Nippon Ichi opened an official site for Disgaea 4 earlier today and shared a first trailer, which consisted of a bunch of vague gameplay bits.

While Nippon Ichi was not an exhibitor at the Tokyo Game Show (which explains why there was no Criminal Girls this year!), the company chose a hotel near the event's venue to announce Disgaea 4. Impress Watch provided some details from the announcement, which clarified a few of the points mentioned in the trailer.

The announcement was lead by Disgaea 4 producer and Nippon Ichi CEO Souhei Niikawa, who sported Prinny boots and hat as he said "Disgaea is a game that shifts the fate of our company."

Niikawa mentioned three sales points for the game, all of which were hinted at in some capacity in the tariler.

First, the game uses Takehito Harada's illustrations in their original form, rather than converting them first into sprites. He said to expect smoother animation as a result. Fans of Nippon Ichi's sprite work will also be pleased to know that the game also includes sprite versions of the art, and you'll be able to switch to them if you please.

The next sales point is "yarikomi" elements. "Yarikomi" is the Japanese word that encompasses all the extra crap that extends gameplay time -- things like collecting items, aiming for the high score, and building up your characters. Disgaea is known for such elements. For part 4, Nippon Ichi is implementing a system where players will be able to show off to other players just how much "yarikomi" they've gotten out of the game. When connected online, you'll be able to attack other players. They'll also be able to attack you.

So what happens if a player who's raised his characters to top levels attacks a beginner player? Niikawa cited two possibilities for dealing with this. First, they're considering allowing players to set it up so players at certain levels will be abel to attack in this way. Additionally, it's possible for players to come into your Disgaea world not just to attack, but to assist as well.

The final element was one of the big focuses of the trailer: a political theme. This replaces the school theme of part 3. You'll be able to manage internal factions in a government.

Images from the trailer.

You can see many of these elements in the trailer, which has been embedded below:

The primary cast for Disgaea 4.

Bonus goodies.