: Exploded and Reloaded for Nintendo Switch. I assume the game will eventually hit other platforms but for now, it is a Switch exclusive. 

NIS America has been on a tirade of bringing their past titles (especially the Disgaea games) to modern consoles and PC, releasing some of the most obscure titles to be found on the Switch. The publisher has done fantastic work releasing these games as physical bundles filled with goodies that fans seem to really enjoy but in my case, I have been getting these releases digitally. Thankfully, in a lot of cases, the digital versions of these releases are cheaper and can be bought outside of a bundle so players can pick and choose which games they want to buy. I do think that Prinny 1-2: Exploded and Reloaded is more appealing to own as a physical bundle but these are solid ports of a PSP series of odd platformers and as someone that is a champion of video game preservation I think it’s really cool that these games were made more available. 

Fans of Disgaea will likely already have picked these up but for those less familiar with the anime demons, monsters, and exploding penguins that say dood a lot let’s dive into what the Prinny series has to offer.  

To be honest, both Prinny games have some of the most devious platforming level design that I have played. As a point of comparison, playing these two games feels similar to playing Castlevania on NES if almost every level was that one segment of Medusa heads and death pits. The scarf-wearing, hesitant Prinny has almost a thousand lives to complete their goals but one can burn hundreds on a single level. It’s also suggested that the scarf is just passed down to another Prinny upon death but we always get the same voice actor in cutscenes so while the thought is funny it doesn’t quite hit the landing. These games take practice and patience. Be prepared to be frustrated and angry; there are segments that feel like they were designed as a form of torture. As someone who usually enjoys this style of slower-paced, challenging platformers, I find both games to be more trouble than they’re worth. I would like to eventually drag myself to the end of the game but I don’t think I will have the time for that anytime soon. 

I think including a mode where knockback was removed would have made playing these games way better because as of now it is just a bombardment of tough sections followed by a crazy hard boss. I haven’t even attempted a harder difficulty setting and on Prinny 2 I’m even on what’s called Baby Mode. That said, overcoming a level feels awesome and I do hope that someday a third game is developed but with a better approach to the level design, maybe with player progression outside of collectibles. 

It may look simple but this section is a nightmare.

The strongest facet of the Prinny games is the quirky characters and the visuals. Nippon Ichi has some of the best pixel art and animations in the industry, especially back on the PS2 and PSP where 3D games were far more popular. It’s fun to see the various Disgaea monsters and characters in a different light and the interactions, while basic and often crude, can get a laugh out of me occasionally. 

I’ve always loved underdog stories and the whole concept of the Prinny monster makes for a perfect setup for that type of story. They are constantly being kicked down by almost every other demon, often being used as living bombs because of their tendency to explode after taking damage. They are the bottom of the barrel but in the Prinny games, they are suddenly given a great task and must become heroic. Although, their tasks are rather pointless such as finding out who stole Etna’s panties or finding the ingredients for a yummy dessert. 

The Prinny monster overall is just plain fun and it’s hard to not like their design and quirks. 

Etna continues her mean streak with her Prinny army.

Players will usually visit any NPCs they have unlocked and then pick a level to find a piece of whatever item needs to be obtained. Fairly boring cutscenes are sprinkled throughout the game but at least the voices are fun. These levels are crafted from simple 3D geometry while the characters are all 2D sprites. It’s a charming look that I’ve always enjoyed and I think there’s still a lot that can be done with that style. 

The gameplay is all about jumping through obstacles, fighting monsters, hitting checkpoints, and defeating a boss. Prinnies usually carry with them two scimitars that they use to dice up opponents and that is the main way of attacking in these two games. Standing on the ground, players can slash away but attacking in the air shifts the camera perspective, and the Prinny rains down energy slashes. This camera shift can be turned off, which I recommend, but I couldn’t turn it off in Prinny 1 after starting the game with it. The Prinny can also slam down into enemies to bounce off of them and stun them. This move is essential to take down bosses who are far more vulnerable after slamming them and can boost a combo meter for extra points and hits. In Prinny 2, having a full combo going increases the amount of damage being dealt.   

Circling back to the NES Castlevania comparison, the Prinny has a committed jump arc that cannot be altered once in the air. There is a double jump by default but the way the levels are designed does not work well with this jump mechanic. Enemies are placed in devilish spots, frequently resulting in getting smacked out of the air and into a death pit. These levels are only a few minutes long and usually have 3-4 checkpoints a piece but they can take hours to beat. It got to the point that I would just try and damage boost my way through segments and even that didn’t work as often as I would have hoped. Again, I think having a mode that adds air control to the jump would have made this a far better experience. 

Boss battles can be a fun challenge but still carry that level of trial and error found in the platforming segments.

Boss battles can be clever and feature more of the characters from the Disgaea universe. There are a couple that is just more annoying than anything else, such as a large dragon snake that is super tough to hit and easy to take touch-damage from. Bosses also seem to change up depending on when they are reached, which is cool but the levels are so irritating that I don’t think I will do multiple runs to see the variations. I do commend the amount of detail there though. 

The music of Disgaea and by extension the Prinny games have always been pleasing to me. Tracks are full of complex melodies on high-pitched strings with rocking guitar sweeps. Much like the series’ frantic action presentation, the music captures that same sort of overload with fast-paced riffs and patterns. There are lots of awesome tracks but I really enjoy it when the music slows down, creating a sense of absurd beauty. 

Come to think of it, playful absurdity describes the tone of these games well. 

Fighting multiple bosses can be really hard.

There are other modes and costumes to unlock through play or a cheat code and I found the Asagi Wars mode in Prinny 2 to be more fun than the main game. This mode involves using a ton of guns and weapons to blast through levels, almost like a slower-paced Metal Slug. Asagi also takes percentage damage so she can take more hits than a standard Prinny. Having extra modes and including the DLC content makes the game that much more replayable and I suspect there are layers that I am not aware of but because of the game’s unfair challenge, I find it hard to stick with. 

Both Prinny titles I am sure have a group of fans that absolutely adore these games, I just find that most players with similar taste to me won’t last long without some serious dedication.   

Overall, I found Prinny 2 to be the better game due to a couple of extra mechanics that encourage combos and I think that players should consider using that cheat code to reach the more interesting mode before beating the main game. It is really cool that this rather obscure title has been ported to Switch and I do hope that this trend continues from NIS America. I just wish there could’ve been a couple more things tossed in to make this more appealing for a wider audience.  

SCORES

GAMEPLAY - 3/10

VISUALS - 6/10

SOUND - 7/10

CONTROLS - 4/10

REPLAY VALUE - 7/10

OVERALL - 5.4/10

Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero? and Prinny 2: Dawn of Operation Panties, Dood! is available digitally on the Nintendo Switch eShop for $19.99 USD each while a physical edition of Prinny 1-2: Exploded and Reloaded (Just Desserts Edition) can be purchased for $59.99 at various retailers. Screenshots were captured using the functionality of the Switch. A digital Switch copy of both games was provided for the purpose of review.  

Cheat Code for Prinny 2:

Asagi Wars Mode - Hover over the New Game option on the title screen and press X, Y, B, X, Y, B, A on the controller. If successful, you will hear “Summer greetings, dood” as a voice-over confirmation.