The role-playing genre seems to be going through a transformation in recent times. With the likes of Disgaea and Morrowind offering a more open ended experience, the strict storyline based RPG's of old are beginning to feel a little constrictive. Nippon Ichi in particular have been more than happy to shower us with open ended and incredibly lengthy strategy RPG's in recent times, and their latest release, Makai Kingdom, doesn't seem overly eager to buck that trend.

For the uninitiated, Nippon Ichi have been recently releasing a constant stream of 'strategy RPG' titles. While the hub of the game is set out like your typical RPG fare, it's the battles themselves that are the real meat of each incarnation. After placing your characters on the map, each turn you're given the ability to move and attack anyone within range of the various weapons at your disposal. Playing out more akin to a traditionally turn based strategy title, it's a system that requires much forethought.

Though this continued stream of releases each fills the same mould, Makai Kingdom isn't any kind of direct sequel to Disgaea: Hour of Darkness. Instead, it simply shares the same underlying gameplay and engine mechanics. The isometric viewpoint remains fully intact, with the same detailed two-dimensional characters. Each character has obviously been lovingly created and each over-sized weapon and item has its own unique sense of style. But the visual stylings, and the viewpoint you look out onto the field of play from, is very much still a Marmite system. It's a simple fact that if Disgaea's aesthetics left you stone cold then Makai Kingdom won't come close to changing your opinion. Battle animations are still filled with colour and spectacle, while the stylised story sequences can't fail to bring a grin to your face. The humour that many found so alluring in Disgaea makes a return. This time around the main character goes by the moniker Lord Zetta. After consulting the book, the Sacred Tome, on how to avoid the destruction of the netherworld, Zetta unwittingly causes the netherworld to go up in blazes. After sealing himself in the Sacred Tomb to save himself, some of his overlord friends appear to help him not only rebuild his netherworld, but also to regain his body.

Each character has again been uniquely voiced and even the English option is a delight on the ears. The staple of the Nippon Ichi titles, the prinnies, are more than willing to shout out "dood" at every single opportunity, and it's surprisingly unable to cause much frustration, even after its hundredth uttering. The music playing out in the background doesn't quite hit the same heights though; it's all a bit too forgettable, especially when compared to some of the RPG based musical treats we've been privy to over the last decade or so.

The battles themselves play out in much the same manner as previous Nippon Ichi titles. You begin with placing up to eight characters onto the field of battle and then proceed to fight it out with your opponents with some traditional turn based action. Makai Kingdom shares the lack of grid from Phantom Brave, allowing you complete freedom of movement. However, it's all too easy to bunch up all your characters in a tight little bundle and find it frustratingly difficult to select the right character from this little Katamari Damacy style ball of mess.

While things seem oh-so-familiar to begin with, the usual additions are there to be utilised. For example, your can introduce facilities that become home to your characters and give each a specific boost on the battlefield. Strategy comes into play when, if one of your facilities is destroyed, each character inside is instantly obliterated and removed from play. It becomes a case of weighing up the plus and minus points before each battle and attempting to get things just right in order to achieve victory.

Unfortunately, a down point makes itself all too apparent very early on, with the difficulty setting for each fight moving all over the place. One battle can feel like a complete walkover, only for the next to require every ounce of your strategic might in order to continue. Frustration is the ultimate produce of this kind of progression through the game, and it's almost as if real play testing wasn't even attempted.

These dazzling difficult heights are only overcome by taking on free random dungeons, which can ramp up your experience points to previously unheard of levels. But this is where the lack of structure starts to drain the excitement out of play. It only requires spending a few hours levelling up in these randomly generated dungeons in order to give yourself a huge boost over the upcoming enemies in the story and thus slaughter them with incredible ease. Taking this route, which becomes almost a necessity at times, completely steals away the need to utilise tactical know how on your part, and becomes just a grind in order to progress.

It's unfortunate to have to say that Makai Kingdom falls down when compared to its close cousins. While it shares the same extensive playtime and addictive qualities, it simply can't compare when it comes to the storyline. Add the somewhat alarming difficulty peaks and troughs that appear more than a little too frequently and Makai Kingdom finds itself displayed as an experience that could have been whole heap better with few more months tweaking. But for those who enjoyed the likes of Disgaea, then Makai Kingdom offers a little more of same, if a touch less polished.

Reviewed by AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).