Etrange Overlord Review – A Wild and Whimsical Villainess Story

When Etrange Overlord was unveiled as a new “sushi lane musical action adventure” from Disgaea creator Sohei Niikawa, I knew this game was going to be something special. The villainess subgenre of anime and light novels has exploded in popularity these past few years, and Etrange Overlord comes in and capitalizes on the villainess fever as a game befitting of its original description. It’s unlike any other game I’ve played so far, and that speaks to the uniqueness brought by SuperNiche, Broccoli, and Gemdrops. Disgaea fans will definitely have something to enjoy here as well. 

The story of Etrange Overlord is very whimsical, funny, and at times, utterly outrageous, but that’s to its strengths. It all begins with Étrange von Rosenberg, the 17-year-old royal daughter of the Edelstein Kingdom, as she gets executed on a guillotine at the order of the Crown Prince and his betrothed, Angelina. Étrange is sent to hell for her troubles, despite not committing a crime, but she’s not really in danger down here, far from it. Étrange is a powerful and magical villainess that can destroy demons in no time, and that power of hers becomes an anomaly in hell. She’s able to turn demons in their true selves, which are humanoid in form. Under her command, the demons vow to protect Étrange and help her seek out whatever her heart desires, be it the title of Overlord in hell or some strawberry shortcake. As the story unfolds, Étrange inches closer to discovering some hidden truths behind hell and the real world, including a conspiracy by Angelina. 

Etrange Overlord is Anime Tropey Goodness

I was sold immediately on the premise of Etrange Overlord, and the story definitely delivers in its multiple acts. It has a strong narrative in terms of comedy and character development, and with its stellar Japanese voice cast, Etrange Overlord feels like an villainess-centered anime turned into a game. Étrange is a hilarious protagonist that takes herself so seriously in some of the wildest moments, and she can basically do no wrong.

She’s an all-powerful protagonist, but she also depends on the allies see makes along the way, including friends she reunites with. Overall, the cast isn’t the most memorable, but they all play a role in playing up the hilarity of the story and game itself. For example, Sweetia is a cute and attentive maid that ensures Étrange gets the sweets she’s hooked to, and Ignacio, Étrange’s self-proclaimed younger brother and avid engineer, will craft gadgets and other in-story items that are outlandish and crazy but will definitely work for her.

I won’t spoil any story-specific details here, but this game definitely reminds me of KonoSuba and Re:ZERO at times, and those comparisons aren’t unwarranted. Niikawa, under the pen name of Roman Kitayama, wrote the game’s story, and Shinichirou Otsuka, the manga artist of Re:ZERO, brings the overall aesthetic of the game together with his iconic character designs. I really like the character designs in this game, and they were translated well into the chibi-like 3D models, which are reminiscent of Disgaea 7 Complete’s character models.

Despite their stature, they’re very expressive, and you’ll definitely notice it during the musical scenes in the game. Every now and then, the spotlight is cast on Étrange as she sings about the current moment, whether its the recruitment of a new ally, becoming hell’s overlord, or just about anything else, really. The musical element is a great touch that makes Etrange Overlord stand out even more, and it’s also used to show how the depth of Étrange’s character, despite how boastful and confident she is. 

You’ll experience Étrange’s greatness over the course of many stages on the world map, with unlockable Side Stories and Chef Stories as well—all of which is fully voiced in Japanese. The Side Stories complement the main story by peering into the life of Étrange and her companions outside missions, along with developments brewing in the background, including those from Angelina’s perspective. Chef Stories are more self-explanatory, as they center around Étrange trying some cuisine thought up by Sweetia and other members of the crew, resulting in a new recipe for the player.

Funnily enough, the Side Stories actually have more of a serious tone when it comes to character development and interactions, as it shows how the crew really comes together, despite their differences. In a game where so much of it can be unserious and outrageous, Side Stories can be a good palette cleanser and keeps the story balanced in a way. Chef Stories are also really good and drive home a food-centric theme for the game, despite it not being an entirely major focus. 

