The Nippon Ichi Software Line-Up for 2022: Attention strategy, shooter and Japan fans!

Japanese publisher and developer Nippon Ichi Software shared with us their full lineup for this year. Recently has already been Prinny Presents NIS Classics Volume 2 released, which includes the games “Makai Kingdom: Reclaimed & Rebound” and “ZHP: Unlosing Raver vs. Darkdeath Evilman” for the Switch. But NISA doesn’t intend to stick only to the exploitation of nostalgic classics and strategy RPGs with explosive penguins.

The following games await you in 2022:

Disgaea 6 Complete

The full version of Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny will be released on June 28 for PlayStation and PC for €69.99. This is NIS’ largest franchise, which entered its sixth round on the Switch last summer. The lyrics are available in French and English, while the game remains voiced only in English and Japanese. Disgaea 6 is also based on the popular strategy RPG principle, in which you arrange the crazy characters from an isometric perspective, stack them and equip them with items in order to defeat the villains. The biggest innovations in the sixth game are the 3D models and the Super Reincarnation system. The Complete Edition includes all DLCs from Defiance of Destiny, there are also new colors for all characters and both the autoplay and the Demon Intellegence have been revised again.

Yurukill: The Calumniation Games

This unusual genre mix of visual novel and shoot ’em up tells a morbid story about a prison and the search for freedom. The focus is on the young Senogku Shinju, who has to prove in this game that he was wrongly accused of murder. The whole thing is developed by IzanagiGames, who previously worked on similar games like Death Come True and World’s End Club. The story is by Homura Kawamoto and Hikaru Muno, both authors of kakeguru. Yurukill will be released in Europe on July 8, 2022 with German subtitles and Japanese dubbing for €49.99 retail and €39.99 digital.

Fall Legion Collection

I actually played a few more sessions after my foray into the world of Fallen Legion Revenants and I can understand why these games have found their fanbase. Either Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory and Revenants are action RPGs that consist of two components. In the action part you fight your way through fast, strategic real-time battles, while the second part consists of a story in which you have to make important decisions for the respective world. These affect both the fight and the end. You can reach 20 different end scenarios. So you get both games in the bundle, with Rise to Glory already consisting of two games. So here you have three games from the Fallen Legion universe of YummyYummyTummy for €59.99 in physical sales or for €39.99 digitally on PS5, PC and for the first time on Xbox. There is new epilogue content, new soundtrack, new bosses and an overhaul of the action system (GRID) in the upcoming version. The Fallen Legion Collection will be released on August 26, 2022.

Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol. 2: Makai Kingdom and ZHP

On May 13th the second collection of NIS classics was released. It costs you €39.99 digitally and €59.99 physically. As in Volume 1, two of the publisher’s old games are being revised and re-released. The nice thing about Volume Two is that the games can be played on the Switch for the first time. Unless of course you have a Steam deck, then you probably don’t care.

ZHP is a roguelike that gives you the opportunity to build your own character and fight your way through randomly generated dungeons. Despite the genre change, they are reminiscent of Disgaea. This could mean a fresh change for NIS fans. at Makai Kingdom you are on the other hand in the usual RPG setting. But here the “Petta Mode” appeared for the first time in the west with a completely new story about the game. The lyrics are in English only, the dubbing can be switched between English and Japanese.

Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol. 3: La Pucelle and Rhapsody

The third edition of the NIS classics will be magical, but no less strategic. With La Pucelle: Ragnarok Nippon Ichi Software brings a star of the PlayStation 2 to the Switch and the PC. In isometric round battles you have to hunt demons here. For this, 16-year-old Prier and her 12-year-old brother Culotte are being trained in a church. In the new version you can hire Laharl, Etna, Flonne and Prinny for it, as well as add Rozalin, Cornet, Hero Prinny and Ellie as DLC characters. In addition, a new scenario is built into the game, more music is added and there are quality-of-life improvements such as fast travel or skipping cutscenes.

Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure, on the other hand, is a game that was released for the PlayStation 1 in 1998 and then ported to the DS in 2008. This is a musical RPG. The protagonist, Cornet, is a girl who can talk to dolls and has a magic horn that grants her every wish. She and her companion Kururu want to save Prince Ferdinand. For this, the two will have to fight against many random encounters of opponents. The game has the usual isometric perspective of NIS and more RPG parts than you are used to from the other games. Rhapsody comes in a revised version with improved graphics and the option to use a CTR filter. Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol. 3 will be released on September 2nd for €39.99 digitally or €59.99 physically, with the physical version including the soundtrack and an artbook. The lyrics are in English, while the voices can be switched between Japanese and English.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero

Trails from Zero marks the beginning of a series of The Legends of Heroes releases Falcons Kiseki franchise. Trails from Zero appears in the west for the first time and introduces the story of Crossbell. We find ourselves in the shoes of young Lloyd, who is hired by a special police unit. The purpose of the unit is to restore the reputation of the law enforcement in the city. The game brings a new perspective to the events of Trails of Cold Steel and Trails in the Sky, providing the missing link between the two series. Trails from Zero uses the same magic weapon system as the other Trials games, but has smaller characters than the rest and an isometric perspective on the battles. The title comes to Switch, PS4 and PC with improved graphics, redrawn avatars and a high-speed mode. It will cost €39.99 digitally and €49.99 physically and will be released with English lyrics and Japanese soundtrack.