Frantic Tower Defense-Like Action

The combat system of Etrange Overlord feels like a mash-up of various genres, including tower-defense games and strangely, Bomberman, at times. With a team of up to four characters, players can punch, kick, shoot, slash, bomb, and blast enemies away on the field, which is also populated with items and obstacles. Each character has a very basic combo they can perform, along with a super attack and dodge mechanic. Overall, gameplay is very simplistic, but you do have to strategize to an extent. You can switch between the four characters you’ve deployed in battle, and you can also give the team general orders. If you want to pursue all out victory, you can keep the order set to “Victory,” and if you want party members to prioritize devices, select “Devices,” and so on. 

Battles are typically timed for a short duration, and you’ll be ranked by completion and the bonus objectives you complete. For example, if you finish a battle within a specific amount of time and knock out a certain number of enemies out of the stage, you’ll earn bonus XP for completing those objectives. During some battles, there will also be different conditions for overall victory as well. These conditions include protecting an ally, capturing certain points on the field, or defeating a boss. Of course, there are unique conditions during some of the game’s boss battles, but I won’t spoil those either. 

The “sushi lane” part of this game comes in the form of actual lanes that operate on the field. As the battle ensues, lanes will convey a number of different power-ups, items, and health pick-ups, including Étrange’s favorite cake slices. In some battles, lanes will be essential in ensuring victory, and in general, you’ll want to take full advantage of lanes to clear out enemies as quick as possible. This is really where my Bomberman comparison comes from, as item pick-ups can be as important as the actual combat itself at times.

I found gameplay to be a little sluggish at first when it comes to character movement on the field, and the knockback from enemy attacks can be a little irritating. However, over the course of the playthrough, I began to thoroughly enjoy combat and I was basically going through the motions after the first act, in a good way. I do think that attack variation could have been a lot better in the game, but there are some features that make combat more enjoyable.

To navigate hell and what lies beyond, Étrange employs her faithful and magical cat, Cat-Smìth, and other allies on the Macaron, a massive land-roving vehicle. Not only is the Macaron used to traverse the overworld maps of Etrange Overlord, but the vehicle is home to multiple shops, which are unlocked as you recruit more allies and make more progress. You can cook up meals to gain status effects and bonuses before battle, edit and upgrade your lanes, upgrade weapons, and dispatch allies to various areas to procure resources. 

As your Happy Life level increases, you’ll unlock more features for the Macaron, along with more upgrades for lanes, overworld traversal, and much more. Lane and weapon upgrades will make gameplay somewhat easier as progress through the later levels in the game, and since resource procurement is a bit of a grind, spending hard-earned gold becomes commonplace. The high amount of resources needed for meals and upgrades was probably one of my only real complaints with the game, since you need so many of them for incremental gains in overall damage output.

Etrange Overlord is a Really Fun Game Full of Comedy

Besides my few gripes with the combat, I thought Etrange Overlord is a great game full of comedy and joy that I’d typically get from watching anime, and I had no qualms with the game’s performance on Nintendo Switch—optimized from the very start. The characters and story bring plenty of hilarity, especially Étrange, and the Side and Chef Stories bring so much engaging dialogue and moments, too. Once I got used to the combat and upgrade system, it was smooth sailing right to the very end. 

From start to finish, Etrange Overlord only takes about 20 to 25 hours or so to complete, but you’ll definitely be at it for longer if you want all upgrades and reach 100% completion. It’s not a long game for the most part, though, and it’s definitely an intriguing new IP that I’d love to see more fleshed out in the future. Before more major games drop later this year, Etrange Overlord is worth giving a shot, even more so if you enjoy villainess anime. 

Etrange Overlord launches on March 26 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC via Steam in the west.

Disclaimer: NIS America provided a Nintendo Switch copy of Etrange Overlord for review purposes.